Thailand vs Indonesia: Company Registry Size Compared 2026
In short
Thailand's company register held 1,989,709 businesses as of 17 July 2026. Indonesia's Online Single Submission system had issued about 13 million business identification numbers by 17 July 2025. Indonesia's count runs 6.5 times larger in raw terms, even though its population is only 4.0 times Thailand's. Correct for population and the gap narrows hard, to 45.7 registrations per 1,000 residents in Indonesia against Thailand's 28.3, a ratio of 1.6 rather than 6.5. Almost all of Indonesia's total, 96.8 percent, sits in the micro tier, individual business actors that Thailand's company register was never built to count.
How does Thailand's register compare to Indonesia's OSS system?
Thailand's registered company count stood at 1,989,709 as of 17 July 2026, drawn from the DBD sourced aggregate (DBD, 2026). Indonesia's Online Single Submission platform, the government's single door for business licensing, had issued 13,000,000 cumulative business identification numbers as of 17 July 2025, four years after its August 2021 launch (detikFinance, 2025). Line the two totals up and Indonesia's figure runs 6.5 times larger. That gap looks enormous until population enters the picture. Thailand counted 70.3 million residents in its 2025 census (National Statistical Office, 2025). Indonesia counted 284.44 million at its mid 2025 statistical projection, a population gap of only 4.0 times (BPS Statistics Indonesia, 2025). Divide each total by its population and Indonesia runs 45.7 registrations per 1,000 residents against Thailand's 28.3, a density gap of 1.6 times rather than 6.5. Most of the raw gap is simply more people, not a dramatically higher rate of business formation.
Registered businesses, Thailand vs Indonesia
- Thailand, DBD company register2
- Indonesia, OSS cumulative NIB13
Figures in million registered businesses.
Indonesia's total is 6.5 times Thailand's in raw count, but the two systems count different things.
Thailand and Indonesia, registry scale side by side
| Metric | Thailand | Indonesia |
|---|---|---|
| Registered businesses | 1,989,709 | 13,000,000 |
| What is being counted | Juristic persons on file with the DBD | Business actors issued an NIB through OSS |
| Population | 70,300,000 | 284,440,000 |
| Registrations per 1,000 residents | 28.3 | 45.7 |
| Micro scale share of the total | 75.1% | 96.8% |
Thailand figures as of 17 Jul 2026. Indonesia figures as of 17 Jul 2025.
Why this is a definition gap as much as a size gap
Thailand's Department of Business Development registers juristic persons: limited companies and registered partnerships, and only those. Indonesia's OSS system registers something broader, a business actor, or pelaku usaha, which covers sole proprietors and informal operators formalizing their trade alongside incorporated firms. That difference shows up directly in the size split. Micro scale entities make up 75.1 percent of Thailand's sized companies, already a majority, yet Indonesia's OSS total is 96.8 percent micro, a share close to universal (detikFinance, 2025). A large slice of Indonesia's 13 million is a single trader with an identification number, not a company in the sense Thailand's registry defines one. Indonesia also has no single published aggregate for incorporated companies alone, the closer analogue to Thailand's DBD count, which is itself a clue: its formalization push runs through OSS business actor registration first, with incorporation as one path among several rather than the entry gate. Compare the raw totals and Thailand looks small. Compare the definitions behind them and Thailand's number is the more conservative one, counting only entities that cleared a bar Indonesia's headline figure never required most of its registrants to clear.
Definitions
- Registered company
- In Thailand, any juristic person on file with the Department of Business Development, whether currently active or dormant, unless formally deregistered.
- NIB, Nomor Induk Berusaha
- Indonesia's Business Identification Number, issued through the OSS system to any registered business actor, including sole proprietors and micro enterprises, not only incorporated companies.
- OSS, Online Single Submission
- Indonesia's integrated online platform for business licensing, launched in August 2021, through which a business actor obtains an NIB and related permits in one process.
- Business actor, pelaku usaha
- The Indonesian legal category covered by OSS registration, spanning individual sole proprietors, informal operators formalizing their trade, and incorporated companies alike.
- Registrations per 1,000 residents
- A country's registered business count divided by its population, multiplied by 1,000, used here to compare registry scale independent of population size.
Assumptions
- Indonesia's 13,000,000 figure is a cumulative count of NIB issuances since August 2021 and has not been reduced for businesses that later closed, so it likely overstates the number of registrations still active today.
- Indonesia's OSS total counts individual and informal business actors alongside incorporated companies, while Thailand's DBD total counts only incorporated companies and registered partnerships, so the two headline numbers are not a like for like company count.
- Thailand's figure includes both active and dormant registered companies still on file with the DBD.
- Population figures use Thailand's 1 April 2025 census date and Indonesia's mid 2025 BPS projection, a close but not identical reference point.
Methodology
Thailand figures are drawn from the DBD sourced market_national_insight aggregate table as of 17 July 2026 and from market_tsic_insight for the size band split, also as of 17 July 2026. Registered company means every juristic person on file with Thailand's Department of Business Development, active or dormant, unless formally deregistered. Indonesia figures are drawn from Ministry of Investment and Downstream Industries, BKPM, and OSS system milestone reporting on cumulative NIB, business identification number, issuances since the system's August 2021 launch, most recently reported for 17 July 2025. An NIB is issued to any registered business actor under Indonesia's risk based licensing system, including sole proprietors and micro enterprises, not only incorporated companies, so the two totals are not a like for like company count. Population figures come from Thailand's 2025 census and Indonesia's mid 2025 BPS projection. Registrations per 1,000 residents divides each country's registered business count by its population, multiplied by 1,000.
How we verified this
- Raw scale ratio: 13,000,000 divided by 1,989,709 equals 6.53, so Indonesia's cumulative OSS count runs about 6.5 times Thailand's registered company count.
- Reverse share: 1,989,709 divided by 13,000,000 equals 0.153, so Thailand's register is about 15.3 percent the size of Indonesia's OSS total.
- Population ratio: 284,440,000 divided by 70,300,000 equals 4.05, so Indonesia's population is about 4.0 times Thailand's.
- Density: 1,989,709 divided by 70,300 thousands equals 28.30 registrations per 1,000 residents for Thailand. 13,000,000 divided by 284,440 thousands equals 45.70 for Indonesia.
- Density ratio: 45.70 divided by 28.30 equals 1.61, confirming Indonesia's registration density runs about 1.6 times Thailand's, well below the 6.5 times raw gap.
- Thai size band cross-check: micro 1,492,884 plus small 441,008 plus medium 38,942 plus large 13,875 equals 1,986,709, matching the total sized company count, with micro at 75.1 percent of that total.
- Indonesia micro cross-check: reported micro 12.57 million plus small 295,108 plus medium 35,251 sums to about 12.9 million, consistent with the reported mid 2025 cumulative total and a reported micro share of 96.8 percent.
References
- Department of Business Development. (2026). Registered juristic persons and financial statement aggregates. Ministry of Commerce, Thailand. https://www.dbd.go.th/
- detikFinance. (2025, July 17). Empat tahun berjalan, sistem OSS terbitkan 13 juta NIB [Four years running, OSS system issues 13 million NIB]. Detik.com. https://finance.detik.com/berita-ekonomi-bisnis/d-8017414/4-tahun-berjalan-sistem-oss-terbitkan-13-juta-nib
- Ministry of Investment and Downstream Industries, BKPM. (2024). Three years on, risk based OSS issues 10 million business identification numbers. https://www.bkpm.go.id/id/info/siaran-pers/three-years-on-risk-based-oss-issues-10-million-business-identification-numbers
- BPS Statistics Indonesia. (2025). Mid year population (thousand people). https://www.bps.go.id/en/statistics-table/2/MTk3NSMy/mid-year-population--thousand-people-.html
- National Statistical Office of Thailand. (2025). Preliminary results of the 2025 Population and Housing Census. https://www.nso.go.th/
Frequently asked questions
Does Indonesia have more registered businesses than Thailand?
In raw count, yes. Indonesia's OSS system had issued about 13,000,000 cumulative business identification numbers as of 17 July 2025, against Thailand's 1,989,709 registered companies as of 17 July 2026, a gap of 6.5 times.
Is that a fair, apples to apples comparison?
Not fully. Thailand's DBD register counts only juristic persons, incorporated companies and registered partnerships. Indonesia's OSS total counts a broader category, business actors, which includes sole proprietors and micro operators formalizing individually, so a large share of Indonesia's figure would not appear on Thailand's register at all.
How does the gap look once population is accounted for?
Much narrower. Indonesia runs 45.7 registrations per 1,000 residents against Thailand's 28.3, a density gap of 1.6 times rather than the 6.5 times gap in raw totals.
Cite this page
Chatpong L. (2026). Thailand vs Indonesia: Company Registry Size Compared 2026. Max Data Insights. https://maxdatathailand.com/insights/thailand-vs-indonesia-company-registry-size-2026
Data & corrections
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Written by
Chatpong L.Founder, Max Data, Max Solutions Co., Ltd.
Chatpong L. leads Max Data, a company-intelligence platform built on Thailand's official business registry. He writes about the structure of the Thai economy using primary registry data. His work covers company formation, industry concentration, and regional business activity.
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This page reports company-level and aggregate statistics only. It names no individuals and makes no claims about any person. Figures are provided for information and may be revised as source data updates.