Taxes on goods and services in South Africa
South Africa: Taxes on goods and services was 32.1% in 2024. ▲ Rising
Taxes on goods and services in South Africa, 1972–2024
Source: Government Finance Statistics Yearbook and data files, International Monetary Fund (IMF). Measured in % of revenue.
Analysis
The most recent figure for taxes on goods and services in South Africa is 32.1%, measured in 2024.
That represents a change of down 0.5% on the previous year and down 2.1% over ten years.
Over the whole period, taxes on goods and services in South Africa peaked at 38.4% in 1994 and was at its lowest, 17.8%, in 1974.
South Africa ranks 71st of 156 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 53 years of available data.
Taxes on goods and services in South Africa, year by year
| Year | % of revenue | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1972 | 23.7% | — |
| 1973 | 21.3% | -9.9% |
| 1974 | 17.8% | -16.4% |
| 1975 | 19.8% | +10.9% |
| 1976 | 22.1% | +11.9% |
| 1977 | 22.2% | +0.4% |
| 1978 | 25.7% | +15.7% |
| 1979 | 26.5% | +3.3% |
| 1980 | 25.1% | -5.5% |
| 1981 | 27.3% | +9.0% |
| 1982 | 29.0% | +6.3% |
| 1983 | 30.3% | +4.2% |
| 1984 | 33.7% | +11.4% |
| 1985 | 32.8% | -2.7% |
| 1986 | 31.8% | -3.0% |
| 1987 | 33.9% | +6.6% |
| 1988 | 34.7% | +2.3% |
| 1989 | 33.9% | -2.3% |
| 1990 | 34.9% | +2.9% |
| 1991 | 34.1% | -2.3% |
| 1992 | 33.3% | -2.3% |
| 1993 | 37.3% | +11.9% |
| 1994 | 38.4% | +3.1% |
| 1995 | 36.8% | -4.3% |
| 1996 | 35.1% | -4.6% |
| 1997 | 35.6% | +1.4% |
| 1998 | 35.1% | -1.4% |
| 1999 | 34.6% | -1.3% |
| 2000 | 34.5% | -0.2% |
| 2001 | 33.1% | -4.1% |
| 2002 | 33.7% | +1.8% |
| 2003 | 35.3% | +4.7% |
| 2004 | 36.2% | +2.6% |
| 2005 | 35.2% | -2.8% |
| 2006 | 34.4% | -2.2% |
| 2007 | 33.7% | -2.2% |
| 2008 | 31.3% | -6.9% |
| 2009 | 32.1% | +2.3% |
| 2010 | 34.8% | +8.3% |
| 2011 | 33.4% | -3.9% |
| 2012 | 34.2% | +2.3% |
| 2013 | 33.6% | -1.8% |
| 2014 | 32.8% | -2.3% |
| 2015 | 33.3% | +1.6% |
| 2016 | 32.8% | -1.4% |
| 2017 | 32.4% | -1.2% |
| 2018 | 34.2% | +5.3% |
| 2019 | 33.8% | -1.1% |
| 2020 | 33.2% | -1.7% |
| 2021 | 33.0% | -0.6% |
| 2022 | 32.3% | -2.2% |
| 2023 | 32.2% | -0.1% |
| 2024 | 32.1% | -0.5% |
South Africa compared with similar countries
- South Africa's 32.1% is below the median for upper middle income countries, which is 34.9%, 92% of the median. (48 countries reporting)
- South Africa's 32.1% is below the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 32.6%, 99% of the median. (35 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 22.4% | 17.8% | 26.5% | 8 |
| 1980s | 31.3% | 25.1% | 34.7% | 10 |
| 1990s | 35.5% | 33.3% | 38.4% | 10 |
| 2000s | 34.0% | 31.3% | 36.2% | 10 |
| 2010s | 33.5% | 32.4% | 34.8% | 10 |
| 2020s | 32.6% | 32.1% | 33.2% | 5 |
Countries ranked near South Africa
More public sector data for South Africa
- Arms imports 30.00 million SIPRI trend indicator values (2023)
- Arms imports (SIPRI trend indicator values), per capita 0.4746 SIPRI trend indicator values per person (2023)
- Arms imports (SIPRI trend indicator values), per unit of GDP 0.0001 SIPRI trend indicator values per US$ of GDP (2023)
- Arms imports (SIPRI trend indicator values), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2023)
- Arms imports (SIPRI trend indicator values), gaps filled 30.00 million SIPRI trend indicator values (2023)
- Military expenditure (current USD), per capita 44.31 current USD per person (2024)
- Military expenditure (current USD), per unit of GDP 0.0071 current USD per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Military expenditure (current USD), annual growth rate -1.41 % change on previous year (2024)
- Military expenditure (current USD), gaps filled 2.84 billion current USD (2024)
- Arms imports (SIPRI trend indicator values), per square kilometre 24.73 SIPRI trend indicator values per square kilometre (2023)
Frequently asked questions
- What is taxes on goods and services in South Africa?
- Taxes on goods and services in South Africa was 32.1% in 2024, according to Government Finance Statistics Yearbook and data files, International Monetary Fund (IMF).
- What is the highest taxes on goods and services recorded in South Africa?
- The highest recorded value was 38.4% in 1994.
- What is the lowest taxes on goods and services recorded in South Africa?
- The lowest recorded value was 17.8% in 1974.
- How does South Africa rank for taxes on goods and services?
- South Africa ranks 71st out of 156 countries with data for 2024.
- Is taxes on goods and services rising or falling in South Africa?
- Over the last ten years it is down 2.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this South Africa data come from?
- The figures come from Government Finance Statistics Yearbook and data files, International Monetary Fund (IMF), published as part of Taxes on goods and services (% of revenue). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 53 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
About this data
General taxes on goods and services are taxes levied on the production, leasing, delivery, sale, purchase or other change of ownership of a wide range of goods and the provision of a wide range of services. This indicator is expressed as a percentage of revenue which includes all transactions that add to the amount of economic value of a unit or sector.