Share with access to electricity vs. per capita energy use in South Africa
South Africa: Share with access to electricity vs. per capita energy use was 87.7% in 2023. ▲ Rising
Share with access to electricity vs. per capita energy use in South Africa, 1996–2023
Source: Data compiled from multiple sources by the World Bank – with minor processing by Our World in Data. Measured in % of population.
Analysis
The most recent figure for share with access to electricity vs. per capita energy use in South Africa is 87.7%, measured in 2023.
That represents a change of up 1.4% on the previous year and up 2.9% over ten years.
Over the whole period, share with access to electricity vs. per capita energy use in South Africa peaked at 90.0% in 2020 and was at its lowest, 57.6%, in 1996.
That places South Africa 162nd out of 214 countries with data for 2023, putting it in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 28 years of available data.
Share with access to electricity vs. per capita energy use in South Africa, year by year
| Year | % of population | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1996 | 57.6% | — |
| 1997 | 69.5% | +20.6% |
| 1998 | 64.9% | -6.6% |
| 1999 | 71.3% | +9.9% |
| 2000 | 72.4% | +1.5% |
| 2001 | 70.2% | -3.0% |
| 2002 | 76.7% | +9.3% |
| 2003 | 78.8% | +2.7% |
| 2004 | 80.6% | +2.3% |
| 2005 | 80.8% | +0.2% |
| 2006 | 80.7% | -0.1% |
| 2007 | 82.0% | +1.6% |
| 2008 | 81.9% | -0.1% |
| 2009 | 82.6% | +0.9% |
| 2010 | 82.8% | +0.2% |
| 2011 | 83.6% | +1.0% |
| 2012 | 85.2% | +1.9% |
| 2013 | 85.2% | +0.0% |
| 2014 | 85.9% | +0.8% |
| 2015 | 85.3% | -0.7% |
| 2016 | 83.9% | -1.6% |
| 2017 | 84.4% | +0.6% |
| 2018 | 84.7% | +0.4% |
| 2019 | 85.0% | +0.4% |
| 2020 | 90.0% | +5.9% |
| 2021 | 89.3% | -0.8% |
| 2022 | 86.5% | -3.1% |
| 2023 | 87.7% | +1.4% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 65.8% | 57.6% | 71.3% | 4 |
| 2000s | 78.7% | 70.2% | 82.6% | 10 |
| 2010s | 84.6% | 82.8% | 85.9% | 10 |
| 2020s | 88.4% | 86.5% | 90.0% | 4 |
Countries ranked near South Africa
More energy & mining data for South Africa
- Fossil fuel consumption by fuel, per unit of GDP 0 terawatt-hours per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Primary energy use, annual growth rate -0.3095 % change on previous year (2025)
- Coal consumption, per capita 0 terawatt-hours per person (2025)
- Coal consumption, per unit of GDP 0 terawatt-hours per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Primary energy use, per unit of GDP 0 terawatt-hours per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Coal production, per capita 0 terawatt-hours per person (2025)
- Coal production, per unit of GDP 0 terawatt-hours per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Primary energy use, per capita 0 terawatt-hours per person (2025)
- Fuel imports 17.7% (2025)
- Ores and metals imports 2.5% (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is share with access to electricity vs. per capita energy use in South Africa?
- Share with access to electricity vs. per capita energy use in South Africa was 87.7% in 2023, according to Data compiled from multiple sources by the World Bank – with minor processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest share with access to electricity vs. per capita energy use recorded in South Africa?
- The highest recorded value was 90.0% in 2020.
- What is the lowest share with access to electricity vs. per capita energy use recorded in South Africa?
- The lowest recorded value was 57.6% in 1996.
- How does South Africa rank for share with access to electricity vs. per capita energy use?
- South Africa ranks 162nd out of 214 countries with data for 2023.
- Is share with access to electricity vs. per capita energy use rising or falling in South Africa?
- Over the last ten years it is up 2.9%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this South Africa data come from?
- The figures come from Data compiled from multiple sources by the World Bank – with minor processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Share with access to electricity vs. per capita energy use. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 28 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Access to electricity means having an electricity source that can provide very basic lighting, and charge a phone or power a radio for 4 hours per day.