SDG indicator 8.3.1: Proportion of informal employment in total in India
India: SDG indicator 8.3.1: Proportion of informal employment in total was 87.2 in 2025. ▬ Flat
SDG indicator 8.3.1: Proportion of informal employment in total in India, 2010–2025
Source: International Labour Organization.
Analysis
India recorded 87.2 for sdg indicator 8.3.1: proportion of informal employment in total in 2025. That is the lowest value across all 10 years on record.
That represents a change of down 1.1% on the previous year and down 3.1% over ten years.
Over the whole period, sdg indicator 8.3.1: proportion of informal employment in total in India peaked at 90.47 in 2010 and was at its lowest, 87.2, in 2025.
India ranks 8th of 83 countries on this measure, in the top 10%.
SDG indicator 8.3.1: Proportion of informal employment in total in India, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2010 | 90.47 | — |
| 2012 | 89.99 | -0.5% |
| 2018 | 88.45 | -1.7% |
| 2019 | 88.76 | +0.3% |
| 2020 | 89.31 | +0.6% |
| 2021 | 88.72 | -0.7% |
| 2022 | 88.86 | +0.2% |
| 2023 | 88.58 | -0.3% |
| 2024 | 88.13 | -0.5% |
| 2025 | 87.2 | -1.1% |
India compared with similar countries
- India's 87.2 is above the median for lower middle income countries, which is 84.04, 1.0× the median. (15 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010s | 89.42 | 88.45 | 90.47 | 4 |
| 2020s | 88.46 | 87.2 | 89.31 | 6 |
Countries ranked near India
More work & labour data for India
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Both sexes, annual -0.5076 % change on previous year (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Male, annual growth -0.5076 % change on previous year (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Female, annual growth -0.5078 % change on previous year (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Rural population, annual growth rate -1.12 % change on previous year (2050)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Urban population, annual growth rate 1.47 % change on previous year (2050)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Urban population 876,613 1000 No (2050)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Rural population 782,365 1000 No (2050)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Female 743,542 1000 No (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Male 761,710 1000 No (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Both sexes 1.51 million 1000 No (2100)
Frequently asked questions
- What is sdg indicator 8.3.1: proportion of informal employment in total in India?
- Sdg indicator 8.3.1: proportion of informal employment in total in India was 87.2 in 2025, according to International Labour Organization.
- What is the highest sdg indicator 8.3.1: proportion of informal employment in total recorded in India?
- The highest recorded value was 90.47 in 2010.
- What is the lowest sdg indicator 8.3.1: proportion of informal employment in total recorded in India?
- The lowest recorded value was 87.2 in 2025.
- How does India rank for sdg indicator 8.3.1: proportion of informal employment in total?
- India ranks 8th out of 83 countries with data for 2025.
- Is sdg indicator 8.3.1: proportion of informal employment in total rising or falling in India?
- Over the last ten years it is down 3.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is flat.
- Where does this India data come from?
- The figures come from International Labour Organization, published as part of SDG indicator 8.3.1: Proportion of informal employment in total employment (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
Data may differ from nationally reported figures and the Global SDG Indicators Database due to differences in sources and/or reference years. This indicator conveys the share of informal employment in total employment. Employment comprises all persons of working age who, during a specified brief period, were either in paid employment (whether at work or with a job but not at work) or in self-employment (whether at work or with an enterprise but not at work). 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. 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 Market-related SDG Indicators (ILOSDG) database description.