Self-employed, female (% of female employment) in New Zealand
New Zealand: Self-employed, female (% of female employment) was 15.0% in 2025. ▼ Falling
Self-employed, female (% of female employment) in New Zealand, 1991–2025
Source: ILO Modelled Estimates database (ILOEST), International Labour Organization (ILO).
Analysis
New Zealand recorded 15.0% for self-employed, female (% of female employment) in 2025. That is the lowest value across all 35 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 1.0% on the previous year and down 6.4% over ten years.
Over the whole period, self-employed, female (% of female employment) in New Zealand peaked at 18.8% in 1993 and was at its lowest, 15.0%, in 2025.
New Zealand ranks 129th of 187 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 35 years of available data.
Self-employed, female (% of female employment) in New Zealand, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1991 | 18.5% | — |
| 1992 | 18.8% | +1.5% |
| 1993 | 18.8% | +0.5% |
| 1994 | 18.8% | -0.1% |
| 1995 | 18.7% | -0.7% |
| 1996 | 18.5% | -0.8% |
| 1997 | 18.4% | -0.8% |
| 1998 | 18.3% | -0.4% |
| 1999 | 18.2% | -0.9% |
| 2000 | 18.0% | -1.1% |
| 2001 | 17.8% | -1.1% |
| 2002 | 17.5% | -1.3% |
| 2003 | 17.3% | -1.4% |
| 2004 | 17.0% | -1.7% |
| 2005 | 16.7% | -1.6% |
| 2006 | 16.4% | -1.6% |
| 2007 | 16.2% | -1.6% |
| 2008 | 16.1% | -0.6% |
| 2009 | 16.1% | +0.0% |
| 2010 | 16.1% | +0.1% |
| 2011 | 16.2% | +0.3% |
| 2012 | 16.2% | +0.2% |
| 2013 | 16.2% | -0.1% |
| 2014 | 16.1% | -0.3% |
| 2015 | 16.0% | -0.5% |
| 2016 | 15.9% | -0.7% |
| 2017 | 15.8% | -1.0% |
| 2018 | 15.6% | -1.1% |
| 2019 | 15.4% | -1.3% |
| 2020 | 15.6% | +1.0% |
| 2021 | 15.8% | +1.2% |
| 2022 | 15.7% | -0.2% |
| 2023 | 15.5% | -1.2% |
| 2024 | 15.2% | -2.4% |
| 2025 | 15.0% | -1.0% |
New Zealand compared with similar countries
- New Zealand's 15.0% is above the median for high income countries, which is 9.7%, 1.6× the median. (62 countries reporting)
- New Zealand's 15.0% is below the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 37.3%, 40% of the median. (29 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 18.6% | 18.2% | 18.8% | 9 |
| 2000s | 16.9% | 16.1% | 18.0% | 10 |
| 2010s | 16.0% | 15.4% | 16.2% | 10 |
| 2020s | 15.5% | 15.0% | 15.8% | 6 |
Countries ranked near New Zealand
- 126 Tunisia 15.2% compare
- 127 French Polynesia 15.1% compare
- 128 Switzerland 15.1% compare
- 130 Lebanon 14.9% compare
- 131 South Africa 14.7% compare
- 132 Poland 13.6% compare
More work & labour data for New Zealand
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Both sexes, annual -0.0748 % change on previous year (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Male, annual growth -0.0721 % change on previous year (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Female, annual growth -0.0776 % change on previous year (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Rural population, annual growth rate -1.39 % change on previous year (2050)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Urban population, annual growth rate 0.4877 % change on previous year (2050)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Urban population 5,200 1000 No (2050)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Rural population 511.04 1000 No (2050)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Female 2,819 1000 No (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Male 2,994 1000 No (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Both sexes 5,812 1000 No (2100)
Frequently asked questions
- What is self-employed, female (% of female employment) in New Zealand?
- Self-employed, female (% of female employment) in New Zealand was 15.0% in 2025, according to ILO Modelled Estimates database (ILOEST), International Labour Organization (ILO).
- What is the highest self-employed, female (% of female employment) recorded in New Zealand?
- The highest recorded value was 18.8% in 1993.
- What is the lowest self-employed, female (% of female employment) recorded in New Zealand?
- The lowest recorded value was 15.0% in 2025.
- How does New Zealand rank for self-employed, female (% of female employment)?
- New Zealand ranks 129th out of 187 countries with data for 2025.
- Is self-employed, female (% of female employment) rising or falling in New Zealand?
- Over the last ten years it is down 6.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this New Zealand data come from?
- The figures come from ILO Modelled Estimates database (ILOEST), International Labour Organization (ILO), published as part of Self-employed, female (% of female employment) (modeled ILO estimate). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 35 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
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.