Insee Première · June 2026 · n° 2114

Earned Incomes of Self-Employed in 2024 The Purchasing Power of the Earned Income Bounced Back for “Traditional” Self‑Employed Persons, but Fell Again for the Micro-Entrepreneurs

At the end of 2024, 4.3 million people were self‑employed in France. Excluding the agricultural sector, the number of so‑called “traditional” self-employed persons increased by 0.7% in 2024, marking the fourth consecutive year of growth. Meanwhile, the number of micro‑entrepreneurs continued to rise sharply (+8.2% in 2024), reaching over 2.0 million. The total number of non‑agricultural self‑employed persons was up by 1.8 million compared to the end of 2008, just before the introduction of the micro‑entrepreneur status.

The average income of self‑employed persons had fallen in constant euros in 2022 (-6.9%) as in 2023 (-6.7%), against a backdrop of high inflation; in 2024, despite the fall in inflation, it continued to decrease (-2.5%). On the one hand, the average income of “traditional” self‑employed persons rose by 0.7% in constant euros in 2024. At 4,150 euros a month, it nevertheless remained well below its pre‑pandemic level (-5.6%). On the other hand, the average income of micro‑entrepreneurs continued to fall in 2024 (-2.2%), but not as sharply as in 2023 (-3.5%); at 680 euros a month, it returned to its 2019 level.