ILO · Self-Employment Rate
Self-employment by country
What share of working people work for themselves?
Of the 182 countries compared in 2025, Chad had the highest reading, 91.56%, and Qatar had the lowest reading, 0.83%. In the middle country the figure was 31.84%. Among the 182 countries measured in every edition since 1991, the middle one moved from 40.78% to 31.84%.
Share
Part ofWork & Labour
Self-employment · 2025
Context statistic
Highest of 182Chad
91.56%012025 · position · derived
The highest and the lowest
The three countries with the highest values of 182 compared, the three with the lowest, and the highest on each continent. This statistic has no better end, so no country is shown as leading.
- 1
- 2
- 3
Highest on each continent
- AfricaChad91.56%
- Americas
Haiti76.83% - Asia
Afghanistan83.40% - Europe
Moldova58.78% - Oceania
Papua New Guinea78.67% - Every region
02Every measured country
Self-employment on a map
Each country is shaded by its value, in five groups holding the same number of countries. Hover a country for its value, or select it to open its profile. Below the map, each continent’s middle country.
Darker is a higher value. This statistic has no better end, so the shades describe size, not success.
- 0.83–13.37%
- 13.66–26.13%
- 26.59–41.25%
- 41.79–66.98%
- 67.46–91.56%
- No reading in 2025 (5 measured in an earlier edition)
- Africa
68.61%
the middle country, of 51 measured · 55 members
Chad91.56%
South Africa17.27%Highest and lowest reading in Africa.
- Asia
34.91%
the middle country, of 48 measured · 52 members
Afghanistan83.40%
Qatar0.83%Highest and lowest reading in Asia.
- Oceania
34.08%
the middle country, of 11 measured · 21 members
Papua New Guinea78.67%
Guam15.52%Highest and lowest reading in Oceania.
- Americas
30.85%
the middle country, of 33 measured · 48 members
Haiti76.83%
United States6.07%Highest and lowest reading in Americas.
- Europe
13.66%
the middle country, of 39 measured · 49 members
Moldova58.78%
Norway4.87%Highest and lowest reading in Europe.
- Every region
22 sub-regions, highest middle country first
- Western Africa
76.49%
the middle country, of 16 measured · 16 members
Niger89.48%
Cabo Verde38.46%Highest and lowest reading in Western Africa.
- Middle Africa
75.90%
the middle country, of 9 measured · 9 members
Chad91.56%
Equatorial Guinea27.50%Highest and lowest reading in Middle Africa.
- Eastern Africa
67.79%
the middle country, of 16 measured · 19 members
Madagascar88.32%
Mauritius17.79%Highest and lowest reading in Eastern Africa.
- Southern Asia
61.04%
the middle country, of 9 measured · 9 members
Afghanistan83.40%
Maldives20.05%Highest and lowest reading in Southern Asia.
- Melanesia
60.62%
the middle country, of 5 measured · 5 members
Papua New Guinea78.67%
New Caledonia17.14%Highest and lowest reading in Melanesia.
- South-eastern Asia
53.34%
the middle country, of 11 measured · 11 members
Laos77.14%
Brunei7.27%Highest and lowest reading in South-eastern Asia.
- Central America
37.37%
the middle country, of 8 measured · 8 members
Nicaragua44.27%
Costa Rica26.59%Highest and lowest reading in Central America.
- South America
35.77%
the middle country, of 12 measured · 12 members
Bolivia66.27%
Suriname22.48%Highest and lowest reading in South America.
- Central Asia
31.26%
the middle country, of 5 measured · 5 members
Uzbekistan45.44%
Kazakhstan26.13%Highest and lowest reading in Central Asia.
- Southern Africa
30.22%
the middle country, of 5 measured · 5 members
Lesotho38.52%South Africa17.27%Highest and lowest reading in Southern Africa.
- Northern Africa
26.98%
the middle country, of 5 measured · 6 members
Morocco40.06%
Tunisia24.94%Highest and lowest reading in Northern Africa.
- Caribbean
25.67%
the middle country, of 11 measured · 24 members
Haiti76.83%
United States Virgin Islands9.07%Highest and lowest reading in Caribbean.
- Eastern Asia
22.67%
the middle country, of 7 measured · 8 members
North Korea62.05%
Macau6.76%Highest and lowest reading in Eastern Asia.
- Southern Europe
16.97%
the middle country, of 12 measured · 17 members
Albania50.28%
Croatia12.74%Highest and lowest reading in Southern Europe.
- Eastern Europe
14.46%
the middle country, of 9 measured · 10 members
Moldova58.78%
Russia6.32%Highest and lowest reading in Eastern Europe.
- Western Europe
13.28%
the middle country, of 7 measured · 9 members
Switzerland16.86%
Germany8.15%Highest and lowest reading in Western Europe.
- Northern Europe
12.07%
the middle country, of 11 measured · 13 members
Latvia13.66%Norway4.87%Highest and lowest reading in Northern Europe.
- Western Asia
11.27%
the middle country, of 16 measured · 19 members
Azerbaijan66.98%Qatar0.83%Highest and lowest reading in Western Asia.
- Australia and New Zealand
2 of 2 measured — too few for a middle: Australia, New Zealand.
New Zealand18.41%
Australia16.10%Highest and lowest reading in Australia and New Zealand.
- Micronesia
1 of 7 measured — too few for a middle: Guam.
Guam15.52%Highest and lowest reading in Micronesia.
- Northern America
2 of 4 measured — too few for a middle: Canada, United States.
Canada12.91%United States6.07%Highest and lowest reading in Northern America.
- Polynesia
3 of 7 measured — too few for a middle: French Polynesia, Samoa, Tonga.
Samoa44.51%
French Polynesia18.20%Highest and lowest reading in Polynesia.
03The whole field at once
The spread
182 countries, one dot each, on one scale — further right is a higher value. Half the countries are above 31.84%; a quarter are above 58.56%, and a quarter below 15.57%. The bar in each row marks that continent’s middle country.
04All 187 ever measured
Every country
In order, highest value first. “=” marks a position shared with another country. International Labour Organization (ILO) ranks nobody on this measure; the position is derived here by ordering the published values. Neither end of this table is the good end, and the trap here is sharper than usual: the countries at the top are not the world’s entrepreneurs. Self-employment above about half of all work almost always means an absence of formal jobs rather than a surplus of business founders. Read it beside vulnerable employment, which measures the difference.
Showing 25 of 187 countries
Values for 2025. The change column compares 2025 with 2024 only; the sparkline covers the recent editions.
051991–2025 · 35 reference years
Over time
Each point is one reference year from 1991. The long-run fall in self-employment in most countries is the same process as the fall in farm employment: family smallholdings becoming waged jobs.
- the middle country
- the middle half of countries
- the middle of the 182 countries measured every time
- each continent’s middle country
The same, year by year
| Year | Countries | Middle country | Middle half | Measured every time |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 182 | 31.84% | 15.57% – 58.56% | 31.84% |
| 2024 | 182 | 31.89% | 15.70% – 58.54% | 31.89% |
| 2023 | 184 | 32.38% | 15.89% – 59.23% | 32.38% |
| 2022 | 186 | 32.52% | 16.40% – 58.70% | 32.52% |
| 2021 | 187 | 32.73% | 15.90% – 58.74% | 33.13% |
| 2020 | 187 | 33.11% | 15.90% – 59.20% | 33.54% |
| 2019 | 187 | 33.41% | 15.75% – 59.61% | 33.52% |
| 2018 | 187 | 33.86% | 16.11% – 59.14% | 34.07% |
| 2017 | 187 | 34.12% | 16.10% – 59.57% | 34.17% |
| 2016 | 187 | 34.23% | 16.46% – 60.17% | 34.33% |
| 2015 | 187 | 34.77% | 16.82% – 60.76% | 34.90% |
| 2014 | 187 | 34.78% | 17.23% – 60.81% | 34.88% |
| 2013 | 187 | 35.00% | 17.17% – 60.90% | 35.34% |
| 2012 | 187 | 35.66% | 16.77% – 61.71% | 35.94% |
| 2011 | 187 | 36.51% | 16.78% – 61.84% | 36.54% |
| 2010 | 187 | 36.31% | 16.67% – 61.96% | 36.51% |
| 2009 | 187 | 36.15% | 16.54% – 62.22% | 36.33% |
| 2008 | 187 | 36.03% | 16.36% – 62.49% | 36.07% |
| 2007 | 187 | 36.68% | 16.37% – 63.53% | 36.53% |
| 2006 | 187 | 37.93% | 17.01% – 64.07% | 37.63% |
| 2005 | 187 | 37.77% | 17.33% – 64.32% | 37.55% |
| 2004 | 187 | 38.11% | 17.69% – 64.66% | 37.88% |
| 2003 | 187 | 38.57% | 17.65% – 65.52% | 38.47% |
| 2002 | 187 | 38.68% | 17.91% – 64.30% | 38.57% |
| 2001 | 187 | 38.83% | 18.16% – 64.67% | 38.74% |
| 2000 | 187 | 38.66% | 18.38% – 65.64% | 38.78% |
| 1999 | 187 | 39.01% | 18.51% – 65.94% | 39.01% |
| 1998 | 187 | 39.13% | 18.46% – 66.11% | 39.16% |
| 1997 | 187 | 39.49% | 19.55% – 65.07% | 39.61% |
| 1996 | 187 | 39.74% | 19.12% – 66.10% | 39.79% |
| 1995 | 187 | 39.91% | 18.94% – 66.32% | 39.95% |
| 1994 | 187 | 40.04% | 18.82% – 66.45% | 40.48% |
| 1993 | 187 | 40.19% | 18.96% – 66.35% | 40.61% |
| 1992 | 187 | 40.41% | 19.56% – 67.14% | 40.74% |
| 1991 | 187 | 40.70% | 19.90% – 67.30% | 40.78% |
062024 → 2025
Who rose and fell
The biggest changes in value between the two newest editions — reference years recalculated in one report, not two separate publications. Places are shown second, because they also move when other countries do.
Rose most
before → after- Equatorial Guinea27.26% → 27.50% · 104th → 104th+0.24
Cyprus9.94% → 10.17% · 164th → 164th+0.23- New Caledonia16.98% → 17.14% · 131st → 130th+0.16
Iraq31.57% → 31.66% · 93rd → 92nd+0.09
Venezuela40.35% → 40.42% · 78th → 77th+0.08
Fell most
before → after
Armenia34.31% → 33.66% · 89th → 89th−0.65
Mali76.89% → 76.35% · 23rd → 24th−0.54
Guyana31.65% → 31.11% · 92nd → 94th−0.53
Kyrgyzstan31.03% → 30.50% · 95th → 96th−0.53
Georgia46.57% → 46.07% · 61st → 61st−0.50
182 countries were measured in both 2024 and 2025.
07Across every edition
Self-employment in records
The extremes of the statistic. A record reached by more than one country names none of them.
Highest reading on record
95.63%
Self-employed (% of total employment)
Lowest reading on record
0.49%
Self-employed (% of total employment)
Biggest rise between editions
+6.71
11.82% → 18.53%
Biggest fall between editions
−8.03
46.26% → 38.23%
Biggest change since first measured
+31.88
26.90% → 58.78%
Highest most often
18 of 35
editions, alone at the first-listed end
08The measure
About self-employment
The self-employment rate is the share of working people who work for themselves rather than for an employer — employers, own-account workers, members of producers’ cooperatives and family members working in a family business.
What the number is: Self-employed (% of total employment).
09Where it fits
Connections
Its part in the Country Index, the statistics whose values line up most closely with it across countries, and others on the same subject.
In the Country Index
Context, with no vote
This statistic is published in full under Work & Labour, but does not help decide any Country Index standing.
Moves with
Where self-employment is higher, these tend to be higher too.
- Vulnerable EmploymentKeyILO · 182 countries in commonρ 0.99
- Employment in AgricultureILO · 182 countries in commonρ 0.91
- Agriculture, Forestry and Fishing Value Added (% of GDP)World Bank Group · 148 countries in commonρ 0.87
Moves against
Where self-employment is higher, these tend to be lower.
- GNI per Capita (PPP)World Bank Group · 98 countries in commonρ −0.90
- GDP per Person EmployedWorld Bank Group · 168 countries in commonρ −0.89
- Historical GDP per Capita (Maddison)GGDC · 159 countries in commonρ −0.89
Rank correlation (ρ, from −1 to 1) across countries, on each statistic’s newest edition, out of 378 statistics sharing at least 80 countries with this one. Two statistics that move together do not cause each other.
11Keep reading
Explore further
The subject
12Questions
Self-employment: questions and answers
Which country has the highest self-employment?
Chad, at 91.56%, among the 182 countries compared in 2025.
Which country has the lowest self-employment?
Qatar, at 0.83%, among the 182 countries compared in 2025.
How many countries does the Self-Employment Rate cover?
182 in 2025, and 187 at least once across all editions. The number measured varies from 182 to 187 between editions.
What is the world average self-employment?
This site does not calculate a world average, which would depend on how countries are weighted. In the middle country of the 182 compared in 2025, the figure was 31.84%.
Is this International Labour Organization (ILO)’s own ranking?
No. International Labour Organization (ILO) publishes the values but ranks nobody; the position on this page is derived by Nations Inquiry by ordering the published values, and equal values share a position.
How often is the Self-Employment Rate published?
This site holds 35 reference years, 1991–2025, all recalculated in International Labour Organization (ILO)’s 2026 report on one method — not 35 separate publications.
Where does the data come from, and can I download it?
From International Labour Organization (ILO), under CC BY 4.0. An ILO modelled estimate, pulled through the World Bank’s indicator API (SL.EMP.SELF.ZS). Modelled rather than measured so that one definition applies to every country. Every edition is on this site’s Datasets pages as a full table, and downloads as a CSV file with every value unrounded.
13Method
Sources, method and citation
Source
Self-Employment Rate — International Labour Organization (ILO)
An ILO modelled estimate, pulled through the World Bank’s indicator API (SL.EMP.SELF.ZS). Modelled rather than measured so that one definition applies to every country.
Newest edition
Report year 2025Data year 2025
Cite the source as: International Labour Organization. ILO Modelled Estimates database (ILOEST). Geneva: ILOSTAT.
Licence: CC BY 4.0, checked 2026-09-10.
How this page reads the numbers
- International Labour Organization (ILO) ranks nobody on this measure. The position is derived by Nations Inquiry by ordering the published values; equal values share a position.
- This statistic has no better end, so the page describes higher and lower values and never calls a country a leader.
- A country is named at an end only when it holds that value alone. Where several share it, the page says how many and names none first.
- Values are stored exactly as published and trimmed only for display. “The middle country” is the median of the countries measured, not a world average.
The file itself, column by column — where it came from, what each column holds, and every edition as a CSV — is on its dataset page.
Cite this page
Nations Inquiry (2026). Self-employment by country: Self-Employment Rate, data from International Labour Organization (ILO). https://nationsinquiry.com/statistics/self-employment