Wealth and income percentiles in South Africa
How much net worth or income does it take to be in the top 10% or top 1% in South Africa? Model estimates for 41.3 million adults aged 20+, reference level 2025.
Net worth thresholds in South Africa
Net worth is private assets (property, deposits, securities, business ownership) minus debt, per adult. Thresholds show the minimum net worth needed to belong to each group.
| Group of adults | Threshold, ZAR | Threshold, USD |
|---|---|---|
| Median (top 50%) | ZAR 41,500 | USD 2,510 |
| Top 10% | ZAR 750,000 | USD 45,400 |
| Top 5% | ZAR 1,520,000 | USD 91,700 |
| Top 1% | ZAR 5,460,000 | USD 330,000 |
| Top 0.1% | ZAR 43,500,000 | USD 2,630,000 |
| Average (mean) | ZAR 493,000 | USD 29,800 |
Income thresholds in South Africa
Income is a harmonized pre-tax economic income per adult used for cross-country comparison. It is broader than wages and includes capital income, pensions and some imputed components.
| Group of adults | Threshold, ZAR | Threshold, USD |
|---|---|---|
| Median (top 50%) | ZAR 36,500 | USD 2,210 |
| Top 10% | ZAR 330,000 | USD 20,000 |
| Top 5% | ZAR 670,000 | USD 40,500 |
| Top 1% | ZAR 1,850,000 | USD 112,000 |
| Top 0.1% | ZAR 5,130,000 | USD 311,000 |
| Average (mean) | ZAR 152,000 | USD 9,170 |
South Africa in a global context
South Africa has 0.75% of the world’s adults. About 2.8% of them are in the world’s top 10% by net worth and 0.28% are in the global top 1%. By income, the shares are 5.0% and 0.35%.
The median adult in South Africa is in the global top 74.5% by net worth and the global top 64.0% by income. South Africa is home to about 0.21% of the world’s top 1% by net worth.
Data quality and sources
The curves for South Africa are built from the World Inequality Database’s 127-percentile estimates (2026 update), which combine tax records, surveys and national accounts; where a country has few direct sources, WID fills gaps from similar countries. The score shows how much direct national data stands behind the estimates, from 1 (strong direct national sources) to 5 (mainly imputed). The notes describe the national sources we have reviewed.
| Measure | Score | National data reviewed |
|---|---|---|
| Net worth | 3 | The wealth side uses country-specific WIR/WID estimates rather than a direct South African net-worth distribution. |
| Income | 3 | Statistics South Africa IES 2022/23 provides an official household-income median and mean, but only these few moments are imported. The full curve is therefore largely modelled. |
The advanced tool also offers national source tracks for South Africa based on official statistics (Advanced options → Comparison basis). They use their own definitions and are not added to the global total.
Amounts are converted at fixed exchange rates of 2026-10-09; they do not adjust for purchasing power. Thresholds in the extreme top are modelled and uncertain.
Frequently asked questions
How much net worth do you need to be in the top 1% in South Africa?
About ZAR 5,460,000 in net worth (assets minus debt) per adult, according to the WealthPercentile model for 2025. The top 10% starts at about ZAR 750,000.
What is the median income in South Africa?
The median adult in South Africa has a broad pre-tax economic income of about ZAR 36,500 a year. This measure is broader than wages: it includes capital income and some imputed components, so it is higher than a typical payslip.
How many adults in South Africa are in the global top 1%?
About 0.28% of adults in South Africa are in the world’s top 1% by net worth, and 0.35% by income.
How reliable are these numbers?
They are model estimates. The data-quality score for South Africa is 3/5 for net worth and 3/5 for income, where 1 means strong direct source coverage and 5 means mainly modelled.