The FAA released its 2025 U.S. Civil Airmen Statistics earlier this week, which show the active U.S. pilot population reached 887,519 by the end of the year. That is up from 848,770 in 2024 and 691,691 in 2020, extending a five-year climb of nearly 196,000 pilots. The 2025 report also shows that the largest share of that growth continues to come from student pilots, whose totals have increased sharply each year since 2020.
Student Growth Continues To Lead
The FAA reported 370,286 active student pilots in 2025, up from 345,495 in 2024 and 222,629 in 2020. Private pilots continued a slower but steady climb, reaching 174,155 in 2025 from 172,012 a year earlier and 160,860 in 2020.
Commercial pilot numbers posted a larger jump, rising to 118,314 in 2025 from 109,727 in 2024, while airline transport pilots increased to 181,742 from 179,194. Recreational pilot numbers remained minimal, while sport pilot totals edged up slightly to 7,450.
Female Pilot Totals Reach Another High
The 2025 data also show continued gains among female pilots. The FAA reported 100,704 active women pilots in 2025, up from 91,694 in 2024 and 58,541 in 2020. Women student pilots rose to 60,764, while women commercial pilots increased to 12,867 and women airline transport pilots reached 10,376, each the highest total in this 2020-2025 comparison.
Taken together, recent annual reports show a pilot population that has been expanding across most major certificate categories, but with the clearest momentum still centered on students and, more recently, commercial pilots.
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