Self-Employment: South West vs South East
Comparing self-employment in South West and South East using official ONS figures. In 2019, 479,897 people were self-employed in South West (17.3% of the workforce) versus 774,735 in South East (16.8%). South West has the higher self-employment rate, by 0.5%.
Quick answer
Side by side
| Measure | South West | South East |
|---|---|---|
| Self-employed people | 479,897 | 774,735 |
| Self-employment rate | 17.3% | 16.8% |
| Rank by rate (of 12) | 2nd | 3rd |
| Rank by number (of 12) | 5th | 2nd |
| Reference period | 2019 | 2019 |
Ranks are across all 12 UK statistical regions. The self-employed count and rate are the latest ONS regional figures (2019); the national rate is from ONS EMP14 (Jan-Mar 2026) and is not directly comparable to the regional counts.
Frequently asked questions
- Which has a higher self-employment rate, South West or South East?
- South West has the higher self-employment rate: 17.3% vs 16.8% — a gap of 0.5%. Source: ONS Annual Population Survey (2019).
- How many people are self-employed in South West and South East?
- 479,897 people are self-employed in South West and 774,735 in South East (ONS, 2019). That is a difference of 294,838 people, with South East having more.
- How do South West and South East rank in the UK for self-employment?
- Out of the 12 UK regions, South West ranks 2nd by self-employment rate and South East ranks 3rd. Both are measured against the UK-wide rate of 13.4% (Jan-Mar 2026).
- Is self-employment growing faster in South West or South East?
- The ONS regional breakdown reports a point-in-time count and rate for 2019, not a growth rate, so a like-for-like growth comparison is not available from this dataset. What it does show is that South West has the higher self-employment rate of the two (17.3%).
Related comparisons
Source: Office for National Statistics (ONS), Self-employment by NUTS1 (region) (2019, released 2020-04-17). Survey source: Annual Population Survey (regional, 2018-based weights) / Labour Force Survey (national). Licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Data accessed and verified 2026-06-27.