South Africans cutting off DStv, Netflix, medical aid, and restaurants
South African households are cutting back on restaurants and takeaways, streaming subscriptions, and healthcare as rising living costs force them to pull back on their spending.
According to the NielsenIQ (NIQ) South Africa’s Consumer Outlook: Guide to 2026, consumers have become very cautious, with many households making trade-offs to protect essential spending.
While 64% of South Africans surveyed expected their household financial situation to improve by the start of 2026, 37% said they were worse off than a year earlier.
This is an increase from 33% in the previous survey. The proportion saying they were better off fell from 42% to 38%.
The increased cost of living was the biggest reason households felt worse off, cited by 70% of respondents. This was followed by an economic slowdown at 41% and job insecurity at 38%.
“While inflation has abated and there are some green shoots in the economy, South African consumers are still spending cautiously,” said Zak Haeri, managing director of NIQ South Africa.
“Given that many households have cut spending to the bone and have low tolerance for more price increases, retailers and manufacturers will need to focus on growing volumes and market share.”
Restaurants and food delivery are among the first areas facing cuts. NIQ found that 45% of consumers are cutting food delivery and takeaways.
43% are reducing spending on dining out, and another 43% are cutting back on movies, concerts and other social outings.
Consumers are also becoming more selective at the shops. 43% are removing ready-to-eat meals from their shopping baskets, while 42% are cutting non-essential groceries such as snacks, sweets and confectionery.
The pressure is also extending to household goods and technology, with 40% delaying small-appliance purchases and 38% postponing major appliances. Consumers are also delaying technology upgrades, such as phone contracts.
TransUnion’s Q2 2026 Consumer Pulse Study added that 28% of South African consumers had cancelled subscriptions or memberships, while 24% had reduced spending on digital services, including television, internet and wireless plans.
Downgrading and switching brands
South Africans have shifted towards “subscription cycling”, where consumers sign up for services such as Netflix or Amazon Prime for a month to watch particular programmes, then cancel and switch to another platform.
DStv customers are also increasingly looking at cheaper packages or alternatives such as free, advertising-supported services and YouTube.
Healthcare is proving harder to cut, but affordability pressures are also being felt in this sector. TransUnion found that 33% of South Africans planned to reduce spending on medical care and services.
Households are downgrading medical aid rather than cancelling it completely, while some are delaying elective procedures, specialist consultations, and other non-urgent treatment.
Lané Klopper, Consumer Panel Services Lead at NIQ South Africa, said households were increasingly prioritising essential spending.
“Consumers are also becoming more willing to switch brands and retailers in search of savings. Consumers are more reactive to price increases and promotion than they were last year,” Klopper said.
She added that some brands were on promotion for as many as 40 weeks of the year, weakening traditional brand loyalty.
Consumers are also changing where they shop. Klopper said spaza shops and independent retailers can benefit because they are often closer to consumers and can reduce transport costs.
“If I’m able to do my shopping at a place that is a lot closer, that will cost me less in terms of transport, then I would go do my shopping there,” she said.
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