Variation between general practitioners in type 2 diabetes processes of care

•The GPs’ performance ranged from 8% to 96% of the recommended diabetes procedures.•Use of a structured follow-up form was associated with better performance.•Heavier GP workload was associated with a poorer performance.•GPs older than 60 years were more likely to perform worse. To explore variation in general practitioners’ (GPs’) performance of six recommended procedures in type 2 diabetes patients 60 years and heavier workload were associated with poorer performance. We found large variations in GPs’ performance of processes of care. Factors reflecting structure and workload were strongly associated with performance.