Herding remains a big business in Mongolia, as there will always be demand for meat, leather, wool, cashmere and milk. Consequently, over the past two decades, the trend has been toward fewer herder households with larger herds.

Currently, Mongolia has more than three times as many animals as in the year 2000, while herding households account for only 20.5 percent of all households. In December, 2022, Mongolia registered 71.1 million head of livestock, a record high since the nomadic country began a livestock animal census in 1918.

The average annual income of a herding household, which is estimated at MNT 15.6 million (around $5,000), is on par with the national average.

In the past, herders were exempt from taxation. As of January 1, 2021, they have been subject to a tax payment of MNT 2000 per animal.