Share of employment outside the formal sector (current ILO definition) in Estonia
Estonia: Share of employment outside the formal sector (current ILO definition) was 5.24 in 2025. ▲ Rising
Share of employment outside the formal sector (current ILO definition) in Estonia, 2014–2025
Source: International Labour Organization.
Analysis
Estonia recorded 5.24 for share of employment outside the formal sector (current ilo definition) in 2025.
The figure is down 9.7% on the previous year and up 67.7% over ten years.
Over the whole period, share of employment outside the formal sector (current ilo definition) in Estonia peaked at 6.01 in 2022 and was at its lowest, 1.31, in 2018.
That places Estonia 29th out of 46 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 12 years of available data.
Share of employment outside the formal sector (current ILO definition) in Estonia, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2014 | 2.87 | — |
| 2015 | 3.12 | +8.7% |
| 2016 | 2.9 | -7.0% |
| 2017 | 2.73 | -6.1% |
| 2018 | 1.31 | -52.0% |
| 2019 | 2.8 | +113.7% |
| 2020 | 3.02 | +7.8% |
| 2021 | 5.67 | +87.7% |
| 2022 | 6.01 | +6.0% |
| 2023 | 5.65 | -6.0% |
| 2024 | 5.8 | +2.6% |
| 2025 | 5.24 | -9.7% |
Estonia compared with similar countries
- Estonia's 5.24 is above the median for high income countries, which is 4.95, 1.1× the median. (32 countries reporting)
- Estonia's 5.24 is above the median for Europe & Central Asia, which is 4.55, 1.2× the median. (31 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010s | 2.62 | 1.31 | 3.12 | 6 |
| 2020s | 5.23 | 3.02 | 6.01 | 6 |
Countries ranked near Estonia
- 26 Spain 5.79 compare
- 27 Luxembourg 5.54 compare
- 28 Slovakia 5.51 compare
- 30 Lithuania 4.67 compare
- 31 Netherlands 4.55 compare
- 32 Bosnia and Herzegovina 4.3 compare
More work & labour data for Estonia
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Both sexes, annual -0.67 % change on previous year (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Male, annual growth -0.6763 % change on previous year (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Female, annual growth -0.6638 % change on previous year (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Rural population, annual growth rate -1.77 % change on previous year (2050)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Urban population, annual growth rate -0.1039 % change on previous year (2050)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Urban population 885.23 1000 No (2050)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Rural population 259.52 1000 No (2050)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Female 417.66 1000 No (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Male 407.84 1000 No (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Both sexes 825.5 1000 No (2100)
Frequently asked questions
- What is share of employment outside the formal sector (current ilo definition) in Estonia?
- Share of employment outside the formal sector (current ilo definition) in Estonia was 5.24 in 2025, according to International Labour Organization.
- What is the highest share of employment outside the formal sector (current ilo definition) recorded in Estonia?
- The highest recorded value was 6.01 in 2022.
- What is the lowest share of employment outside the formal sector (current ilo definition) recorded in Estonia?
- The lowest recorded value was 1.31 in 2018.
- How does Estonia rank for share of employment outside the formal sector (current ilo definition)?
- Estonia ranks 29th out of 46 countries with data for 2025.
- Is share of employment outside the formal sector (current ilo definition) rising or falling in Estonia?
- Over the last ten years it is up 67.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Estonia data come from?
- The figures come from International Labour Organization, published as part of Share of employment outside the formal sector (current ILO definition - ICLS19) (15+). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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About this data
With the aim of promoting international comparability, statistics presented on ILOSTAT are based on standard international definitions wherever feasible and may differ from official national figures. This series includes only countries for which the 19th ICLS definitions are applied. This harmonized series for employment outside the formal sector is derived using the same set of criteria across countries to improve comparability. The criteria used are based on employment status, institutional sector, destination of production, bookkeeping, registration, social security contribution, places of work and size. For more information, refer to the Work Statistics -- 19th ICLS (WORK) database description.