China’sGigEconomyGrowsasDemographicsShift,LaborMarketTightens

China’s gig economy continued to expand in 2025 as the traditional job market remained tight and demographic shifts reshaped who was driving taxis and who was working in the cloud.

A joint report released recently by Jinan University’s Institute for Economic and Social Research and recruitment platform Zhaopin show

ed that both supply and demand for new employment forms increased in 2025. Job postings rose 15.1% from a year earlier, while the number of job seekers increased by 11%.

The report defines new employment forms as internet platform–based work, divided into location-based services such as ride-hailing and delivery, and cloud-based work including knowledge services, livestreaming and e-commerce.

Location-based services proved to be the stronger engine for growth in 2025. Job openings in this category surged 28.9%, with the number of applicants rising 19.3%. In contrast, demand for cloud-based roles remained largely flat, though the number of people seeking those jobs rose 9.2%.

Geographically, the gig economy is migrating downward. While major urban centers still dominate, recruitment demand is increasingly sinking into lower-tier markets. First-tier cities accounted for only 25.4% of location-based jobs and 13.3% of cloud-based jobs in 2025, drops of 1.7 and 4.9 percentage points, respectively.

Third-tier cities and below now account for 30.4% of cloud-based job postings, an increase of 7 percentage points.

The report attributes this to the high population density and consumption power of major cities, which sustains physical delivery networks. Conversely, cloud-based work faces fewer spatial constraints, allowing it to penetrate smaller economies.

Barriers to entry continue to lower. For location-based roles, 88.7% of positions require no specific academic degree, while nearly 96% require no prior experience. Cloud-based roles are also becoming more accessible, though about half still require some educational credentials.

However, a split is emerging in the cloud sector. Over 40% of these digital roles still demand a college degree or at least one year of experience. Positions such as short-video directors increasingly value formal qualifications, with the vast majority requiring a college education.

In terms of compensation, salaries for location-based jobs are compressing toward the middle. More than 80% of these roles offer monthly salaries between 8,001 yuan ($1,170) and 15,000 yuan. While the share of jobs paying in the 8,000 to 10,000 yuan range jumped significantly, high-income opportunities are evaporating; positions paying above 15,000 yuan dropped to just 2.4% of the total.

Notably, gig work is becoming a vital safety net for older laborers. The proportion of job seekers aged 46 and above in location-based sectors hit 17.3%, an increase of 9.3 percentage points from the previous year. This suggests delivery and driving platforms are increasingly absorbing mid-to-high-age workers transitioning out of other industries.

Conversely, youth are flocking to the cloud: more than 70% of applicants for roles in knowledge services, digital media, livestreaming and e-commerce are under 30.

This reflects the intense competition in the traditional labor market as the number of university graduates continues to climb, the report said. Many are turning to gig work as a transitional phase or a supplement to their primary income.

Contact editor Wang Xintong (xintongwang@caixin.com)