Takealot vs Amazon South Africa price comparison

The showdown for the future dominance of South Africa’s e-commerce landscape is slowly taking shape, with Takealot and Amazon both boasting examples of better-priced products than the other.

Amazon’s South African marketplace went live on Tuesday, 7 May 2024, entering into a well-established e-commerce market in the country, with its biggest competitor being Naspers-owned Takealot.

According to the Online Retail in South Africa 2024 report released by World Wide Worx with Mastercard, Peach Payments, and Ask Afrika, Takealot currently holds around 20% of the online retail market.

This share has dropped from around 25% over the past three years, partly because of the growth of 60-minute grocery delivery services like Checkers Sixty60 and Pick n Pay ASAP.

Amazon is expected to impact this market share further; however, in a rapidly growing market, it will likely carve out its own space rather than eat into business from Takealot.

This is because analysts say that Takealot’s strong local presence, understanding of the South African market, and established infrastructure give it a strong competitive advantage.

Some experts, like economist Dawie Roodt, World Wide Worx MD Arthur Goldstuck, and Mastercard country manager for Southern Africa Gabriel Swanepoel, say that it is an exciting time for consumers in the country, as the ultimate winner will be the everyday South African.

This is because the two companies fight for dominance will result in their prices coming down and various services improving.

To look at how one of these showdown elements are taking shape, BusinessTech compared the prices of 15 popular products common to both Takealot and Amazon.

These products range from high-priced electronic products to those used for everyday cleaning products.

As such, a ‘tug-of-war’ for pricing is taking shape, with news deals uploaded to the sites daily.

For five of the products, the well-established Takealot sported prices lower than Amazon, while the newbie to South Africa saw seven of their products with a lower price tag. Three of the products had the same pricing.

The prices of the common products below were compared on 18 June, 2024, and thus are subject to change. Additionally, the items compared are but a drop in the ocean of the available products offered on the sites, but have been chosen based on commonality.

Read: The real winners of the Amazon vs Takealot battle in South Africa