Share of Self-employed people in [industry] out of total employment in India
India: Share of Self-employed people in [industry] out of total employment was 71.36 % in 2025. ▼ Falling
Share of Self-employed people in [industry] out of total employment in India, 2000–2025
Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. Measured in %.
Analysis
India recorded 71.36 % for share of self-employed people in [industry] out of total employment in 2025. That is the lowest value across all 12 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 1.5% on the previous year and down 10.0% over ten years.
Over the whole period, share of self-employed people in [industry] out of total employment in India peaked at 82.5 % in 2000 and was at its lowest, 71.36 %, in 2025.
That places India 3rd out of 68 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 12 years of available data.
Share of Self-employed people in [industry] out of total employment in India, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2000 | 82.5 % | — |
| 2005 | 81.85 % | -0.8% |
| 2010 | 81.55 % | -0.4% |
| 2012 | 79.33 % | -2.7% |
| 2018 | 73.77 % | -7.0% |
| 2019 | 73.38 % | -0.5% |
| 2020 | 72.03 % | -1.8% |
| 2021 | 74.27 % | +3.1% |
| 2022 | 75.22 % | +1.3% |
| 2023 | 73.46 % | -2.3% |
| 2024 | 72.43 % | -1.4% |
| 2025 | 71.36 % | -1.5% |
India compared with similar countries
- India's 71.36 % is above the median for lower middle income countries, which is 51.07 %, 1.4× the median. (17 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 82.17 % | 81.85 % | 82.5 % | 2 |
| 2010s | 77.01 % | 73.38 % | 81.55 % | 4 |
| 2020s | 73.13 % | 71.36 % | 75.22 % | 6 |
Countries ranked near India
- 1 Côte d'Ivoire 66.38 % compare
- 1 Mali 82.78 % compare
- 1 United Republic of Tanzania 80.27 % compare
- 2 Timor-Leste 70.27 % compare
- 2 Uganda 74.56 % compare
- 3 Bolivia (Plurinational State of) 63.6 % compare
- 4 Venezuela (Bolivarian Republic of) 47.75 % compare
- 4 Zambia 65.82 % compare
- 5 Ghana 61.74 % compare
- 5 Viet Nam 46.67 % compare
- 6 Angola 61.4 % compare
- 6 Iran (Islamic Republic of) 44.73 % compare
More economy & growth data for India
- Africa's Development Dynamics (AfDD) Table 04 - Annual real GDP 5.66 Percent per annum (2029)
- Africa's Development Dynamics (AfDD) Table 02 - Annual real GDP 6.5 Percent per annum (2029)
- Foreign direct investment, net outflows (BoP, current US$), gaps 35.69 billion BoP, current US$ (2025)
- Foreign direct investment, net outflows (BoP, current US$), per unit 0.009 BoP, current US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Foreign direct investment, net outflows (BoP, current US$), per capita 24.38 BoP, current US$ per person (2025)
- Foreign direct investment, net inflows (BoP, current US$), gaps filled 39.10 billion BoP, current US$ (2025)
- Foreign direct investment, net inflows (BoP, current US$), annual 44.06 % change on previous year (2025)
- Foreign direct investment, net inflows (BoP, current US$), per unit 0.0099 BoP, current US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Foreign direct investment, net inflows (BoP, current US$), per capita 26.71 BoP, current US$ per person (2025)
- Total reserves (includes gold, current US$), annual growth rate 8.87 % change on previous year (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is share of self-employed people in [industry] out of total employment in India?
- Share of self-employed people in [industry] out of total employment in India was 71.36 % in 2025, according to Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations.
- What is the highest share of self-employed people in [industry] out of total employment recorded in India?
- The highest recorded value was 82.5 % in 2000.
- What is the lowest share of self-employed people in [industry] out of total employment recorded in India?
- The lowest recorded value was 71.36 % in 2025.
- How does India rank for share of self-employed people in [industry] out of total employment?
- India ranks 3rd out of 68 countries with data for 2025.
- Is share of self-employed people in [industry] out of total employment rising or falling in India?
- Over the last ten years it is down 10.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this India data come from?
- The figures come from Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, published as part of Share of Self-employed people in [industry] out of total employment in [industry] by [sex]: Total employment — Value — Male — All age ranges or no breakdown by age — National. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 12 observations, free to reuse under CC BY-NC-SA 3.0 IGO (FAO).
About this data
The Suite of Gender Indicators presents a set of indicators relevant to agrifood systems that are disaggregated by sex, with the aim of highlighting gender differences across agrifood systems. The initial set of indicators is based on those used in FAO’s 2023 Status of Women in Agrifood Systems (SWAFS) report and on the recommendations of an expert consultation held in December 2023, and covers key dimensions including economic participation, governance, agency, social norms, assets and services, education, health, and nutrition. Indicator selection was informed by expert judgment and by the availability of data with sufficient geographic and temporal coverage to enable meaningful comparisons across regions and over time. While most indicators are produced and published by FAO and other international organizations, the objective of this domain is to provide a one-stop shop for sex-disaggregated data on agrifood systems.