Informal employment rate in Uruguay
Uruguay: Informal employment rate was 32.7 in 2025. ▼ Falling
Informal employment rate in Uruguay, 2006–2025
Source: International Labour Organization.
Analysis
Uruguay recorded 32.7 for informal employment rate in 2025.
That represents a change of up 14.6% on the previous year and up 37.0% over ten years.
Over the whole period, informal employment rate in Uruguay peaked at 44.36 in 2006 and was at its lowest, 21.41, in 2021.
Uruguay ranks 43rd of 81 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 20 years of available data.
Informal employment rate in Uruguay, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2006 | 44.36 | — |
| 2007 | 44.04 | -0.7% |
| 2008 | 42.77 | -2.9% |
| 2009 | 42.36 | -1.0% |
| 2010 | 40.9 | -3.5% |
| 2011 | 38.35 | -6.2% |
| 2012 | 36.2 | -5.6% |
| 2013 | 35.35 | -2.3% |
| 2014 | 23.61 | -33.2% |
| 2015 | 23.87 | +1.1% |
| 2016 | 24.53 | +2.8% |
| 2017 | 24.09 | -1.8% |
| 2018 | 23.93 | -0.7% |
| 2019 | 24.13 | +0.8% |
| 2020 | 21.59 | -10.5% |
| 2021 | 21.41 | -0.8% |
| 2022 | 22.13 | +3.3% |
| 2023 | 31.76 | +43.5% |
| 2024 | 28.54 | -10.1% |
| 2025 | 32.7 | +14.6% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 43.38 | 42.36 | 44.36 | 4 |
| 2010s | 29.5 | 23.61 | 40.9 | 10 |
| 2020s | 26.35 | 21.41 | 32.7 | 6 |
Countries ranked near Uruguay
- 40 Costa Rica 36.11 compare
- 41 Brazil 35.62 compare
- 42 South Africa 34.81 compare
- 44 Saint Lucia 29.21 compare
- 45 Turkey 26.59 compare
- 46 Chile 26.37 compare
More work & labour data for Uruguay
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Both sexes, annual -1.02 % change on previous year (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Male, annual growth -1 % change on previous year (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Female, annual growth -1.03 % change on previous year (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Rural population, annual growth rate -1.72 % change on previous year (2050)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Urban population, annual growth rate 0.0269 % change on previous year (2050)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Urban population 3,567 1000 No (2050)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Rural population 95.27 1000 No (2050)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Female 1,144 1000 No (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Male 1,102 1000 No (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Both sexes 2,246 1000 No (2100)
Frequently asked questions
- What is informal employment rate in Uruguay?
- Informal employment rate in Uruguay was 32.7 in 2025, according to International Labour Organization.
- What is the highest informal employment rate recorded in Uruguay?
- The highest recorded value was 44.36 in 2006.
- What is the lowest informal employment rate recorded in Uruguay?
- The lowest recorded value was 21.41 in 2021.
- How does Uruguay rank for informal employment rate?
- Uruguay ranks 43rd out of 81 countries with data for 2025.
- Is informal employment rate rising or falling in Uruguay?
- Over the last ten years it is up 37.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Uruguay data come from?
- The figures come from International Labour Organization, published as part of Informal employment rate (previous ILO definition - ICLS13). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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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 informal employment 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 economic activity are provided according to the latest version of the International Standard Industrial Classification of All Economic Activities (ISIC) available for that year. Data may have been regrouped from national classifications, which may not be strictly compatible with ISIC. For more information, refer to the Labour Force Statistics (LFS and STLFS) database description.