Saudi Arabia vs United States: Self-employed, total (% of total employment) (modeled ILO estimate)
Self-employed, total (% of total employment) (modeled ILO estimate) over time
- Saudi Arabia
- United States
How they compare
United States currently reports 6.1% against 5.5% in Saudi Arabia, a difference of 0.6%.
That makes United States's figure about 1.1 times Saudi Arabia's.
The two have swapped places 2 times across 35 shared years of data; in 1991 it was United States ahead.
Saudi Arabia ranks 181st and United States ranks 180th of 187 countries.
United States has averaged higher in every one of the 4 decades both report.
Head to head by decade
| Decade | Saudi Arabia | United States | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 7.6% | 8.9% | 1.4% | United States |
| 2000s | 5.9% | 7.8% | 2.0% | United States |
| 2010s | 3.7% | 7.0% | 3.3% | United States |
| 2020s | 5.8% | 6.3% | 0.5% | United States |
Averages of every year both report within each decade.
Frequently asked questions
- Which has higher self-employed, total (% of total employment), Saudi Arabia or United States?
- United States, at 6.1% against 5.5% in Saudi Arabia as of 2025.
- What is the difference in self-employed, total (% of total employment) between Saudi Arabia and United States?
- 0.6%, with United States ahead.
- How many years of comparable data are there for Saudi Arabia and United States?
- 35 years are reported by both, from 1991 to 2025.
- How do Saudi Arabia and United States rank globally for self-employed, total (% of total employment)?
- Saudi Arabia ranks 181st and United States ranks 180th 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.