Population · Chart
Cape Town has the lowest poverty share of any metro, and it is still 47.9%
66.9% eThekwini · Highest
Close to half of Cape Town lives below the line, which is the best figure of any South African metro.
From our storiesWhat are Cape Town biggest challenges in 2026?Read the full story →
Method and sources
Each bar is the share of residents below Stats SA's upper-bound poverty line of R2,635 per person per month, as reported in the article.
Cape Town 47.9%, Johannesburg 50.9%, eThekwini 66.9%, South Africa national 66.7%.
The article adds that the Western Cape's income Gini is 0.634 against a national 0.635, and that no official Gini is published for Cape Town itself.
The source report covers 2006 to 2023 and the article treats the figures as the 2023 position, so the period is the 2023 calendar year.
Sources: Statistics South Africa, Poverty Trends in South Africa 2006 to 2023, Report 03-10-06 (https://www.statssa.gov.za/)
Figures as published in our article on Cape Town's biggest challenges in 2026 (chart last checked 14 September 2026): Stats SA Poverty Trends in South Africa 2006 to 2023, Report 03-10-06. Link to the publisher, not the exact table.
Chart updated · 8 Oct 2026. The observation dates above describe the data, not today’s conditions.
Related charts
Matric 2025: the Western Cape had the second-highest share of bachelor passes
52% Free State · Highest
Select a bar to inspect its value.
Free State led at 52.0%, the Western Cape followed at 49.2%, and Northern Cape was lowest at 36.2%.
Source: Department of Basic Education and Western Cape Education Department · All bars start at zero
Fewer South African readers get their books from public libraries
48% 2006 · Highest
Select a bar to inspect its value.
The share fell from 48% in 2006 to 24% in 2016 and 17% in 2023, a drop of 31 percentage points.
Source: National Reading Barometer · All bars start at zero
The more educated South Africans are, the more of them have considered emigrating
38% University+ · Highest
Select a bar to inspect its value.
38% of university-educated adults had considered emigrating, almost four times the 10% of those with primary schooling.
Source: Afrobarometer · All bars start at zero