Employment outside the formal sector in Pakistan
Pakistan: Employment outside the formal sector was 63,448 in 2025. ▲ Rising
Employment outside the formal sector in Pakistan, 2009–2025
Source: International Labour Organization.
Analysis
The most recent figure for employment outside the formal sector in Pakistan is 63,448, measured in 2025. That is the highest value across all 10 years on record.
That represents a change of up 49.2% over ten years.
Over the whole period, employment outside the formal sector in Pakistan peaked at 63,448 in 2025 and was at its lowest, 36,268, in 2009.
Pakistan ranks 3rd of 81 countries on this measure, in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 10 years of available data.
Employment outside the formal sector in Pakistan, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2009 | 36,268 | — |
| 2010 | 37,541 | +3.5% |
| 2011 | 39,419 | +5.0% |
| 2013 | 40,951 | +3.9% |
| 2014 | 42,352 | +3.4% |
| 2015 | 42,531 | +0.4% |
| 2018 | 44,590 | +4.8% |
| 2019 | 44,401 | -0.4% |
| 2021 | 45,036 | +1.4% |
| 2025 | 63,448 | +40.9% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 36,268 | 36,268 | 36,268 | 1 |
| 2010s | 41,684 | 37,541 | 44,590 | 7 |
| 2020s | 54,242 | 45,036 | 63,448 | 2 |
Countries ranked near Pakistan
More work & labour data for Pakistan
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Both sexes, annual 0.1692 % change on previous year (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Male, annual growth 0.1658 % change on previous year (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Female, annual growth 0.1724 % change on previous year (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Rural population, annual growth rate -0.4553 % change on previous year (2050)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Urban population, annual growth rate 2.11 % change on previous year (2050)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Urban population 160,228 1000 No (2050)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Rural population 146,712 1000 No (2050)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Female 259,090 1000 No (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Male 251,911 1000 No (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Both sexes 511,001 1000 No (2100)
Frequently asked questions
- What is employment outside the formal sector in Pakistan?
- Employment outside the formal sector in Pakistan was 63,448 in 2025, according to International Labour Organization.
- What is the highest employment outside the formal sector recorded in Pakistan?
- The highest recorded value was 63,448 in 2025.
- What is the lowest employment outside the formal sector recorded in Pakistan?
- The lowest recorded value was 36,268 in 2009.
- How does Pakistan rank for employment outside the formal sector?
- Pakistan ranks 3rd out of 81 countries with data for 2025.
- Is employment outside the formal sector rising or falling in Pakistan?
- Over the last ten years it is up 49.2%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Pakistan data come from?
- The figures come from International Labour Organization, published as part of Employment outside the formal sector (previous ILO definition - ICLS13). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 10 observations, free to reuse under ILO Terms of Use (attribution required).
About this data
With the aim of promoting international comparability, statistics presented on ILOSTAT are based on standard international definitions wherever feasible and may differ from official national figures. This series is based on the 13th ICLS definitions. For time series comparability, it includes countries that have implemented the 19th ICLS standards, for which data are also available in the Work Statistics -- 19th ICLS (WORK) database. This harmonized series for employment outside the formal sector is derived using the same set of criteria across countries to improve comparability. The criteria used are based on employment status, institutional sector, destination of production, bookkeeping, registration, social security contribution, places of work and size. Data disaggregated by occupation are provided according to the latest version of the International Standard Classification of Occupations (ISCO). Data may have been regrouped from the national classifications, which may not be strictly compatible with ISCO. For more information, refer to the Labour Force Statistics (LFS and STLFS) database description.