How many people in the US have a Ph.D. degree?

As of 2020, there are approximately 1.8 million people in the United States with a Ph.D. degree, according to the National Science Foundation. This represents a significant increase from just a few decades ago, as there were only about 1 million Ph.D. holders in the country in 1970. The majority of Ph.D. degrees are awarded in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) fields, although there is also a growing number of doctorates being awarded in the social sciences and humanities.