Share of employment outside the formal sector (previous ILO) in El Salvador
El Salvador: Share of employment outside the formal sector (previous ILO) was 57.13 in 2025. ▼ Falling
Share of employment outside the formal sector (previous ILO) in El Salvador, 2014–2025
Source: International Labour Organization.
Analysis
El Salvador recorded 57.13 for share of employment outside the formal sector (previous ilo) in 2025. That is the lowest value across all 12 years on record.
That represents a change of down 2.2% on the previous year and down 10.1% over ten years.
Over the whole period, share of employment outside the formal sector (previous ilo) in El Salvador peaked at 68.66 in 2014 and was at its lowest, 57.13, in 2025.
El Salvador ranks 18th of 44 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 12 years of available data.
Share of employment outside the formal sector (previous ILO) in El Salvador, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2014 | 68.66 | — |
| 2015 | 63.52 | -7.5% |
| 2016 | 65.33 | +2.8% |
| 2017 | 66.22 | +1.4% |
| 2018 | 64.12 | -3.2% |
| 2019 | 64.51 | +0.6% |
| 2020 | 63.34 | -1.8% |
| 2021 | 64.35 | +1.6% |
| 2022 | 62.54 | -2.8% |
| 2023 | 60.81 | -2.8% |
| 2024 | 58.43 | -3.9% |
| 2025 | 57.13 | -2.2% |
El Salvador compared with similar countries
- El Salvador's 57.13 is above the median for upper middle income countries, which is 46.77, 1.2× the median. (22 countries reporting)
- El Salvador's 57.13 is above the median for Latin America & Caribbean, which is 47.78, 1.2× the median. (15 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010s | 65.39 | 63.52 | 68.66 | 6 |
| 2020s | 61.1 | 57.13 | 64.35 | 6 |
Countries ranked near El Salvador
More work & labour data for El Salvador
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Both sexes, annual -0.8531 % change on previous year (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Male, annual growth -0.8121 % change on previous year (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Female, annual growth -0.893 % change on previous year (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Rural population, annual growth rate -1.72 % change on previous year (2050)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Urban population, annual growth rate 0.2563 % change on previous year (2050)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Urban population 5,984 1000 No (2050)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Rural population 1,013 1000 No (2050)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Female 2,591 1000 No (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Male 2,482 1000 No (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Both sexes 5,073 1000 No (2100)
Frequently asked questions
- What is share of employment outside the formal sector (previous ilo) in El Salvador?
- Share of employment outside the formal sector (previous ilo) in El Salvador was 57.13 in 2025, according to International Labour Organization.
- What is the highest share of employment outside the formal sector (previous ilo) recorded in El Salvador?
- The highest recorded value was 68.66 in 2014.
- What is the lowest share of employment outside the formal sector (previous ilo) recorded in El Salvador?
- The lowest recorded value was 57.13 in 2025.
- How does El Salvador rank for share of employment outside the formal sector (previous ilo)?
- El Salvador ranks 18th out of 44 countries with data for 2025.
- Is share of employment outside the formal sector (previous ilo) rising or falling in El Salvador?
- Over the last ten years it is down 10.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this El Salvador data come from?
- The figures come from International Labour Organization, published as part of Share of employment outside the formal sector (previous ILO definition - ICLS13) (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 is based on the 13th ICLS definitions. For time series comparability, it includes countries that have implemented the 19th ICLS standards, for which data are also available in the Work Statistics -- 19th ICLS (WORK) database. 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. Data disaggregated by economic activity are provided according to the latest version of the International Standard Industrial Classification of All Economic Activities (ISIC) available for that year. Data may have been regrouped from national classifications, which may not be strictly compatible with ISIC. For more information, refer to the Labour Force Statistics (LFS and STLFS) database description.