Self-employed persons by occupation in Netherlands
Netherlands: Self-employed persons by occupation was 1,518 Thousand persons in 2025. ▲ Rising
Latest (2025)
1,518 Thousand persons
Change on year
down 4.5%
World rank
10th
of 45 countries
All-time high
1,590 Thousand persons
in 2024
All-time low
463.9 Thousand persons
in 1985
Years of data
41
1983–2025
Self-employed persons by occupation in Netherlands, 1983–2025
Source: Eurostat. Measured in Thousand persons.
Analysis
Netherlands recorded 1,518 Thousand persons for self-employed persons by occupation in 2025.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 4.5% on the previous year and up 13.4% over ten years.
Over the whole period, self-employed persons by occupation in Netherlands peaked at 1,590 Thousand persons in 2024 and was at its lowest, 463.9 Thousand persons, in 1985.
Netherlands ranks 10th of 45 countries on this measure, in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 41 years of available data.
Self-employed persons by occupation in Netherlands, year by year
| Year | Thousand persons | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1983 | 467.4 Thousand persons | — |
| 1985 | 463.9 Thousand persons | -0.7% |
| 1987 | 585.1 Thousand persons | +26.1% |
| 1988 | 585.1 Thousand persons | +0.0% |
| 1989 | 592.4 Thousand persons | +1.2% |
| 1990 | 640.2 Thousand persons | +8.1% |
| 1991 | 619.9 Thousand persons | -3.2% |
| 1992 | 666.7 Thousand persons | +7.5% |
| 1993 | 682.1 Thousand persons | +2.3% |
| 1994 | 740.8 Thousand persons | +8.6% |
| 1995 | 772 Thousand persons | +4.2% |
| 1996 | 765.9 Thousand persons | -0.8% |
| 1997 | 807.1 Thousand persons | +5.4% |
| 1998 | 792.9 Thousand persons | -1.8% |
| 1999 | 803.4 Thousand persons | +1.3% |
| 2000 | 807 Thousand persons | +0.4% |
| 2001 | 866.5 Thousand persons | +7.4% |
| 2002 | 902.8 Thousand persons | +4.2% |
| 2003 | 880 Thousand persons | -2.5% |
| 2004 | 931.4 Thousand persons | +5.8% |
| 2005 | 1,015 Thousand persons | +9.0% |
| 2006 | 1,047 Thousand persons | +3.2% |
| 2007 | 1,094 Thousand persons | +4.5% |
| 2008 | 1,148 Thousand persons | +4.9% |
| 2009 | 1,187 Thousand persons | +3.4% |
| 2010 | 1,193 Thousand persons | +0.5% |
| 2011 | 1,197 Thousand persons | +0.4% |
| 2012 | 1,227 Thousand persons | +2.5% |
| 2013 | 1,277 Thousand persons | +4.1% |
| 2014 | 1,313 Thousand persons | +2.8% |
| 2015 | 1,338 Thousand persons | +1.9% |
| 2016 | 1,366 Thousand persons | +2.1% |
| 2017 | 1,396 Thousand persons | +2.2% |
| 2018 | 1,423 Thousand persons | +1.9% |
| 2019 | 1,444 Thousand persons | +1.5% |
| 2020 | 1,496 Thousand persons | +3.6% |
| 2021 | 1,412 Thousand persons | -5.6% |
| 2022 | 1,507 Thousand persons | +6.7% |
| 2023 | 1,557 Thousand persons | +3.3% |
| 2024 | 1,590 Thousand persons | +2.1% |
| 2025 | 1,518 Thousand persons | -4.5% |
Netherlands compared with similar countries
- Netherlands's 1,518 Thousand persons is above the median for Europe & Central Asia, which is 425.95 Thousand persons, 3.6× the median. (34 countries reporting)
- Netherlands's 1,518 Thousand persons is above the median for high income countries, which is 478.5 Thousand persons, 3.2× the median. (31 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Self-employed persons by occupation in Netherlands changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.
| Year | Change | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1987 | +26.1% | 463.9 Thousand persons | 585.1 Thousand persons |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980s | 538.78 Thousand persons | 463.9 Thousand persons | 592.4 Thousand persons | 5 |
| 1990s | 729.1 Thousand persons | 619.9 Thousand persons | 807.1 Thousand persons | 10 |
| 2000s | 987.83 Thousand persons | 807 Thousand persons | 1,187 Thousand persons | 10 |
| 2010s | 1,318 Thousand persons | 1,193 Thousand persons | 1,444 Thousand persons | 10 |
| 2020s | 1,513 Thousand persons | 1,412 Thousand persons | 1,590 Thousand persons | 6 |
Countries ranked near Netherlands
More work & labour data for Netherlands
- Persons outside the labour force (ILO modelled estimates) 5,256 (2027)
- Labour force participation rate (ILO modelled estimates) 66.71 (2027)
- Labour force (ILO modelled estimates) 10,535 (2027)
- Unemployment rate (ILO modelled estimates) 4.03 (2027)
- Labour dependency ratio 0.834 (2027)
- Output per worker, GDP constant 2021 international $ at PPP 130,584 (2027)
- Output per worker, GDP constant 2015 US $ 94,797 (2027)
- Employment-to-population ratio (ILO modelled estimates) 64.03 (2027)
- Persons outside the labour force (ILO modelled estimates) (15+) 1.4 % change on previous year (2027)
- Labour force (ILO modelled estimates) (15+), annual growth rate 0.1112 % change on previous year (2027)
Frequently asked questions
- What is self-employed persons by occupation in Netherlands?
- Self-employed persons by occupation in Netherlands was 1,518 Thousand persons in 2025, according to Eurostat.
- What is the highest self-employed persons by occupation recorded in Netherlands?
- The highest recorded value was 1,590 Thousand persons in 2024.
- What is the lowest self-employed persons by occupation recorded in Netherlands?
- The lowest recorded value was 463.9 Thousand persons in 1985.
- How does Netherlands rank for self-employed persons by occupation?
- Netherlands ranks 10th out of 45 countries with data for 2025.
- Is self-employed persons by occupation rising or falling in Netherlands?
- Over the last ten years it is up 13.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Netherlands data come from?
- The figures come from Eurostat, published as part of Self-employed persons by occupation. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 41 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Eurostat).