Self-employed, total (% of total employment) in South Korea
South Korea: Self-employed, total (% of total employment) was 22.7% in 2025. ▼ Falling
Self-employed, total (% of total employment) in South Korea, 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 South Korea is 22.7%, measured in 2025. That is the lowest value across all 35 years on record.
The figure is down 0.8% on the previous year and down 12.3% over ten years.
Over the whole period, self-employed, total (% of total employment) in South Korea peaked at 36.3% in 1991 and was at its lowest, 22.7%, in 2025.
That places South Korea 122nd out of 186 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) in South Korea, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1991 | 36.3% | — |
| 1992 | 35.8% | -1.3% |
| 1993 | 35.3% | -1.3% |
| 1994 | 34.9% | -1.3% |
| 1995 | 34.4% | -1.4% |
| 1996 | 34.0% | -1.2% |
| 1997 | 33.6% | -1.2% |
| 1998 | 33.4% | -0.6% |
| 1999 | 33.1% | -0.8% |
| 2000 | 32.7% | -1.0% |
| 2001 | 32.9% | +0.5% |
| 2002 | 32.7% | -0.8% |
| 2003 | 31.9% | -2.2% |
| 2004 | 31.6% | -0.9% |
| 2005 | 31.3% | -1.1% |
| 2006 | 30.7% | -2.0% |
| 2007 | 29.9% | -2.4% |
| 2008 | 29.5% | -1.6% |
| 2009 | 28.4% | -3.5% |
| 2010 | 27.6% | -3.0% |
| 2011 | 27.1% | -1.7% |
| 2012 | 27.1% | -0.1% |
| 2013 | 26.5% | -2.3% |
| 2014 | 26.0% | -1.8% |
| 2015 | 25.9% | -0.6% |
| 2016 | 25.5% | -1.3% |
| 2017 | 25.4% | -0.4% |
| 2018 | 25.1% | -1.1% |
| 2019 | 24.6% | -1.9% |
| 2020 | 24.4% | -0.8% |
| 2021 | 23.9% | -2.1% |
| 2022 | 23.5% | -1.9% |
| 2023 | 23.2% | -1.1% |
| 2024 | 22.9% | -1.4% |
| 2025 | 22.7% | -0.8% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 34.5% | 33.1% | 36.3% | 9 |
| 2000s | 31.2% | 28.4% | 32.9% | 10 |
| 2010s | 26.1% | 24.6% | 27.6% | 10 |
| 2020s | 23.4% | 22.7% | 24.4% | 6 |
Countries ranked near South Korea
More work & labour data for South Korea
- Persons outside the labour force (ILO modelled estimates) 16,840 (2027)
- Labour force participation rate (ILO modelled estimates) 63.91 (2027)
- Labour force (ILO modelled estimates) 29,824 (2027)
- Employment-to-population ratio (ILO modelled estimates) 62.02 (2027)
- Persons outside the labour force (ILO modelled estimates) (15+) 0.9719 % change on previous year (2027)
- Labour force (ILO modelled estimates) (15+), annual growth rate -0.1065 % change on previous year (2027)
- Legislation on sexual harassment in employment 1 (1=yes; 0=no) (2023)
- Criminal sanctions or compensation for workplace sexual harassment 1 (1=yes; 0=no) (2023)
- Women can take the same jobs as men 1 (1=yes; 0=no) (2023)
- Labor force participation rate, total (% of total population ages 15+) 64.4% (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is self-employed, total (% of total employment) in South Korea?
- Self-employed, total (% of total employment) in South Korea was 22.7% 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 South Korea?
- The highest recorded value was 36.3% in 1991.
- What is the lowest self-employed, total (% of total employment) recorded in South Korea?
- The lowest recorded value was 22.7% in 2025.
- How does South Korea rank for self-employed, total (% of total employment)?
- South Korea ranks 122nd out of 186 countries with data for 2025.
- Is self-employed, total (% of total employment) rising or falling in South Korea?
- Over the last ten years it is down 12.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this South Korea 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.