TL;DR India has 8.54 lakh cooperative societies with 31.54 crore members, with their presence varying significantly across states and sectors. Maharashtra has the most cooperatives, while Kerala has one of the highest average memberships per society. Housing, Dairy, and PACS are the three largest sectors by number of societies, while PACS have the largest membership base.

Context

Cooperative societies are member-owned organizations formed to meet common economic, social, or community needs. In India, they operate across sectors such as agriculture, credit, dairy, fisheries, housing, and consumer services, playing an important role in providing access to finance, markets, and other services, particularly in rural areas. The cooperative movement in India dates back to the late 19th century, with formal legislation introduced to facilitate cooperative credit societies. Over time, the sector has expanded significantly, with cooperatives ranging from small local societies to large organizations with operations across states. The government has also renewed its focus on strengthening the cooperative sector, including through the establishment of the Ministry of Cooperation in 2021. Against this backdrop, in this story, we examine the scale and diversity of the cooperative sector and how its presence varies across different parts of the country. The data is as of 06 August 2026.

Who compiled this data?
The data is compiled by the Ministry of Cooperation, Government of India, through the National Cooperative Database (NCD). Launched in March 2024, the NCD provides information on 8.5 lakh+ cooperatives and around 32 crore members across India, covering details such as their location, membership, activities, and other parameters.

Where can I download clean & structured data related to this?

Clean, structured, and ready-to-use collection of datasets on Primary Cooperatives Societies Registered in India are available on Dataful. The collection includes datasets on state, district-wise details of primary cooperative societies registered, which includes details like society name, functional status, state, location, district, registration number, registration date and sector name.

Key Insights

• The number of cooperatives varies widely across states, from 2.27 lakh in Maharashtra to just 65 in Lakshadweep, as of 06 August 2026. Maharashtra has the highest number of cooperatives, with 2.27 lakh, accounting for around 27% of all cooperatives.

• Gujarat ranks second with 88,309 cooperatives, followed by Telangana (60,643) and Madhya Pradesh (52,726). The top 5 states together account for nearly half of all cooperative societies in India.

• The rural-urban distribution varies considerably. Maharashtra is an outlier, with about two-thirds of its cooperatives located in urban areas, while rural cooperative societies account for more than 90% in states such as Bihar and Odisha.

• Across India, 31.54 crore members are associated with 8.54 lakh cooperative societies, as of 06 August 2026. Maharashtra has the highest membership at 7.09 crore, followed by Kerala (6.29 crore) and Karnataka (2.43 crore).

• The number of cooperatives does not always correspond to their membership size. Kerala, for instance, has only 19,479 cooperatives but 6.29 crore members, while Maharashtra has over 2.27 lakh cooperatives with 7.09 crore members. Kerala has one of the highest average memberships per cooperative, with around 3,232 members per society. In comparison, Maharashtra has around 312 members per cooperative. India’s average membership per cooperative is 369.

• At the national level, rural cooperatives account for 61% of all societies and nearly 64% of total cooperative membership, indicating the continued importance of cooperatives in rural areas.

• Housing cooperatives are the most numerous, with 1.96 lakh societies, followed by dairy cooperatives (1.59 lakh) and Primary Agricultural Credit Societies /PACS (1.06 lakh). Together, these three categories account for nearly 42% of all cooperatives.

• PACS have the highest membership, with 13.12 crore members, followed by Credit & Thrift Societies (4.93 crore) and Housing Cooperatives (2.33 crore). These three categories account for around 65% of total cooperative membership.

• PACS have an average of around 1,233 members per society, compared with the overall average of about 369 members per cooperative.

• Rural societies account for over 95% of PACS and dairy cooperatives, with 1.02 lakh of the 1.06 lakh PACS and 1.55 lakh of the 1.59 lakh dairy cooperatives located in rural areas.

• Housing cooperatives are largely urban, with 1.79 lakh of the 1.96 lakh societies located in urban areas. Similarly, 1,341 of the 1,447 Urban Cooperative Banks are located in urban areas.

• Urban Cooperative Banks have the highest average, with around 10,520 members per society, followed by Farmers Service Societies (3,112) and Educational & Training Cooperatives (2,844). In comparison, Dairy cooperatives have an average of around 85 members per society.

Why does it matter?

The data shows that the cooperative sector is not uniform across India. Its reach and scale differ sharply by state and by sector. While some states have a large number of societies, others have fewer societies with much larger memberships. Similarly, rural areas account for most societies in sectors such as PACS and dairy, while housing cooperatives are concentrated in urban areas.

The government’s focus on expanding and strengthening the cooperative sector makes such granular data particularly relevant. The National Cooperative Database can help identify gaps in coverage, understand the concentration of different types of cooperatives, and support more targeted interventions for cooperatives and their members.

Key Numbers

• 8.54 lakh → Cooperative societies across India

• 31.54 crore → Total cooperative members

• 2.27 lakh | ~27% → Cooperatives in Maharashtra and its share of India’s total

• 61% | ~64% → Share of cooperatives and members in rural areas

• 1.96 lakh | 1.59 lakh | 1.06 lakh → Housing, Dairy and PACS societies, respectively

• 13.12 crore → PACS members, the highest among all cooperative sectors