The people have spoken and the freelancer economy is in full swing of things. But just how much moving-and-shaking are the freelancers and self-employed making in the UK to the economy?
We’ve gone through reports and research to find the most impactful and thought-provoking figures, with some bonus charts to add some graphics to the mix.
Let’s take a look at some UK freelancer facts & figures
- According to Office for National Statistics (ONS) data, the number of self-employed people in the UK increased between March – May ’17 by 14,000 to 4.8 million, which equates to 15% of people in work.
- If we use freelancing trade body IPSE’s definition, there are 2 million freelancers in the UK – with 1.77 million working as freelancers full-time. The remaining 234,000 freelance as a supplement to their main source of income.
- 87% of self-employed say they would never be an employee again.
- A third (35%) of self-employed freelancers took 2+ holidays outside the UK in 2017, compared to 29% of those who are employees.
- Nearly one in ten (9%) UK employees travel up to 3+ hours each day – resulting 720+ hours or ONE MONTH every year. 44% of freelancers and self-employed individuals said that they have either no commute or work from home.
- Freelancers and the self-employed get over 1/3 more exercise every week compared to employees.
- Britain’s freelancers are worth £21 billion to the UK economy in added value.
PeoplePerHour founder Xenios Thrasyvoulou said:
We predict by 2020, 50% of the workforce will be self-employed and contributing more than £51 billion to the UK economy.
Here are some additional charts that provide a graphical look into UK freelancing and the economy.
The information above has been provided by a number of resources, which shines a light on the world of freelancing and how it’s growing. No longer can freelancers be considered multi-level marketers or a make-believe career path. Freelancing is a tried and tested method of work and the numbers say it all – people are happier, feel less stressed, are more productive and provide more to companies.
