How many SA households earn more than R200,000 per month

 ·4 Aug 2016

A report  by Standard Bank shows that more than 10 million households (10 193 205) in South Africa earn less than R7,167 per month,while a small elite population earns more than R196,668 per month.

The bank notes that 62.3% of households fall within the poorest income bracket – below R86,000 per annum, while middle income groups, who earn R86,001 – R1.48 million per annum – comprise a combined 26.4% of South African households.

The wealthiest households only account for 1.2% (R1.48 million – R2.36 million+ per annum), with those who earn more than R2.36 million, account for 0.4% of the household population – or 65,964 households.

Read: What you need to know about South Africa’s middle class

In the 2011 Census, StatsSA said that were about 14.5 million households in South Africa – 77.6% lived in formal dwellings, 7.9% in traditional and 13.6% live in informal dwellings.

StatsSA put the average household income is R103,204 per year, or R8,600 per month.

Using data from the Bureau of Market Research (BMR), Standard Bank said that the number of households in SA now stands at approximately 16.363 million.

BMR puts the annual income classification of the South African consumer at:

Income brackets Number of Households Income per HH per month
R0 – R19,000 18.2% R0 – R1,583
R19,001 – R86,000 44.1% R1,584 – R7,167
R86,001 – R197,000 16.3% R7,168 – R16,417
R197,001 – R400,000 10.1% R16,418 – R33,333
R400,001 – R688,000 5.9% R33,334 – R57,333
R688,001 – R1,481,000 4.3% R57,334 – R123,417
R1,481,001 – R2,360,000 0.8% R123,418 – R196,667
R2,360,001+ 0.4% R196,668+

According to Standard Bank, only 5.5% of South African households potentially have the ability to save, as they have positive net income balances each month.

Affluent households (R2,360,001+) meanwhile, have a savings potential of a as much as 65% of their after-tax income.

HH income per month No. of Households After tax income per per month
R0 – R1,583 2 977 559 R679.22
R1,584 – R7,167 7 215 646 R3,594
R7,168 – R16,417 2 662 541 R10,923
R16,418 – R33,333 1 647 979 R23,688
R33,334 – R57,333 961,010 R43,784
R57,334 – R123,417 696,659 R78.756
R123,418 – R196,667 135,549 R148,824
R196,668+ 65,964 R449,925

On an individual basis, Credit Suisse estimates that South Africa’s 50,000 dollar millionaires make up 0.16% of its adult population – meaning South Africa’s top 1% is around 310,000 people.

More on wealth in SA

This graph shows how we spend our money each month in South Africa

What you need to know about South Africa’s middle class

How much you’re worth in every province in South Africa

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