Share of Self-employed people in [industry] out of total employment in Australia

Australia: Share of Self-employed people in [industry] out of total employment was 51.81 % in 2024. ▬ Flat

Latest (2024)
51.81 %
Change on year
down 1.9%
World rank
43rd
of 68 countries
All-time high
61.9 %
in 2015
All-time low
47.01 %
in 2001
Years of data
24
2001–2024

Share of Self-employed people in [industry] out of total employment in Australia, 2001–2024

02040602001201220242001: 47 %2002: 57.9 %2003: 59.8 %2004: 58.6 %2005: 60.9 %2006: 56.1 %2007: 50.6 %2008: 53.6 %2009: 54.1 %2010: 55.8 %2011: 49.3 %2012: 54 %2013: 52.4 %2014: 51.3 %2015: 61.9 %2016: 57 %2017: 57 %2018: 50.1 %2019: 55.3 %2020: 54.4 %2021: 55.7 %2022: 54.3 %2023: 52.8 %2024: 51.8 %

Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. Measured in %.

Analysis

In 2024, share of self-employed people in [industry] out of total employment in Australia stood at 51.81 %.

The figure is down 1.9% on the previous year and up 1.0% over ten years.

Over the whole period, share of self-employed people in [industry] out of total employment in Australia peaked at 61.9 % in 2015 and was at its lowest, 47.01 %, in 2001.

That places Australia 43rd out of 68 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the middle of the range.

Share of Self-employed people in [industry] out of total employment in Australia, year by year

Annual values for Share of Self-employed people in [industry] out of total employment in [industry] by [sex]: Agricultural employment — Value — Male — All age ranges or no breakdown by age — National — Agriculture in Australia, 2001 to 2024.
Year % Change
2001 47.01 %
2002 57.91 % +23.2%
2003 59.75 % +3.2%
2004 58.58 % -2.0%
2005 60.85 % +3.9%
2006 56.13 % -7.8%
2007 50.64 % -9.8%
2008 53.57 % +5.8%
2009 54.09 % +1.0%
2010 55.83 % +3.2%
2011 49.29 % -11.7%
2012 54.03 % +9.6%
2013 52.4 % -3.0%
2014 51.32 % -2.1%
2015 61.9 % +20.6%
2016 56.95 % -8.0%
2017 57.05 % +0.2%
2018 50.12 % -12.1%
2019 55.33 % +10.4%
2020 54.39 % -1.7%
2021 55.7 % +2.4%
2022 54.31 % -2.5%
2023 52.84 % -2.7%
2024 51.81 % -1.9%

Australia compared with similar countries

  • Australia's 51.81 % is above the median for high income countries, which is 47.38 %, 1.1× the median. (19 countries reporting)
  • Australia's 51.81 % is below the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 75.65 %, 68% of the median. (9 countries reporting)

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
2000s 55.39 % 47.01 % 60.85 % 9
2010s 54.42 % 49.29 % 61.9 % 10
2020s 53.81 % 51.81 % 55.7 % 5

Countries ranked near Australia

  1. 40 Mexico 52.61 % compare
  2. 41 Namibia 52.49 % compare
  3. 42 Grenada 52.31 % compare
  4. 44 United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland 51.56 % compare
  5. 45 Mauritius 51.04 % compare
  6. 46 Brazil 50.81 % compare

See the full ranking of 77 places →

More agriculture & rural data for Australia

All data for Australia →

Frequently asked questions

What is share of self-employed people in [industry] out of total employment in Australia?
Share of self-employed people in [industry] out of total employment in Australia was 51.81 % in 2024, 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 Australia?
The highest recorded value was 61.9 % in 2015.
What is the lowest share of self-employed people in [industry] out of total employment recorded in Australia?
The lowest recorded value was 47.01 % in 2001.
How does Australia rank for share of self-employed people in [industry] out of total employment?
Australia ranks 43rd out of 68 countries with data for 2024.
Is share of self-employed people in [industry] out of total employment rising or falling in Australia?
Over the last ten years it is up 1.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is flat.
Where does this Australia 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]: Agricultural employment — Value — Male — All age ranges or no breakdown by age — National — Agriculture. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

Download this data

CSV · JSON — 24 observations, free to reuse under CC BY-NC-SA 3.0 IGO (FAO).

Share, cite or embed this page

Cite this page

Share of Self-employed people in [industry] out of total employment in Australia. Statizoid, drawing on Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. Retrieved 18 September 2026, from https://agriculture.statizoid.com/stat/share-of-self-employed-people-in-industry-out-of-total-employment-in-industry-by-sex/australia/

Embed or link this data

Paste this into a page to link back to these figures. The data itself is free to reuse under CC BY-NC-SA 3.0 IGO (FAO); please keep the attribution.

<a href="https://agriculture.statizoid.com/stat/share-of-self-employed-people-in-industry-out-of-total-employment-in-industry-by-sex/australia/">Share of Self-employed people in [industry] out of total employment in Australia</a> — Statizoid

About this data

Indicator
Share of Self-employed people in [industry] out of total employment in [industry] by [sex]: Agricultural employment — Value — Male — All age ranges or no breakdown by age — National — Agriculture
Unit
%
Source
Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations
Licence
CC BY-NC-SA 3.0 IGO (FAO)
Coverage
77 places, 1,153 data points, 2000–2025
Last refreshed

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.