10 Best Healthcare Staffing Agencies for 2026

Key takeaway: The 10 best healthcare staffing agencies for 2026 are: AMN Healthcare, Aya Healthcare, Cross Country Healthcare, CHG Healthcare, Medical Solutions, Fusion Medical Staffing, Host Healthcare, Supplemental Health Care, Amergis, and Nomad Health. AMN, Aya, and Cross Country lead on scale and managed services programs; CHG is the locum tenens leader for physicians; Medical Solutions, Fusion, and Host compete on clinician experience in travel nursing; Supplemental and Amergis cover per diem, schools, and home health; Nomad is the strongest marketplace model. Choose by the clinician type you need, the length of the assignment, and how much of your contingent labor you want one vendor to manage.

Healthcare staffing is a market built on shortages. The US Bureau of Labor Statistics projects about 194,500 openings for registered nurses each year through 2033, and the Association of American Medical Colleges projects a physician shortage of up to 86,000 by 2036. Hospitals and health systems fill the gap with travel nurses, locum tenens physicians, allied health professionals, and per diem staff supplied by the agencies on this list.

The market has normalized since the pandemic peak, when travel nurse bill rates more than doubled, but it remains large. Staffing Industry Analysts estimated US healthcare staffing revenue at roughly $50 billion for 2024, with travel nursing still the largest segment and locum tenens the fastest growing. Bill rates have come down, and health systems are consolidating vendors into managed services programs (MSPs) run by the largest agencies.

This list covers the agencies that supply clinicians on contract. For permanent clinical and healthcare leadership searches, see our healthcare recruiting firms ranking, which covers physician search, nurse leadership, and health system executive recruiting.

How did we evaluate healthcare staffing agencies?

The 10 agencies at a glance

The 10 best healthcare staffing agencies

1. AMN Healthcare

Type: Healthcare workforce solutions (NYSE: AMN) Headquarters: Dallas, TX Best for: Health systems that want one vendor for travel nursing, locums, allied, and a managed services program

AMN Healthcare is the largest healthcare staffing company in the US and the leading provider of managed services programs to health systems. It covers travel nursing, locum tenens (through AMN Leadership and Merritt Hawkins for physician search), allied health, interim leadership, language services, and workforce technology (ShiftWise and Smart Square). A large health system that wants to consolidate dozens of staffing vendors into one program will almost always evaluate AMN.

Strengths:

• Largest clinician supply and broadest service lines
• Leading MSP and vendor management programs
• Workforce technology for scheduling and float pools

Limitations:

• Enterprise focus makes it heavy for a single facility with a few openings
• MSP model can push smaller agencies out of your vendor mix

2. Aya Healthcare

Type: Healthcare staffing and workforce technology Headquarters: San Diego, CA Best for: Travel nursing at scale and health systems seeking a technology-driven MSP

Aya Healthcare is the largest travel nurse staffing company and has built a workforce platform that gives health systems visibility into their contingent labor across vendors. Clinicians favor Aya for pay transparency and a large volume of open assignments; health systems use its MSP and float pool technology to manage internal and external staff together. It also covers allied health, locums (through its acquisition of locum tenens firms), and non-clinical roles.

Strengths:

• Largest travel nurse volume in the US
• Strong workforce technology and MSP capability
• High clinician satisfaction and pay transparency

Limitations:

• Travel-centric; per diem and permanent coverage is thinner
• Scale means less personal service for small facilities

3. Cross Country Healthcare

Type: Healthcare staffing and workforce solutions (Nasdaq: CCRN) Headquarters: Boca Raton, FL Best for: Travel nursing, allied health, education staffing, and MSP programs with a long enterprise track record

Cross Country Healthcare is one of the oldest national healthcare staffing companies, covering travel nursing, allied health, locum tenens, home care, education (school nurses and therapists), and physician and executive search. Its Intellify platform supports vendor-neutral MSPs for health systems that want to manage multiple agencies through one system. It has long relationships with academic medical centers and large regional systems.

Strengths:

• Broad coverage including education and home care
• Vendor-neutral MSP technology (Intellify)
• Decades of health system relationships

Limitations:

• Smaller travel nurse volume than Aya or AMN
• Public-company cost pressure has led to restructuring

4. CHG Healthcare

Type: Locum tenens and healthcare staffing (CompHealth, Weatherby, Global Medical, RNnetwork) Headquarters: Salt Lake City, UT Best for: Physician and advanced practice locum tenens coverage, plus travel nursing through RNnetwork

CHG Healthcare is the largest locum tenens company in the US, operating CompHealth, Weatherby Healthcare, and Global Medical Staffing for physicians and advanced practice providers, and RNnetwork for travel nurses. If you need a hospitalist, anesthesiologist, or psychiatrist to cover a gap next month, CHG's brands have the deepest physician pools and the most experience with licensing, privileging, and malpractice logistics.

Strengths:

• Largest locum tenens provider across specialties
• Multiple brands for physicians, APPs, and nurses
• Strong licensing and credentialing support for providers

Limitations:

• Physician-centric; smaller in allied health and per diem
• Premium rates typical of locum tenens

5. Medical Solutions

Type: Travel nursing, allied, and workforce solutions Headquarters: Omaha, NE Best for: Travel nurses and allied professionals with a clinician-first service model, plus MSP for mid-sized systems

Medical Solutions is one of the largest travel nurse agencies and has consistently ranked near the top of clinician satisfaction surveys for recruiter support and benefits. It covers travel nursing, allied health, interim leadership, and per diem (through its acquisitions), and offers workforce solutions for mid-sized health systems that find the largest MSPs too heavy. A strong clinician experience translates into more reliable fills.

Strengths:

• High recruiter and clinician satisfaction ratings
• Travel, allied, interim, and per diem coverage
• MSP options sized for regional systems

Limitations:

• Less workforce technology than Aya or AMN
• Smaller locum tenens practice

6. Fusion Medical Staffing

Type: Travel nursing and allied health staffing Headquarters: Omaha, NE Best for: Travel nurses, therapists, lab, and imaging professionals who value a smaller, service-focused agency

Fusion Medical Staffing is a fast-growing travel agency covering nursing, therapy, laboratory, radiology, cardiopulmonary, and long-term care. It is smaller than the national leaders but has built a loyal clinician base through responsive recruiters and competitive benefits, and it works as a subcontractor in many MSP programs. Facilities often get access to Fusion clinicians through their primary vendor.

Strengths:

• Strong allied health coverage alongside nursing
• High clinician loyalty and repeat assignments
• Agile for facilities with specialized or short-notice needs

Limitations:

• Smaller scale and no MSP of its own
• Limited physician and locum tenens capability

7. Host Healthcare

Type: Travel nursing, allied, and therapy staffing Headquarters: San Diego, CA Best for: Travel nursing and therapy assignments with a highly rated clinician support model

Host Healthcare is a travel agency that has repeatedly ranked among the top-rated agencies by clinicians for recruiter communication and benefits, and it covers nursing, allied health, and therapy. It is a frequent subcontractor in the major MSP programs, so facilities working with Aya or AMN often receive Host clinicians. Its reputation among travelers helps it fill hard-to-staff assignments.

Strengths:

• Consistently top-rated by travel clinicians
• Nursing, allied, and therapy coverage
• Fills difficult assignments through traveler loyalty

Limitations:

• No MSP or workforce technology of its own
• Smaller volume than the national leaders

8. Supplemental Health Care

Type: Healthcare and school staffing Headquarters: Park City, UT Best for: Per diem, local contract, school-based clinicians, and home health alongside travel nursing

Supplemental Health Care covers travel and local contract nursing, allied health, per diem, school-based services (nurses, therapists, special education support), home health, and corrections. Its breadth in per diem and local contract staffing distinguishes it from travel-only agencies, and its school staffing practice is one of the largest. Facilities that need a mix of local per diem and travel coverage can use one vendor.

Strengths:

• Strong per diem and local contract coverage
• Large school-based and home health practices
• Covers corrections and other non-hospital settings

Limitations:

• Lower brand visibility among travelers than Aya or Medical Solutions
• MSP capability is less developed

9. Amergis

Type: Healthcare, school, and home care staffing (formerly Maxim Healthcare Staffing) Headquarters: Columbia, MD Best for: Nursing, allied, behavioral health, school, and home care staffing through a large local branch network

Amergis, formerly Maxim Healthcare Staffing, operates a national branch network supplying nurses, allied professionals, behavioral health staff, school-based clinicians, and home care workers, as well as travel and government staffing. Its local branch model means recruiters know the facilities and clinicians in each market, which suits per diem and local contract needs that national travel agencies handle poorly.

Strengths:

• Large local branch network for per diem and local contract staffing
• Behavioral health, school, and home care coverage
• Government and public health staffing experience

Limitations:

• Rebrand from Maxim is still bedding in
• Travel nursing is a smaller share of the business

10. Nomad Health

Type: Healthcare staffing marketplace Headquarters: New York, NY Best for: Facilities and clinicians that want transparent pay and a faster, self-serve travel nursing and allied process

Nomad Health is a technology-driven marketplace that lets travel nurses and allied professionals search assignments with transparent pay, apply directly, and complete credentialing online, with Nomad acting as the employer of record. It cuts recruiter overhead, which it passes on in lower bill rates or higher clinician pay. For facilities frustrated with opaque agency pricing, Nomad's model is a useful alternative or supplement.

Strengths:

• Transparent pay and faster self-serve process
• Online credentialing reduces time to start
• Competitive bill rates from lower overhead

Limitations:

• Less hands-on account management than traditional agencies
• Smaller supply in some specialties and rural markets

How do healthcare staffing agencies charge?

Travel nursing and allied contracts are billed at an hourly rate that covers the clinician's pay, housing stipend, benefits, payroll taxes, and agency margin. Post-pandemic travel RN bill rates have settled well below their 2022 peak but remain above pre-2020 levels in most markets. Locum tenens physicians are billed daily or hourly at rates that vary widely by specialty, with the agency covering malpractice. Per diem is billed hourly at a markup over the local pay rate. Permanent placement fees for physicians through search firms typically run $20,000 to $35,000 or more per hire, which is why many systems separate contract staffing vendors from search firms.

Where does AI sourcing fit in healthcare recruiting?

Contract agencies solve the near-term coverage problem. They do not solve the permanent hiring problem, and that is where health systems spend the most. The 2025 NSI National Health Care Retention and RN Staffing Report put the average cost of RN turnover at more than $56,000 per nurse, and every permanent hire a system fills itself instead of through a travel contract or placement fee improves that math.

Noon runs autonomous sourcing agents that find candidates for permanent clinical, allied, and non-clinical roles across the open web, evaluate experience against each requisition's requirements, and run personalized email and SMS outreach, on one flat plan with unlimited roles and seats (see pricing). A system recruiting team can run dozens of nurse, technologist, and revenue-cycle searches in parallel without adding recruiters or agency fees. Our healthcare recruiting firms list covers the search firms for leadership and physician roles, our cost-per-hire benchmarks put agency fees in context, and the AI recruiting guide explains how autonomous sourcing works. For agencies themselves, see best AI recruiting software for staffing agencies.

FAQ

What is the largest healthcare staffing agency? AMN Healthcare is the largest by revenue and service breadth. Aya Healthcare is the largest travel nurse agency, and CHG Healthcare is the largest locum tenens (physician) staffing company.

How much do travel nurse agencies charge hospitals? Hospitals pay an hourly bill rate that covers the nurse's pay, stipends, benefits, and agency margin. Rates vary by specialty, location, and urgency. They peaked in 2022 and have since fallen substantially but remain above pre-pandemic levels in most markets. Ask each agency for the pay-to-bill breakdown.

What is the difference between travel nursing and per diem staffing? Travel assignments are typically 13 weeks with housing stipends and often involve relocation. Per diem is shift-by-shift local work at an hourly rate with no stipends. Agencies such as Supplemental Health Care and Amergis cover both; Aya, Medical Solutions, Fusion, Host, and Nomad are travel-focused.

What is locum tenens? Locum tenens is temporary physician or advanced practice provider coverage, usually for weeks to months, to fill vacancies, leaves, or seasonal demand. CHG Healthcare (CompHealth, Weatherby) is the largest provider; AMN, Cross Country, and Aya also offer it.

What is a healthcare MSP? A managed services program in which one agency (often AMN, Aya, or Cross Country) manages all of a health system's contingent clinical labor, distributing orders to subcontracting agencies and consolidating billing and compliance. It simplifies vendor management but can reduce the system's direct relationships with smaller agencies.