Demographics of South Africa

Demographics of South Africa
South Africa population pyramid in 2020
Population	58,775,022 (2019 est.)[1]
Density	48.1/km2
Growth rate	1.43%[2]
Birth rate	21 births/1,000 population (2018)[3]
Death rate	9 deaths/1,000 population (2018)[3]
Life expectancy	64.7 years (2019 est.)
• male	61.5 years (2019 est.)
• female	67.5 years (2019 est.)
Fertility rate	2.32 children born/woman (2019 est.)
Infant mortality rate	22.1 deaths/1,000 (2019 est.)
Age structure
0–14 years	28.8% (2019 est.)
15–64 years	65.2% (2019 est.)
65 and over	6% (2019 est.)
Sex ratio
Total	0.99 male(s)/female (2010 est.)
At birth	1.02 male(s)/female
Under 15	1 male(s)/female
15–64 years	1.02 male(s)/female
65 and over	0.68 male(s)/female
Nationality
Nationality	South African
Language
Official	See Languages of South Africa

The population of South Africa is about 60.1 million people of diverse origins, cultures, languages, and religions.^[1][2] The 2011 South African census was the most recent held and the next will be in 2021.^[4]

In 2011, Statistics South Africa counted 2.1 million foreigners in total.^[5] However, reports^[specify] suggest that is an underestimation. The real figure may be as high as five million,^[6] including some three million Zimbabweans.^[7]

Population[]

Censuses[]

1904-85 national census numbers^[8][]

Bantustan demographics were removed from South African census data during Apartheid and for this reason official figures on the national population of the country during that period will be inaccurate.^[8]

Population Size by Race, 1904-85 (1,000 people)

Year	Whites	Coloureds	Asians	Blacks	Total
1904	1,117	445	122	3,490	5,174
1911	1,276	525	152	4,019	5,972
1921	1,521	545	163	4,697	6,926
1936	2,003	769	220	6,596	9,588
1946	2,372	928	285	7,830	11,415
1951	2,642	1,103	367	8,560	12.672
1960	3,088	1,509	477	10,928	16,002
1970 (1)	3,773	2,051	630	15,340	21,794
1970 (2)	3,759	2,039	630	11,891	18,319
1980 (1)	4,221	2,459	748	13,135	20,563
1980 (2)	4,512	2,688	803	16,992	24,995
1985 (1)	4,569	2,833	821	15,163	23,386
1985 (2)	4,837	2,396	879	19,052	27,704

1904 Census[]

South African Population Figures for the 1904 Census. Source:^[9]

Colony Pop. Group	Cape Colony	Natal	Transvaal	Orange River Colony	Total	Percent
African	1,424,787	904,041	937,127	225,101	3,491,056	67.5%
White	579,741	97,109	297,277	142,690	1,116,805	21.6%
Coloured	395,034	6,686	24,226	19,282	445,228	8.6%
Indian	10,242	100,918	11,321	253	122,734	2.4%
Total	2,409,804	1,108,754	1,269,951	387,315	5,175,463	100.0%
% of S. Africa	46.6%	21.4%	24.5%	7.5%	100%

1960 Census[]

Sources: Statesman's Year-Book 1967–1968;^[10] Europa Year Book 1969^[11]

Province Pop. Group	Cape of Good Hope	Natal	Transvaal	Orange Free State	Total	Percent
African	3,011,080	2,199,920	4,633,378	1,083,886	10,928,264	68.3%
White	1,003,207	340,235	1,468,305	276,745	3,088,492	19.3%
Coloured	1,330,089	45,253	108,007	25,909	1,509,258	9.4%
Indian	18,477	394,854	63,787	7	477,125	3.0%
Total	5,362,853	2,980,262	6,273,477	1,386,547	16,003,139	100.0%
% of S. Africa	33.5%	18.6%	39.2%	8.7%	100.0%

1996 Census[]

Source: The People of South Africa: Population Census, 1996^[12]

Province Pop. Group	Eastern Cape	Free State	Gauteng	KwaZulu-Natal	Mpumalanga	Northern Cape	Northern Province	North West	Western Cape	Total	Percent
African	5,448,495	2,223,940	5,147,444	6,880,652	2,497,834	278,633	4,765,255	3,058,686	826,691	31,127,631	76.7%
White	330,294	316,459	1,702,343	558,182	253,392	111,844	117,878	222,755	821,551	4,434,697	10.9%
Coloured	468,532	79,038	278,692	117,951	20,283	435,368	7,821	46,652	2,146,109	3,600,446	8.9%
Indian/Asian	19,356	2,805	161,289	790,813	13,083	2,268	5,510	10,097	40,376	1,045,596	2.6%
Other	35,849	11,262	58,654	69,423	16,120	12,208	32,904	16,635	122,148	375 204	0.9%
Total	6,302,525	2,633,504	7,348,423	8,417,021	2,800,711	840,321	4,929,368	3,354,825	3,956,875	40,583,573	100.0%
% of S.A.	15.5%	6.5%	18.1%	20.7%	6.9%	2.1%	12.1%	8.3%	9.7%	100%

2001 Census[]

Source: Statistics South Africa: Census 2001^[13]

Province Pop. Group	Eastern Cape	Free State	Gauteng	KwaZulu-Natal	Limpopo	Mpumalanga	Northern Cape	North West	Western Cape	Total	Percent
African	5,635,079	2,381,073	6,522,792	8,002,407	5,128,616	2,886,345	293,976	3,358,450	1,207,429	35,416,166	79.0%
White	304,506	238,791	1,758,398	483,448	126,276	203,244	102,042	244,035	832,901	4,293,640	9.6%
Coloured	478,807	83,193	337,974	141,887	10,163	22,158	424,389	56,959	2,438,976	3,994,505	8.9%
Indian/Asian	18,372	3,719	218,015	798,275	8,587	11,244	2,320	9,906	45,030	1,115,467	2.5%
Total	6,436,763	2,706,775	8,837,178	9,426,017	5,273,642	3,122,990	822,727	3,669,349	4,524,335	44,819,778	100.0%
% of S.A.	14.4%	6.0%	19.7%	21.0%	11.8%	7.0%	1.8%	8.2%	10.1%	100%

2011 Census[]

Source: Census 2011: Census in Brief^[14]

Province Pop. Group	Eastern Cape	Free State	Gauteng	KwaZulu-Natal	Limpopo	Mpumalanga	Northern Cape	North West	Western Cape	Total	Percent
African	5 660 230	2 405 533	9 493 684	8 912 921	5 224 754	3 662 219	576 986	3 152 063	1 912 547	41,000 938	79.2%
Coloured	541,850	83,844	423,594	141,376	14,415	36,611	461,899	71,409	2,840,404	4,615,401	8.9%
White	310,450	239,026	1,913,884	428,842	139,359	303,595	81,246	255,385	915,053	4,586,838	8.9%
Indian/Asian	27,929	10,398	356,574	756,991	17,881	27,917	7,827	20,652	60,761	1,286,930	2.5%
Other	21,595	6,790	84,527	27,170	8,459	9,597	17,903	10,444	93,969	280,454	0.5%
Total	6,562,053	2,745,590	12,272,263	10,267,300	5,404,868	4,039,939	1,145,861	3,669,349	5,822,734	51,770,560	100.0%
% of S.A.	12.7%	5.3%	23.7%	19.8%	10.4%	7.8%	2.2%	7.1%	11.2%	100%

Historical population

Year	Pop.	±% p.a.
1	100,000	—
1000	300,000	+0.11%
1500	600,000	+0.14%
1600	700,000	+0.15%
1700	1,000,000	+0.36%
1820	1,550,000	+0.37%
1870	2,547,000	+1.00%
1904	5,175,463	+2.11%
1911	5,972,757	+2.07%
1913	6,153,000	+1.50%
1921	6,927,403	+1.49%
1936	9,587,863	+2.19%
1946	11,415,925	+1.76%
1950	13,683,162	+4.63%
1955	15,384,557	+2.37%
1960	17,396,367	+2.49%
1970	22,502,502	+2.61%
1980	29,077,143	+2.60%
1990	36,793,490	+2.38%
1995	41,426,810	+2.40%
2001	44,819,777	+1.32%
2007	48,502,063	+1.32%
2011	51,770,560	+1.64%
2016	55,653,654	+1.46%
Note: Population estimates (1 AD - 1870 AD) are deduced from quantitative macroeconomic historical calculations. 1 (est.), 1000 (est.), 1500 (est.), 1600 (est.), 1700 (est.), 1820 (est.), 1870 (est.), 1913,[15] 1904[9] 1904-1946,[16][17][18] 1950-2010,[19] 2001, 2011, 2015[20]

UN population projections: 2019 to 2100[]

Population projections

Year	Pop.	±% p.a.
2019	58,558,000	—
2030	65,956,000	+1.09%
2050	75,518,000	+0.68%
2100	79,191,000	+0.10%
Source: United Nations Secretariat[21]

Age and population estimates: 1950 to 2030[]

According to the 2019 revision of the United Nations Secretariat's World Population Prospects, South Africa's total population was 55,386,000 in 2015, compared to only 13,628,000 in 1950. In 2015, 29.3% of the people were children under the age of 15, 65.7% were between 15 and 64 years of age, and 5.0% were 65 or older.^[22] All population estimates are rounded to the nearest thousand.

Year	Total population	Percentage under 15 years old	Percentage 15 to 64 years old	Percentage at least 65 years old
1950	13,628,000	38.2	57.7	4.1
1955	15,207,000	39.5	56.5	3.9
1960	17,100,000	40.8	55.4	3.9
1965	19,385,000	41.9	54.3	3.8
1970	22,070,000	41.6	54.7	3.8
1975	25,195,000	41.2	55.0	3.8
1980	28,557,000	40.9	55.3	3.9
1985	32,679,000	40.8	55.4	3.9
1990	36,801,000	40.1	55.9	4.0
1995	41,436,000	37.3	58.4	4.3
2000	44,968,000	33.9	61.6	4.5
2005	47,881,000	30.9	64.5	4.6
2010	51,217,000	29.7	65.6	4.8
2015	55,386,000	29.3	65.7	5.0
2020	59,309,000	28.8	65.7	5.5
2025	62,803,000	27.4	66.5	6.1
2030	65,956,000	25.8	67.6	6.7

Vital statistics[]

Stats SA: From 2002 to present[]

The following statistics are obtained from the mid-year population estimates published by Stats SA:^[23]

	Average population	Live births	Deaths	Natural change	Crude birth rate (per 1,000)	Crude death rate (per 1,000)	Natural change (per 1,000)	Total fertility rates
2002	46,355,083	985,592	581,147	404,445	21.2	12.5	8.7	2.45
2003	46,806,354	992,466	619,789	372,677	21.1	13.2	7.9	2.42
2004	47,310,050	1,058,035	648,774	409,261	22.3	13.7	8.6	2.54
2005	47,860,360	1,101,649	661,940	439,709	23.0	13.8	9.2	2.59
2006	48,446,414	1,136,560	671,812	464,748	23.4	13.8	9.6	2.63
2007	49,088,699	1,170,768	660,794	509,974	23.8	13.4	10.4	2.65
2008	49,794,560	1,196,587	634,042	562,545	24.0	12.7	11.3	2.66
2009	50,544,931	1,203,938	602,288	601,650	23.8	11.9	11.9	2.62
2010	51,328,662	1,204,340	574,718	629,622	23.4	11.2	12.2	2.58
2011	52,129,117	1,192,472	551,597	640,875	22.8	10.6	12.2	2.51
2012	52,930,356	1,184,855	550,702	634,153	22.3	10.4	11.9	2.46
2013	53,751,095	1,180,634	535,958	644,676	21.9	9.9	12.0	2.42
2014	54,574,401	1,177,790	538,866	639,791	21.5	9.8	11.7	2.39
2015	55,406,634	1,184,554	532,761	644,239	21.2	9.6	11.6	2.38
2016	56,252,336	1,186,863	526,226	653,239	20.9	9.3	11.6	2.37
2017	57,097,857	1,185,832	530,210	648,544	20.6	9.3	11.3	2.36
2018	57,939,226	1,182,200	535,401	642,881	20.2	9.2	11.0	2.35
2019	58,775,022	1,178,178	541,493	629,726	19.9	9.2	10.7	2.34
2020	59,622,350	1,174,320	515,804	658,516	19.7	8.7	11	2.33
2021	60,142,978	1,166,304	695,913	470,391	19.4	11.6	7.8	2.31

United Nations estimates, 2019[]

The Population Department of the United Nations prepared the following estimates.^[22] (Natural increase or decrease over a time period is the difference between that period's live births and deaths, before accounting for inward or outward migration.)

Period	Live births per year	Deaths per year	Natural Increase per year	Crude Birth Rate (per 1,000 per year)	Crude Death Rate (per 1,000 per year)	Natural Increase (per 1,000 per year)	Total Fertility Rate (over av'ge woman's life)	Infant Mortality Rate (per 100,000 live births)
1950–1955	606,600	292,400	+ 314,200	42.1	20.7	+ 21.8	6.05	134
1955–1960	669,400	293,800	+ 375,600	41.4	18.2	+ 23.3	6.05	121
1960–1965	740,200	304,600	+ 435,600	40.6	16.7	+ 23.9	6.00	112
1965–1970	810,600	313,600	+ 497,000	39.1	15.2	+ 24.0	5.80	103
1970–1975	896,000	315,400	+ 580,600	37.9	13.3	+ 24.6	5.50	89
1975–1980	967,400	309,800	+ 657,600	36.0	11.5	+ 24.5	5.05	71
1980–1985	1,099,200	311,000	+ 788,200	35.9	10.2	+ 25.7	4.90	56
1985–1990	1,147,400	299,400	+ 848,000	33.0	8.6	+ 24.4	4.40	46
1990–1995	1,074,600	318,000	+ 756,600	27.5	8.1	+ 19.3	3.51	41
1995–2000	1,026,600	448,000	+ 578,600	23.8	10.4	+ 13.4	2.88	47
2000–2005	1,051,600	626,800	+ 424,800	22.7	13.5	+  9.2	2.61	54
2005–2010	1,166,200	671,400	+ 494,800	23.5	13.6	+ 10.0	2.62	48
2010–2015	1,207,200	557,200	+ 650,000	22.6	10.5	+ 12.2	2.55	33
2015–2020	1,185,000	546,000	+ 639,000	20.7	9.5	+ 11.1	2.41	27
2020–2025	1,159,600	573,200	+ 586,400	19.0	9.4	+  9.6	2.31	24
2025–2030	1,143,400	604,400	+ 539,000	17.8	9.4	+  8.4	2.22	21
Total Fertility Rate = average number of children over a woman's lifetime; Infant Mortality Rate per 100,000 live births

Age and sex distribution[]

Age group	Male	Female percent	Female	Total	Percentage of RSA
under 5	2,867,585	49.6%	2,817,867	5,685,452	11.0%
5–9	2,425,181	49.7%	2,394,570	4,819,751	9.3%
10–14	2,344,275	49.0%	2,250,611	4,594,886	8.9%
15–19	2,498,572	50.1%	2,504,905	5,003,477	9.7%
20–24	2,694,646	49.9%	2,679,896	5,374,542	10.4%
25–29	2,542,682	49.7%	2,516,635	5,059,317	9.8%
30–34	2,036,206	49.5%	1,992,804	4,029,010	7.8%
35–39	1,709,347	50.7%	1,758,420	3,467,767	6.7%
40–44	1,402,328	52.4%	1,546,291	2,948,619	5.7%
45–49	1,195,740	54.4%	1,424,543	2,620,283	5.1%
50–54	1,011,349	54.4%	1,206,940	2,218,289	4.3%
55–59	811,950	54.8%	985,458	1,797,408	3.5%
60–64	612,364	55.8%	773,404	1,385,768	2.7%
65–69	401,548	58.1%	556,256	957,804	1.9%
70–74	293,498	60.8%	454,832	748,330	1.4%
75–79	165,283	65.7%	315,984	481,267	0.9%
80–84	100,694	68.8%	222,222	322,916	0.6%
85-plus	75,543	70.5%	180,130	255,673	0.5%
TOTAL	25,188,791	51.3%	26,581,769	51,770,560	100%

Number of children 0–14	Number of women 15–49	Proportion	Fertility Rate
15,812,264	13,866,489	1.14	2.35

Age group	Population	Male	Female	Percent
0–14	15,812,268	7,969,880	7,842,388	31.26
15–64	32,235,534	15,538,934	16,696,600	63.72
65+	2,538,955	1,006,222	1,532,733	5.02

Age and race distribution[]

Age distribution within each racial group[]

By generation[]

Age group	All races	% of All	Black African	% of Blacks	Coloured	% of Col'd	White	% of Whites	Indian or other Asian	% of Asians	Others	% of others
0–14	15,100,089	29.2%	12,702,324	31.0%	1,311,811	28.4%	771,187	16.8%	258,602	20.1%	56,164	20.0%
15–64	33,904,479	65.5%	26,502,329	64.6%	3,085,684	66.9%	3,165,965	68.9%	939,379	73.0%	211,126	75.3%
65-plus	2,765,992	5.3%	1,796,285	4.4%	217,906	4.7%	649,686	14.2%	88,949	6.9%	13,164	4.7%
All ages	51,770,560	100%	41,000,938	(100%)	4,615,401	(100%)	4,586,838	(100%)	1,286,930	(100%)	280,454	(100%)
% of SA	100%		79.20%		8.92%		8.86%		2.49%		0.54%

By five-year cohorts[]

Racial composition of each age group in 2015 (estimates)[]

Age group	All races	% of All	Black African	% of Blacks	Coloured	% of Col'd	White	% of Whites	Indian or other Asian	% of Asians
0–14	16,612,043	30.23%	14,244,663	32.21%	1,288,601	26.66%	789,492	17.41%	289,285	21.24%
15–64	35,465,499	64.53%	28,170,797	63.69%	3,299,771	68.28%	3,026,475	66.75%	968,649	71.12%
65-plus	2,879,378	5.24%	1,812,535	4.10%	244,544	5.06%	718,041	15.84%	104.068	7.64%
All ages	54,956,920	100%	44,227,995	(100%)	4,832,916	(100%)	4,534,008	(100%)	1,362,002	(100%)
% of SA	100%		80.48%		8.79%		8.25%		2.48%

Age group	All races	% of All	Black African	% of Blacks	Coloured	% of Col'd	White	% of Whites	Indian or Asian	% of Asians
under 5	5,936,350	10.80%	5,156,508	11.66%	426,156	8.82%	254,978	5.62%	98,708	7.25%
5 to 9	5,537,225	10.08%	4,746,115	10.73%	430,666	8.91%	263,378	5.81%	97,065	7.13%
10 to 14	5,138,468	9.35%	4,342,040	9.82%	431,779	8.93%	271,136	5.98%	93,512	6.87%
15 to 19	5,124,373	9.32%	4,292,220	9.70%	437,412	9.05%	295,733	6.52%	99,007	7.27%
20 to 24	5,302,246	9.65%	4,461,515	10.09%	426,013	8.81%	306,415	6.76%	108,304	7.95%
25 to 29	5,232,254	9.52%	4,437,570	10.03%	389,429	8.06%	287,485	6.34%	117,771	8.65%
30 to 34	4,307,693	7.84%	3,535,173	7.99%	366,955	7.59%	281,358	6.21%	124,206	9.12%
35 to 39	3,774,921	6.87%	3,001,989	6.79%	376,488	7.79%	279,439	6.16%	117,005	8.59%
40 to 44	3,204,952	5.83%	2,444,972	5.53%	368,886	7.63%	288,370	6.36%	102,725	7.54%
45 to 49	2,738,580	4.98%	2,004,009	4.53%	307,363	6.36%	335,434	7.40%	91,774	6.74%
50 to 54	2,297,586	4.18%	1,619,249	3.66%	264,593	5.47%	332,977	7.34%	80,767	5.93%
55 to 59	1,942,942	3.54%	1,334,800	3.02%	209,933	4.34%	328,999	7.26%	69,210	5.08%
60 to 64	1,539,953	2.80%	1,039,301	2.35%	152,698	3.16%	290,075	6.40%	57,879	4.25%
65 to 69	1,153,159	2.10%	737,581	1.67%	105,403	2.18%	265,818	5.86%	44,357	3.26%
70 to 74	805,114	1.46%	511,723	1.16%	65,465	1.35%	198,876	4.39%	28,949	2.13%
75 to 79	502,005	0.91%	313,800	0.71%	41,978	0.87%	128,675	2.84%	17,552	1.29%
80-plus	419,100	0.76%	249,431	0.56%	31,698	0.66%	124,672	2.75%	13,210	0.97%
All ages	54,956,920	100%	44,227,995	(100%)	4,832,916	(100%)	4,534,008	(100%)	1,362,002	(100%)
% of SA	100%		80.48%		8.79%		8.25%		2.48%

Age group	All races	Black African	% of age grp	Coloured	% of age grp	White	% of age grp	Indian or Asian	% of age grp
under 5	5,936,350	5,156,508	86.86%	426,156	7.18%	254,978	4.30%	98,708	1.66%
5 to 9	5,537,225	4,746,115	85.71%	430,666	7.78%	263,378	4.76%	97,065	1.75%
10 to 14	5,138,468	4,342,040	84.50%	431,779	8.40%	271,136	5.28%	93,512	1.82%
15 to 19	5,124,373	4,292,220	83.76%	437,412	8.54%	295,733	5.77%	99,007	1.93%
20 to 24	5,302,246	4,461,515	84.14%	426,013	8.03%	306,415	5.78%	108,304	2.04%
25 to 29	5,232,254	4,437,570	84.81%	389,429	7.44%	287,485	5.49%	117,771	2.25%
30 to 34	4,307,693	3,535,173	82.07%	366,955	8.52%	281,358	6.53%	124,206	2.88%
35 to 39	3,774,921	3,001,989	79.52%	376,488	9.97%	279,439	7.40%	117,005	3.10%
40 to 44	3,204,952	2,444,972	76.29%	368,886	11.51%	288,370	9.00%	102,725	3.21%
45 to 49	2,738,580	2,004,009	73.18%	307,363	11.22%	335,434	12.25%	91,774	3.35%
50 to 54	2,297,586	1,619,249	70.48%	264,593	11.52%	332,977	14.49%	80,767	3.52%
55 to 59	1,942,942	1,334,800	68.70%	209,933	10.80%	328,999	16.93%	69,210	3.56%
60 to 64	1,539,953	1,039,301	67.49%	152,698	9.92%	290,075	18.84%	57,879	3.76%
65 to 69	1,153,159	737,581	63.96%	105,403	9.14%	265,818	23.05%	44,357	3.85%
70 to 74	805,114	511,723	63.56%	65,465	8.13%	198,876	24.70%	28,949	3.60%
75 to 79	502,005	313,800	62.51%	41,978	8.36%	128,675	25.63%	17,552	3.50%
80-plus	419,100	249,431	59.52%	31,698	7.56%	124,672	29.75%	13,210	3.15%
All ages	54,956,920	44,227,995		4,832,916		4,534,008		1,362,002
% of SA		80.48%		8.79%		8.25%		2.48%

Racial composition of each age group in 2020 (estimates)^[24][]

Age group	All races	% of All	Black African	% of Blacks	Coloured	% of Col'd	White	% of Whites	Indian or other Asian	% of Asians
0–14	17,050,955	28.60%	14,605,416	30.33%	1,408,553	26.84%	742,913	15.87%	294,073	19.08%
15–64	38,941,221	65.31%	31,368,174	65.14%	3,487,284	66.45%	2,988,634	63.86%	1,097,129	71.19%
65-plus	3,630,174	6.09%	2,180,137	4.53%	351,903	6.71%	948,223	20.26%	149,911	9.73%
All ages	59,622,350	100%	48,153,727	(100%)	5,247,740	(100%)	4,679,770	(100%)	1,541,113	(100%)
% of SA	100%		80.76%		8.80%		7.85%		2.58%

Age group	All races	% of All	Black African	% of Blacks	Coloured	% of Col'd	White	% of Whites	Indian or Asian	% of Asians
under 5	5,743,450	9.63%	4,940,751	10.26%	476,322	9.08%	226,715	4.84%	99,662	6.47%
5 to 9	5,715,952	9.59%	4,890,895	10.16%	475,518	9.06%	249,991	5.34%	99,548	6.46%
10 to 14	5,591,553	9.38%	4,773,770	9.91%	456,713	8.70%	266,207	5.69%	94,863	6.16%
15 to 19	4,774,579	8.01%	4,031,704	8.37%	411,056	7.83%	243,267	5.20%	88,552	5.75%
20 to 24	4,823,367	8.09%	4,043,432	8.40%	423,180	8.06%	254,465	5.44%	102,290	6.64%
25 to 29	5,420,754	9.09%	4,586,780	9.53%	435,746	8.30%	267,654	5.72%	130,574	8.47%
30 to 34	5,641,750	9.46%	4,769,499	9.90%	431,274	8.22%	296,160	6.33%	144,817	9.40%
35 to 39	4,798,293	8.05%	3,962,780	8.23%	381,858	7.28%	308,959	6.60%	144,696	9.39%
40 to 44	3,733,942	6.26%	2,988,999	6.21%	316,611	6.03%	306,414	6.55%	121,918	7.91%
45 to 49	3,169,648	5.32%	2,393,317	4.97%	312,665	5.96%	352,648	7.54%	111,018	7.20%
50 to 54	2,571,263	4.31%	1,834,191	3.81%	302,224	5.76%	337,839	7.22%	97,009	6.29%
55 to 59	2,211,309	3.71%	1,546,674	3.21%	264,967	5.05%	314,423	6.72%	85,245	5.53%
60 to 64	1,796,316	3.01%	1,210,798	2.51%	207,703	3.96%	306,805	6.56%	71,010	4.61%
65 to 69	1,408,665	2.36%	918,604	1.91%	150,941	2.88%	281,318	6.01%	57,802	3.75%
70 to 74	1,007,174	1.69%	619,106	1.29%	97,127	1.85%	248,673	5.31%	42,268	2.74%
75 to 79	637,062	1.07%	365,409	0.76%	56,822	1.08%	188,123	4.02%	26,708	1.73%
80-plus	577,273	0.97%	277,018	0.58%	47,013	0.90%	230,109	4.92%	23,133	1.50%
All ages	59,622,350	100%	48,153,727	(100%)	5,247,740	(100%)	4,679,770	(100%)	1,541,113	(100%)
% of SA	100%		80.76%		8.80%		7.85%		2.58%

Age group	All races	Black African	% of age grp	Coloured	% of age grp	White	% of age grp	Indian or Asian	% of age grp
under 5	5,743,450	4,940,751	86.02%	476,322	8.29%	226,715	3.95%	99,662	1.74%
5 to 9	5,715,952	4,890,895	85.57%	475,518	8.32%	249,991	4.37%	99,548	1.74%
10 to 14	5,591,553	4,773,770	85.37%	456,713	8.17%	266,207	4.76%	94,863	1.70%
15 to 19	4,774,579	4,031,704	84.44%	411,056	8.61%	243,267	5.10%	88,552	1.85%
20 to 24	4,823,367	4,043,432	83.83%	423,180	8.77%	254,465	5.28%	102,290	2.12%
25 to 29	5,420,754	4,586,780	84.62%	435,746	8.04%	267,654	4.94%	130,574	2.41%
30 to 34	5,641,750	4,769,499	84.54%	431,274	7.64%	296,160	5.25%	144,817	2.57%
35 to 39	4,798,293	3,962,780	82.59%	381,858	7.96%	308,959	6.44%	144,696	3.02%
40 to 44	3,733,942	2,988,999	80.05%	316,611	8.48%	306,414	8.21%	121,918	3.27%
45 to 49	3,169,648	2,393,317	75.51%	312,665	9.86%	352,648	11.13%	111,018	3.50%
50 to 54	2,571,263	1,834,191	71.33%	302,224	11.75%	337,839	13.14%	97,009	3.77%
55 to 59	2,211,309	1,546,674	69.94%	264,967	11.98%	314,423	14.22%	85,245	3.85%
60 to 64	1,796,316	1,210,798	67.40%	207,703	11.56%	306,805	17.08%	71,010	3.95%
65 to 69	1,408,665	918,604	65.21%	150,941	10.72%	281,318	19.97%	57,802	4.10%
70 to 74	1,007,174	619,106	61.47%	97,127	9.64%	248,673	24.69%	42,268	4.20%
75 to 79	637,062	365,409	57.36%	56,822	8.92%	188,123	29.53%	26,708	4.19%
80-plus	577,273	277,018	47.99%	47,013	8.14%	230,109	39.86%	23,133	4.01%
All ages	59,622,350	48,153,727		5,247,740		4,679,770		1,541,113
% of SA		80.76%		8.80%		7.85%		2.58%

Fertility rate (The Demographic Health Survey)[]

Fertility rate (TFR) (Wanted Fertility Rate) and CBR (Crude Birth Rate):^[25]

Year	CBR (Total)	TFR (Total)	CBR (Urban)	TFR (Urban)	CBR (Rural)	TFR (Rural)
1998	21.90	2.90 (2.3)	19.2	2.25 (1.8)	25.4	3.92 (2.9)
2016	22.3	2.6 (2.0)	21.9	2.4 (1.9)	23.1	3.1 (2.4)

Fertility rate (TFR) (Wanted Fertility Rate) by ethnic group.

Year	Total	Black African	White	Coloured	Indian/Asian
1998	2.9 (2.3)	3.1 (2.4)	1.9 (1.5)	2.5 (2.1)
2016	2.6 (2.0)	2.7 (2.1)	1.5 (1.2)	2.5 (1.9)	1.7 (1.6)

Life expectancy[]

Life expectancy from 1950 to 2020 (UN World Population Prospects):^[26]

Period	Life expectancy (years)
1950–1955	48.5
1955–1960	51.3
1960–1965	53.0
1965–1970	54.8
1970–1975	56.7
1975–1980	57.3
1980–1985	58.4
1985–1990	61.0
1990–1995	62.3
1995–2000	59.2
2000–2005	53.8
2005–2010	53.1
2010–2015	59.5
2015–2020	63.7

Ethnic groups[]

Statistics South Africa asks people to describe themselves in the census in terms of five racial population groups.^[27] The 2011 census figures for these groups were Black African at 80.2%, White at 8.4%, Coloured at 8.8%, Indian/Asian at 2.5%, and Other/Unspecified at 0.5%.^[28]

The white percentage of the population has sharply declined. The first census in South Africa in 1911 showed that whites made up 22% of the population. This declined to 16% in 1980,^[29] and 8.9% in 2011.^[30]: 21

Languages[]

South Africa has eleven official languages:^[31] IsiZulu^[28] 22.7%, IsiXhosa^[28] 16%, Afrikaans^[28] 13.5%, English^[28] 9.6%, Sepedi^[28] 9.1%, Setswana^[28] 8%, Sesotho^[28] 7.6%, Xitsonga^[28] 4.5%, siSwati^[28] 2.5%, Tshivenda^[28] 2.4% and isiNdebele^[28] 2.1%.

In this regard it is third only to Bolivia and India in number. While all the languages are formally equal, some languages are spoken more than others. According to the 2011 census, the three most spoken first languages are Zulu (22.7%), Xhosa (16.0%), and Afrikaans (13.5%).^{[30]: 23–25} Despite the fact that English is recognised as the language of commerce and science, it ranked fourth, and was spoken by only 9.6% of South Africans as a first language in 2011.^{[30]: 23–25}

The country also recognises several unofficial languages, including Sekholokoe, Fanagalo, Khoe, Lobedu, Nama, Northern Ndebele, Phuthi, San and South African Sign Language.^[32] These unofficial languages may be used in certain official uses in limited areas where it has been determined that these languages are prevalent. Nevertheless, their populations are not such that they require nationwide recognition.

Many of the "unofficial languages" of the San and Khoikhoi people contain regional dialects stretching northwards into Namibia and Botswana, and elsewhere. These people, who are a physically distinct population from other Africans, have their own cultural identity based on their hunter-gatherer societies. They have been marginalised to a great extent, and many of their languages are in danger of becoming extinct.

Many white South Africans also speak other European languages, such as Portuguese (also spoken by black Angolans and Mozambicans), German, and Greek, while some Indians and other Asians in South Africa speak South Asian languages, such as Tamil, Hindi, Gujarati, Urdu and Telugu. Although many South Africans are of Huguenot (French) origin, South African French is spoken by fewer than 10,000 individuals country-wide. Congolese French is also spoken in South Africa by migrants.

The primary sign language of deaf South Africans is South African Sign Language. Other sign languages among indigenous peoples are also used.

By ethnicity[]

In 2011, the first language was Zulu for 28.1% of African residents, Xhosa for 19.8%, Northern Sotho for 11.2%, Tswana for 9.7%, Sesotho for 9.3%, Tsonga for 5.5%, Swati for 3.1%, Venda for 2.9%, English for 2.8%, Southern Ndebele for 2.6%, Afrikaans for 1.5%, while 3.4% had another first language.^[33]

Among whites, Afrikaans was the first language for 59.1% of the population, compared to 35.0% for English. Other languages accounted for the remaining 5.9%.^[33]

Religion[]

This section needs to be updated. Please help update this article to reflect recent events or newly available information. (September 2020)

According to the 2001 national census, Christians accounted for 79.7% of the population. This includes Protestant (36.6%), Zionist Christian (11.1%), Pentecostal/Charismatic (8.2%), Roman Catholic (7.1%), Methodist (6.8%), Dutch Reformed (6.7%), Anglican (3.8%); members of other Christian churches accounted for another 36% of the population. Muslims accounted for 1.5% of the population, Other 2.3%, and 1.4% were Unspecified and None 15.1%.^[28]

African Indigenous Churches made up the largest of the Christian groups. Some believe that many people claiming no affiliation with any organised religion adhered to traditional indigenous religions. Many people have syncretic religious practices combining Christian and indigenous influences.^[35]

Muslims are largely found among the Coloured and Indian ethnic groups. They have been joined by black or white South African converts as well as immigrants from other parts of Africa.^[36] South African Muslims claim that their faith is the fastest-growing religion of conversion in the country, with the number of black Muslims growing sixfold, from 12 000 in 1991 to 74 700 in 2004^[36][37]

The Hindu population has its roots in the British colonial period, but later waves of immigration from India have also contributed to it. Most Hindus are of South Asian origin, but there are many who come from mixed racial stock. Some are converts due to the efforts of ISKCON.

Other minority religions in South Africa are Sikhism, Jainism, Baháʼí Faith and Judaism.^[38]

By ethnicity[]

87.9% of Black residents are Christian, 9.5% have no religion, 0.2% are Muslim, 0.0% are Jewish, 1.22% are Hindu and 2.3% have other or undetermined beliefs.

71.8% of White residents are Christian, 23.8% have no religion, 0.2% are Muslim, 1.4% are Jewish, and 0.0% are Hindu. 2.7% have other or undetermined beliefs.

Other demographic statistics[]

Demographic statistics according to the World Population Review in 2019.^[39]

• One birth every 27 seconds
• One death every 58 seconds
• One net migrant every 9 minutes
• Net gain of one person every 47 seconds

The following demographic are from the CIA World Factbook^[40] unless otherwise indicated.

Population[]

55,380,210 (July 2018 est.)

Age structure[]

0-14 years: 28.18% (male 7,815,651 /female 7,793,261)

15-24 years: 17.24% (male 4,711,480 /female 4,837,897)

25-54 years: 42.05% (male 11,782,848 /female 11,503,831)

55-64 years: 6.71% (male 1,725,034 /female 1,992,035)

65 years and over: 5.81% (male 1,351,991 /female 1,866,182) (2018 est.)

Median age[]

total: 27.4 years. Country comparison to the world: 144th

male: 27.2 years

female: 27.6 years (2018 est.)

Birth rate[]

19.9 births/1,000 population (2018 est.) Country comparison to the world: 78th

Death rate[]

9.3 deaths/1,000 population (2018 est.) Country comparison to the world: 57th

Total fertility rate[]

2.26 children born/woman (2018 est.) Country comparison to the world: 91st

Population growth rate[]

0.97% (2018 est.) Country comparison to the world: 114th

Contraceptive prevalence rate[]

54.6% (2016)

Net migration rate[]

-0.9 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2018 est.) Country comparison to the world: 138th

Dependency ratios[]

total dependency ratio: 52.5 (2015 est.)

youth dependency ratio: 44.8 (2015 est.)

elderly dependency ratio: 7.7 (2015 est.)

potential support ratio: 12.9 (2015 est.)

Urbanization[]

urban population: 66.4% of total population (2018)

rate of urbanization: 1.97% annual rate of change (2015-20 est.)

Life expectancy at birth[]

total population: 64.1 years

male: 62.7 years

female: 65.6 years (2018 est.)

Languages[]

isiZulu (official) 24.7%, isiXhosa (official) 15.6%, Afrikaans (official) 12.1%, Sepedi (official) 9.8%, Setswana (official) 8.9%, English (official) 8.4%, Sesotho (official) 8%, Xitsonga (official) 4%, siSwati (official) 2.6%, Tshivenda (official) 2.5%, isiNdebele (official) 1.6%, other (includes Khoi, Nama, and San languages) 1.9% (2017 est.)

note: data represent language spoken most often at home

Education expenditures[]

6.1% of GDP (2017) Country comparison to the world: 34th

Literacy[]

definition: age 15 and over can read and write (2015 est.)

total population: 94.4%

male: 95.4%

female: 95.4% (2015 est.)

School life expectancy (primary to tertiary education)[]

total: 14 years

male: 13 years

female: 14 years (2016)

Unemployment, youth ages 15-24[]

total: 53.5%

male: 49.3%

female: 58.7% (2017 est.)

Immigration[]

South Africa hosts a sizeable refugee and asylum seeker population. According to the World Refugee Survey 2008, published by the U.S. Committee for Refugees and Immigrants, this population numbered approximately 144,700 in 2007.^[41] Groups of refugees and asylum seekers numbering over 10,000 included people from Zimbabwe (48,400), the Democratic Republic of the Congo (24,800), and Somalia (12,900).^[41] These populations mainly lived in Johannesburg, Pretoria, Durban, Cape Town, and Port Elizabeth.^[41] Many refugees have now also started to work and live in rural areas in provinces such as Mpumalanga and KwaZulu-Natal.

Statistics SA assumes in some of their calculations that there are fewer than 2 million immigrants in South Africa.^[42] Other institutions, like the police and Médecins Sans Frontières place estimate the figure at 4 million.^{[43][44][45][46][47]}

Immigration figures[]

Immigration assumptions by Statistics South Africa to South Africa based on race. Negative numbers represent net migration from South Africa to other countries.^[48]

Year	African	Asian	White
1985-2000	1 135 275	14 476	-304 112
2001-2005	769 038	23 335	-133 782
2006-2010	922 885	34 688	-112 046
2011-2015	1 067 936	40 929	-95 158

Urbanization[]

"Urban areas contain about two-thirds of the population; many of these consist of huge informal or squatter settlements."^[49]

Largest municipalities[]

v t Largest cities or towns in South Africa 2016 Community Survey [50], World Urbanization Prospects: The 2018 Revision [51]
	Rank	Name	Province	Pop.
Johannesburg Cape Town	1	Johannesburg	Gauteng	9,167,045	Durban Pretoria
	2	Cape Town	Western Cape	4,004,793
	3	Durban	KwaZulu-Natal	3,661,911
	4	Pretoria	Gauteng	2,437,000
	5	Port Elizabeth	Eastern Cape	1,263,051
	6	Vereeniging	Gauteng	957,528
	7	Soshanguve	Gauteng	841,000
	8	East London	Eastern Cape	810,528
	9	Bloemfontein	Free State	759,693
	10	Pietermaritzburg	KwaZulu-Natal	679,766

Graphs and maps[]

• 

  Population pyramid by population group, 2011

• 

  Black population

• 

  White population

• 

  Coloured population

See also[]

• Statistics South Africa
• South African National Census of 2001
• South African National Census of 2011
• Afrikaans-speaking population of South Africa
• Jewish population of South Africa
• Ethnic groups in South Africa by municipality

References[]

Further reading[]

• Alexander, Mary (30 June 2006). "Black, white – or South African?". SAinfo. Archived from the original on 4 July 2006. Retrieved 26 June 2013.
• "A Nation in the Making: A Discussion Document on Macro-Social Trends in South Africa" (PDF). Government of South Africa. 2006. Archived from the original (PDF) on 11 July 2006. Retrieved 26 June 2013.

External links[]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Demographics of South Africa.

Wikiquote has quotations related to: South Africans

• Sunday Standard article on Zimbabwe Refugee Crisis
• Contains information on the South African middle class
• Middle Class in South Africa-Significance, role and impact