Self-employed, total (% of total employment) in Middle income
Middle income: Self-employed, total (% of total employment) was 52.7% in 2025. ▼ Falling
Self-employed, total (% of total employment) in Middle income, 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 Middle income is 52.7%, measured in 2025. That is the lowest value across all 35 years on record.
That represents a change of down 0.4% on the previous year and down 1.7% over ten years.
Over the whole period, self-employed, total (% of total employment) in Middle income peaked at 63.0% in 1991 and was at its lowest, 52.7%, in 2025.
Middle income ranks 20th 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, total (% of total employment) in Middle income, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1991 | 63.0% | — |
| 1992 | 62.7% | -0.4% |
| 1993 | 62.4% | -0.5% |
| 1994 | 62.1% | -0.5% |
| 1995 | 61.9% | -0.4% |
| 1996 | 61.6% | -0.6% |
| 1997 | 61.2% | -0.6% |
| 1998 | 61.1% | -0.1% |
| 1999 | 60.9% | -0.3% |
| 2000 | 60.7% | -0.4% |
| 2001 | 60.2% | -0.8% |
| 2002 | 59.9% | -0.5% |
| 2003 | 59.6% | -0.4% |
| 2004 | 59.1% | -1.0% |
| 2005 | 58.5% | -1.0% |
| 2006 | 57.9% | -0.9% |
| 2007 | 57.5% | -0.8% |
| 2008 | 57.0% | -0.8% |
| 2009 | 56.7% | -0.6% |
| 2010 | 56.2% | -0.9% |
| 2011 | 55.5% | -1.2% |
| 2012 | 54.8% | -1.3% |
| 2013 | 54.5% | -0.6% |
| 2014 | 54.1% | -0.8% |
| 2015 | 53.6% | -0.8% |
| 2016 | 53.3% | -0.5% |
| 2017 | 53.1% | -0.4% |
| 2018 | 52.9% | -0.4% |
| 2019 | 52.8% | -0.2% |
| 2020 | 53.2% | +0.9% |
| 2021 | 53.0% | -0.3% |
| 2022 | 53.3% | +0.6% |
| 2023 | 53.2% | -0.3% |
| 2024 | 52.9% | -0.4% |
| 2025 | 52.7% | -0.4% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 61.9% | 60.9% | 63.0% | 9 |
| 2000s | 58.7% | 56.7% | 60.7% | 10 |
| 2010s | 54.1% | 52.8% | 56.2% | 10 |
| 2020s | 53.1% | 52.7% | 53.3% | 6 |
Countries ranked near Middle income
More work & labour data for Middle income
- Labor force participation rate, male (% of male population ages 15+) 74.3% (2025)
- Labor force participation rate, female (% of female population ages) 51.6% (2025)
- Labor force participation rate for ages 15-24, total (%) 41.1% (2025)
- Labor force participation rate for ages 15-24, male (%) 49.2% (2025)
- Labor force participation rate for ages 15-24, female (%) 32.3% (2025)
- Labor force participation rate, total (% of total population ages 15+) 60.7% (2025)
- Labor force participation rate, male (% of male population ages 15-64) 79.3% (2025)
- Labor force participation rate, total (% of total population ages) 65.7% (2025)
- Labor force participation rate, female (% of female population ages) 47.0% (2025)
- Ratio of female to male labor force participation rate (%) 65.9% (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is self-employed, total (% of total employment) in Middle income?
- Self-employed, total (% of total employment) in Middle income was 52.7% 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 Middle income?
- The highest recorded value was 63.0% in 1991.
- What is the lowest self-employed, total (% of total employment) recorded in Middle income?
- The lowest recorded value was 52.7% in 2025.
- How does Middle income rank for self-employed, total (% of total employment)?
- Middle income ranks 20th out of 47 groups with data for 2025.
- Is self-employed, total (% of total employment) rising or falling in Middle income?
- Over the last ten years it is down 1.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Middle income 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.
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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.