Self-employed, male (% of male employment) in Europe & Central Asia (excluding high income)
Europe & Central Asia (excluding high income): Self-employed, male (% of male employment) was 34.9% in 2025. ▼ Falling
Self-employed, male (% of male employment) in Europe & Central Asia (excluding high income), 1991–2025
Source: ILO Modelled Estimates database (ILOEST), International Labour Organization (ILO).
Analysis
Europe & Central Asia (excluding high income) recorded 34.9% for self-employed, male (% of male employment) in 2025.
That represents a change of down 0.5% on the previous year and up 1.1% over ten years.
Over the whole period, self-employed, male (% of male employment) in Europe & Central Asia (excluding high income) peaked at 41.2% in 2001 and was at its lowest, 33.5%, in 2021.
Europe & Central Asia (excluding high income) ranks 34th of 47 groups 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, male (% of male employment) in Europe & Central Asia (excluding high income), year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1991 | 38.5% | — |
| 1992 | 38.7% | +0.6% |
| 1993 | 39.2% | +1.2% |
| 1994 | 39.8% | +1.6% |
| 1995 | 40.5% | +1.8% |
| 1996 | 40.9% | +1.0% |
| 1997 | 41.0% | +0.2% |
| 1998 | 41.0% | -0.1% |
| 1999 | 40.9% | -0.1% |
| 2000 | 40.9% | +0.0% |
| 2001 | 41.2% | +0.7% |
| 2002 | 40.2% | -2.5% |
| 2003 | 39.9% | -0.7% |
| 2004 | 39.0% | -2.4% |
| 2005 | 38.1% | -2.2% |
| 2006 | 37.4% | -1.9% |
| 2007 | 36.6% | -2.0% |
| 2008 | 36.1% | -1.5% |
| 2009 | 36.3% | +0.6% |
| 2010 | 35.7% | -1.6% |
| 2011 | 35.4% | -0.9% |
| 2012 | 35.1% | -1.0% |
| 2013 | 34.8% | -0.6% |
| 2014 | 34.7% | -0.4% |
| 2015 | 34.5% | -0.7% |
| 2016 | 34.4% | -0.3% |
| 2017 | 34.3% | -0.3% |
| 2018 | 34.0% | -0.8% |
| 2019 | 34.1% | +0.1% |
| 2020 | 33.9% | -0.6% |
| 2021 | 33.5% | -1.1% |
| 2022 | 35.4% | +5.6% |
| 2023 | 35.1% | -0.9% |
| 2024 | 35.0% | -0.1% |
| 2025 | 34.9% | -0.5% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 40.1% | 38.5% | 41.0% | 9 |
| 2000s | 38.6% | 36.1% | 41.2% | 10 |
| 2010s | 34.7% | 34.0% | 35.7% | 10 |
| 2020s | 34.6% | 33.5% | 35.4% | 6 |
Countries ranked near Europe & Central Asia (excluding high income)
More work & labour data for Europe & Central Asia (excluding high income)
- Labor force participation rate, male (% of male population ages 15+) 69.9% (2025)
- Labor force participation rate, total (% of total population ages 15+) 56.6% (2025)
- Labor force participation rate for ages 15-24, female (%) 31.6% (2025)
- Labor force participation rate for ages 15-24, male (%) 49.2% (2025)
- Labor force participation rate for ages 15-24, total (%) 40.6% (2025)
- Labor force participation rate, female (% of female population ages) 50.6% (2025)
- Labor force participation rate, total (% of total population ages) 63.6% (2025)
- Labor force participation rate, male (% of male population ages 15-64) 76.7% (2025)
- Ratio of female to male labor force participation rate (%) 64.1% (2025)
- Labor force participation rate, female (% of female population ages) 44.0% (2025)
All data for Europe & Central Asia (excluding high income) →
Frequently asked questions
- What is self-employed, male (% of male employment) in Europe & Central Asia (excluding high income)?
- Self-employed, male (% of male employment) in Europe & Central Asia (excluding high income) was 34.9% in 2025, according to ILO Modelled Estimates database (ILOEST), International Labour Organization (ILO).
- What is the highest self-employed, male (% of male employment) recorded in Europe & Central Asia (excluding high income)?
- The highest recorded value was 41.2% in 2001.
- What is the lowest self-employed, male (% of male employment) recorded in Europe & Central Asia (excluding high income)?
- The lowest recorded value was 33.5% in 2021.
- How does Europe & Central Asia (excluding high income) rank for self-employed, male (% of male employment)?
- Europe & Central Asia (excluding high income) ranks 34th out of 47 groups with data for 2025.
- Is self-employed, male (% of male employment) rising or falling in Europe & Central Asia (excluding high income)?
- Over the last ten years it is up 1.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Europe & Central Asia (excluding high income) data come from?
- The figures come from ILO Modelled Estimates database (ILOEST), International Labour Organization (ILO), published as part of Self-employed, male (% of male employment) (modeled ILO estimate). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
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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.