Informal employment rate in Central America
Central America: Informal employment rate was 60.45 in 2027. ▼ Falling
Informal employment rate in Central America, 2004–2027
Source: International Labour Organization.
Analysis
The most recent figure for informal employment rate in Central America is 60.45, measured in 2027.
That represents a change of down 0.2% on the previous year and down 2.0% over ten years.
Over the whole period, informal employment rate in Central America peaked at 67.84 in 2004 and was at its lowest, 60.34, in 2024.
That places Central America 30th out of 87 groups with data for 2027, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 24 years of available data.
Informal employment rate in Central America, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2004 | 67.84 | — |
| 2005 | 66.59 | -1.8% |
| 2006 | 64.63 | -2.9% |
| 2007 | 63.26 | -2.1% |
| 2008 | 61.99 | -2.0% |
| 2009 | 63.08 | +1.8% |
| 2010 | 63.4 | +0.5% |
| 2011 | 63.24 | -0.2% |
| 2012 | 63.56 | +0.5% |
| 2013 | 62.85 | -1.1% |
| 2014 | 61.78 | -1.7% |
| 2015 | 62.02 | +0.4% |
| 2016 | 61.52 | -0.8% |
| 2017 | 61.71 | +0.3% |
| 2018 | 61.57 | -0.2% |
| 2019 | 61.39 | -0.3% |
| 2020 | 60.63 | -1.2% |
| 2021 | 62.12 | +2.5% |
| 2022 | 61.29 | -1.3% |
| 2023 | 60.84 | -0.7% |
| 2024 | 60.34 | -0.8% |
| 2025 | 60.6 | +0.4% |
| 2026 | 60.54 | -0.1% |
| 2027 | 60.45 | -0.2% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 64.56 | 61.99 | 67.84 | 6 |
| 2010s | 62.31 | 61.39 | 63.56 | 10 |
| 2020s | 60.85 | 60.34 | 62.12 | 8 |
More work & labour data for Central America
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Male 97,869 1000 No (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Urban population, annual growth rate 0.6901 % change on previous year (2050)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Rural population, annual growth rate -1.17 % change on previous year (2050)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Both sexes, annual -0.504 % change on previous year (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Female, annual growth -0.5282 % change on previous year (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Male, annual growth -0.4799 % change on previous year (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Both sexes 197,005 1000 No (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Female 99,136 1000 No (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Rural population 36,936 1000 No (2050)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Urban population 194,627 1000 No (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is informal employment rate in Central America?
- Informal employment rate in Central America was 60.45 in 2027, according to International Labour Organization.
- What is the highest informal employment rate recorded in Central America?
- The highest recorded value was 67.84 in 2004.
- What is the lowest informal employment rate recorded in Central America?
- The lowest recorded value was 60.34 in 2024.
- How does Central America rank for informal employment rate?
- Central America ranks 30th out of 87 groups with data for 2027.
- Is informal employment rate rising or falling in Central America?
- Over the last ten years it is down 2.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Central America data come from?
- The figures come from International Labour Organization, published as part of Informal employment rate (ILO modelled estimates). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 24 observations, free to reuse under ILO Terms of Use (attribution required).
About this data
Imputed observations are not based on national data, are subject to high uncertainty and should not be used for country comparisons or rankings. This series is based on the 13th ICLS definitions. Informal employment comprises persons who in their main or secondary jobs were (a) own-account workers, employers and members of producers' cooperatives employed in their own informal sector enterprises; (b) own-account workers engaged in the production of goods exclusively for own final use by their household (e.g. subsistence farming); (c) contributing family workers, regardless of whether they work in formal or informal sector enterprises; or (d) employees holding informal jobs, whether employed by formal sector enterprises, informal sector enterprises, or as paid domestic workers by households. For more information, refer to the ILO Modelled Estimates (ILOEST) database description.