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

Portugal: Share of Self-employed people in [industry] out of total employment was 44.61 % in 2025. ▼ Falling

Latest (2025)
44.61 %
Change on year
up 7.3%
World rank
53rd
of 68 countries
All-time high
82.11 %
in 2002
All-time low
41.59 %
in 2024
Years of data
26
2000–2025

Share of Self-employed people in [industry] out of total employment in Portugal, 2000–2025

0204060802000201220252000: 79.4 %2001: 81.3 %2002: 82.1 %2003: 81.7 %2004: 80 %2005: 80.6 %2006: 79.4 %2007: 79.6 %2008: 79.8 %2009: 81.2 %2010: 79.6 %2011: 80.4 %2012: 80.7 %2013: 79 %2014: 77.2 %2015: 76.4 %2016: 72.6 %2017: 70.4 %2018: 69.2 %2019: 70.7 %2020: 71.8 %2021: 50.9 %2022: 50.2 %2023: 44.2 %2024: 41.6 %2025: 44.6 %

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

Analysis

In 2025, share of self-employed people in [industry] out of total employment in Portugal stood at 44.61 %.

That represents a change of up 7.3% on the previous year and down 41.6% over ten years.

Over the whole period, share of self-employed people in [industry] out of total employment in Portugal peaked at 82.11 % in 2002 and was at its lowest, 41.59 %, in 2024.

Portugal ranks 53rd of 68 countries on this measure, in the bottom quarter.

The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 26 years of available data.

Share of Self-employed people in [industry] out of total employment in Portugal, 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 Portugal, 2000 to 2025.
Year % Change
2000 79.41 %
2001 81.28 % +2.4%
2002 82.11 % +1.0%
2003 81.67 % -0.5%
2004 79.95 % -2.1%
2005 80.64 % +0.9%
2006 79.43 % -1.5%
2007 79.6 % +0.2%
2008 79.8 % +0.3%
2009 81.17 % +1.7%
2010 79.59 % -1.9%
2011 80.43 % +1.1%
2012 80.72 % +0.4%
2013 79.04 % -2.1%
2014 77.25 % -2.3%
2015 76.44 % -1.0%
2016 72.64 % -5.0%
2017 70.43 % -3.0%
2018 69.15 % -1.8%
2019 70.65 % +2.2%
2020 71.8 % +1.6%
2021 50.9 % -29.1%
2022 50.25 % -1.3%
2023 44.19 % -12.1%
2024 41.59 % -5.9%
2025 44.61 % +7.3%

Portugal compared with similar countries

  • Portugal's 44.61 % is below the median for high income countries, which is 47.38 %, 94% of the median. (19 countries reporting)
  • Portugal's 44.61 % is below the median for Europe & Central Asia, which is 59.87 %, 75% of the median. (17 countries reporting)

Biggest year-on-year movements

Years where Share of Self-employed people in [industry] out of total employment in Portugal changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.

YearChange FromTo
2021 -29.1% 71.8 % 50.9 %

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
2000s 80.51 % 79.41 % 82.11 % 10
2010s 75.63 % 69.15 % 80.72 % 10
2020s 50.56 % 41.59 % 71.8 % 6

Countries ranked near Portugal

  1. 50 Cyprus 47.38 % compare
  2. 51 Egypt 46.58 % compare
  3. 52 Italy 45.64 % compare
  4. 54 Costa Rica 41.04 % compare
  5. 55 Guatemala 39.65 % compare
  6. 56 Uruguay 39.47 % compare

See the full ranking of 77 places →

More agriculture & rural data for Portugal

All data for Portugal →

Frequently asked questions

What is share of self-employed people in [industry] out of total employment in Portugal?
Share of self-employed people in [industry] out of total employment in Portugal was 44.61 % 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 Portugal?
The highest recorded value was 82.11 % in 2002.
What is the lowest share of self-employed people in [industry] out of total employment recorded in Portugal?
The lowest recorded value was 41.59 % in 2024.
How does Portugal rank for share of self-employed people in [industry] out of total employment?
Portugal ranks 53rd out of 68 countries with data for 2025.
Is share of self-employed people in [industry] out of total employment rising or falling in Portugal?
Over the last ten years it is down 41.6%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
Where does this Portugal 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.

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Share of Self-employed people in [industry] out of total employment in Portugal. 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/portugal/

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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.