Number of female sole proprietors by country

Number of female sole proprietors is the number of newly registered sole proprietors owned by female individuals in the calendar year. A sole proprietorship is a business entity owned and managed by a single individual who is indistinguishable from the business and personally liable.

Countries reporting
78
Highest
573,116
Philippines
Lowest
8
Marshall Islands
Median
6,093
Years covered
11
2014–2024
Data points
714

What the numbers show

Number of female sole proprietors is currently reported for 78 countries. The highest value is 573,116 in Philippines; the lowest is 8 in Marshall Islands.

The median across all reporting countries is 6,093, and the mean is 45,871.

The gap between the highest and lowest reporting country is a factor of about 71,640.

Over the past decade 44 countries rose and 21 fell. The largest increase was in Saudi Arabia (up 4,538.8%), and the largest decrease in Viet Nam (down 75.6%).

Number of female sole proprietors: full country ranking

#Country LatestYear 10-year changeTrend
1 Philippines 573,116 2024 up 299.3% rising
2 Korea 537,913 2023 up 11.8% rising
3 Russian Federation 433,168 2024 up 65.5% rising
4 Kazakhstan 287,631 2024 up 158.3% volatile
5 Mexico 279,730 2020 down 23.9% falling
6 Germany 184,287 2024 up 9.8% rising
7 Malaysia 124,157 2024 up 15.0% flat
8 Poland 108,847 2024 down 11.0% flat
9 Ethiopia 106,258 2024 up 406.9% rising
10 Colombia 98,405 2024 β€” flat
11 Nigeria 91,307 2020 up 269.7% rising
12 France 79,509 2024 up 149.3% rising
13 Netherlands 71,173 2020 β€” rising
14 Thailand 67,133 2024 down 1.8% flat
15 Uzbekistan 54,879 2022 up 688.2% rising
16 Rwanda 38,517 2024 up 2,783.0% volatile
17 Chile 32,811 2023 down 20.3% falling
18 Croatia 27,715 2018 β€” rising
19 Senegal 24,906 2024 up 700.6% rising
20 Belgium 22,233 2023 down 0.8% rising
21 Slovak Republic 20,546 2024 up 55.0% rising
22 Benin 18,449 2024 up 1,235.0% volatile
23 Georgia 17,945 2024 up 69.8% rising
24 Madagascar 17,084 2024 up 13.9% rising
25 Uruguay 16,446 2024 up 48.7% rising
26 Serbia 15,967 2024 up 40.1% rising
27 Tajikistan 15,779 2018 β€” falling
28 Austria 14,395 2023 down 15.6% falling
29 Guatemala 14,279 2024 up 132.4% rising
30 Denmark 14,098 2024 up 47.3% rising
31 Zambia 13,875 2024 up 119.0% volatile
32 Norway 12,562 2024 up 666.4% volatile
33 Romania 11,884 2024 down 13.6% rising
34 Italy 11,439 2024 down 31.8% falling
35 Belarus 11,190 2020 down 29.7% falling
36 Morocco 10,542 2024 up 119.2% volatile
37 Saudi Arabia 9,556 2024 up 4,538.8% volatile
38 Jamaica 8,031 2024 up 239.4% rising
39 Mauritius 6,141 2024 up 54.8% rising
40 Slovenia 6,045 2018 β€” rising
41 Mongolia 6,000 2022 up 26.3% rising
42 United Arab Emirates 5,676 2018 β€” rising
43 Guinea 5,212 2024 up 970.2% volatile
44 Congo, Democratic Republic of the 4,310 2024 up 130.7% rising
45 Kyrgyzstan 4,071 2022 down 1.5% falling
46 Albania 3,827 2020 down 19.8% falling
47 Sweden 3,481 2024 down 44.1% falling
48 Gabon 3,265 2024 up 82.8% rising
49 Togo 3,230 2024 up 114.8% rising
50 Malta 3,192 2024 up 176.8% rising
51 TΓΌrkiye 2,753 2024 down 75.3% falling
52 Burkina Faso 2,669 2024 up 79.1% rising
53 Azerbaijan 2,368 2024 up 258.8% rising
54 Greece 1,716 2024 up 431.3% rising
55 Iceland 1,481 2023 up 14.0% rising
56 Nepal 1,435 2020 up 149.6% rising
57 Belize 1,409 2024 up 1,483.2% volatile
58 Niger 1,377 2024 up 520.3% volatile
59 Lao People's Democratic Republic 1,286 2024 up 634.9% volatile
60 Jordan 1,159 2024 down 44.8% volatile
61 Liberia 1,135 2024 down 4.9% rising
62 Bahrain 1,107 2024 down 7.8% falling
63 CΓ΄te d'Ivoire 1,069 2018 β€” rising
64 Qatar 1,057 2018 β€” rising
65 Estonia 780 2024 down 45.0% falling
66 Algeria 551 2018 β€” flat
67 Viet Nam 515 2024 down 75.6% volatile
68 El Salvador 402 2024 up 105.1% rising
69 Montenegro 295 2024 down 45.2% volatile
70 Central African Republic 242 2020 up 188.1% rising
71 Tonga 222 2024 down 25.5% falling
72 North Macedonia 191 2018 β€” falling
73 Latvia 155 2018 β€” flat
74 Afghanistan 149 2018 β€” volatile
75 Djibouti 136 2024 up 70.0% flat
76 Tuvalu 45 2022 up 164.7% rising
77 Lithuania 37 2024 down 66.1% falling
78 Marshall Islands 8 2021 β€” volatile

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Number of female sole proprietors by country. Statizoid, drawing on World Bank's Entrepreneurship Survey and database (https://www.worldbank.org/en/programs/entrepreneurship). Downloaded on May 2, 2026. Retrieved 20 August 2026, from https://private-sector.statizoid.com/stat/number-of-female-sole-proprietors/

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About this data

Indicator
Number of female sole proprietors
Source
World Bank's Entrepreneurship Survey and database (https://www.worldbank.org/en/programs/entrepreneurship). Downloaded on May 2, 2026
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data)
Coverage
78 places, 714 data points, 2014–2024
Last refreshed

Number of female sole proprietors is the number of newly registered sole proprietors owned by female individuals in the calendar year. A sole proprietorship is a business entity owned and managed by a single individual who is indistinguishable from the business and personally liable.