Self-employed, total (% of total employment) (modeled ILO estimate) in Iran
Iran: Self-employed, total (% of total employment) (modeled ILO estimate) was 42.9% in 2025. ▼ Falling
Self-employed, total (% of total employment) in Iran, 1991–2025
Source: ILO Modelled Estimates database (ILOEST), International Labour Organization (ILO).
Analysis
The most recent figure for self-employed, total (% of total employment) in Iran is 42.9%, measured in 2025.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 0.5% on the previous year and down 3.5% over ten years.
Over the whole period, self-employed, total (% of total employment) in Iran peaked at 48.8% in 2005 and was at its lowest, 42.8%, in 2021.
That places Iran 70th out of 187 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 35 years of available data.
Self-employed, total (% of total employment) (modeled ILO estimate) in Iran, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1991 | 48.0% | — |
| 1992 | 47.7% | -0.5% |
| 1993 | 47.6% | -0.3% |
| 1994 | 47.5% | -0.2% |
| 1995 | 47.4% | -0.2% |
| 1996 | 47.3% | -0.2% |
| 1997 | 47.5% | +0.4% |
| 1998 | 47.7% | +0.4% |
| 1999 | 48.0% | +0.5% |
| 2000 | 48.1% | +0.4% |
| 2001 | 48.3% | +0.4% |
| 2002 | 48.5% | +0.3% |
| 2003 | 48.5% | +0.1% |
| 2004 | 48.6% | +0.2% |
| 2005 | 48.8% | +0.3% |
| 2006 | 48.4% | -0.7% |
| 2007 | 48.2% | -0.6% |
| 2008 | 47.0% | -2.5% |
| 2009 | 46.3% | -1.4% |
| 2010 | 44.8% | -3.2% |
| 2011 | 43.9% | -2.1% |
| 2012 | 44.2% | +0.7% |
| 2013 | 45.2% | +2.2% |
| 2014 | 44.4% | -1.7% |
| 2015 | 44.5% | +0.2% |
| 2016 | 45.2% | +1.7% |
| 2017 | 45.6% | +0.9% |
| 2018 | 45.5% | -0.2% |
| 2019 | 45.0% | -1.2% |
| 2020 | 43.7% | -2.7% |
| 2021 | 42.8% | -2.2% |
| 2022 | 42.8% | +0.0% |
| 2023 | 43.4% | +1.4% |
| 2024 | 43.2% | -0.5% |
| 2025 | 42.9% | -0.5% |
Iran compared with similar countries
- Iran's 42.9% is above the median for upper middle income countries, which is 32.4%, 1.3× the median. (53 countries reporting)
- Iran's 42.9% is above the median for Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan, which is 25.9%, 1.7× the median. (23 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 47.6% | 47.3% | 48.0% | 9 |
| 2000s | 48.1% | 46.3% | 48.8% | 10 |
| 2010s | 44.8% | 43.9% | 45.6% | 10 |
| 2020s | 43.1% | 42.8% | 43.7% | 6 |
Countries ranked near Iran
More work & labour data for Iran
- Persons outside the labour force (ILO modelled estimates) 44,188 (2027)
- Labour force participation rate (ILO modelled estimates) 40.34 (2027)
- Labour force (ILO modelled estimates) 29,874 (2027)
- Unemployment rate (ILO modelled estimates) 8.53 (2027)
- Labour dependency ratio 2.43 (2027)
- Output per worker, GDP constant 2021 international $ at PPP 57,320 (2027)
- Output per worker, GDP constant 2015 US $ 20,416 (2027)
- Employment-to-population ratio (ILO modelled estimates) 36.89 (2027)
- Persons outside the labour force (ILO modelled estimates) (15+) 1.89 % change on previous year (2027)
- Labour force (ILO modelled estimates) (15+), annual growth rate 0.574 % change on previous year (2027)
Frequently asked questions
- What is self-employed, total (% of total employment) in Iran?
- Self-employed, total (% of total employment) in Iran was 42.9% in 2025, according to ILO Modelled Estimates database (ILOEST), International Labour Organization (ILO).
- What is the highest self-employed, total (% of total employment) recorded in Iran?
- The highest recorded value was 48.8% in 2005.
- What is the lowest self-employed, total (% of total employment) recorded in Iran?
- The lowest recorded value was 42.8% in 2021.
- How does Iran rank for self-employed, total (% of total employment)?
- Iran ranks 70th out of 187 countries with data for 2025.
- Is self-employed, total (% of total employment) rising or falling in Iran?
- Over the last ten years it is down 3.5%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Iran data come from?
- The figures come from ILO Modelled Estimates database (ILOEST), International Labour Organization (ILO), published as part of Self-employed, total (% of total 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.