Germany vs Japan: Self-employed, total (% of total employment)
Self-employed, total (% of total employment) over time
- Germany
- Japan
How they compare
Japan currently reports 9.1% against 8.1% in Germany, a difference of 1.0%.
That makes Japan's figure about 1.1 times Germany's.
The two have swapped places 4 times across 35 shared years of data; in 1991 it was Japan ahead.
Germany ranks 173rd and Japan ranks 171st of 187 countries.
Japan has averaged higher in every one of the 4 decades both report.
Head to head by decade
| Decade | Germany | Japan | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 10.5% | 18.7% | 8.2% | Japan |
| 2000s | 11.6% | 14.2% | 2.6% | Japan |
| 2010s | 10.8% | 11.0% | 0.2% | Japan |
| 2020s | 8.5% | 9.6% | 1.1% | Japan |
Averages of every year both report within each decade.
Frequently asked questions
- Which has higher self-employed, total (% of total employment), Germany or Japan?
- Japan, at 9.1% against 8.1% in Germany as of 2025.
- What is the difference in self-employed, total (% of total employment) between Germany and Japan?
- 1.0%, with Japan ahead.
- How many years of comparable data are there for Germany and Japan?
- 35 years are reported by both, from 1991 to 2025.
- How do Germany and Japan rank globally for self-employed, total (% of total employment)?
- Germany ranks 173rd and Japan ranks 171st of 187 countries.
- Where does this data come from?
- ILO Modelled Estimates database (ILOEST), International Labour Organization (ILO), published as Self-employed, total (% of total employment) (modeled ILO estimate). Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.
Individual pages
About this data
Self-employed workers are those workers who, working on their own account or with one or a few partners or in cooperative, hold the type of jobs defined as a "self-employment jobs." i.e. jobs where the remuneration is directly dependent upon the profits derived from the goods and services produced. Self-employed workers include sub-categories of employers, own-account workers and members of producers' cooperatives and contributing family workers.