According to the 2022 census, the population of South Africa is about 62 million people of diverse origins, cultures, languages, and religions. The South African National Census of 2022 was the most recent census held; the next will be in 2032.
In 2011, Statistics South Africa counted 2.1 million foreigners in total. Reports suggest that is an underestimation. The real figure may be as high as five million, including some three million Zimbabweans.
History
Population
Earlier Censuses, 1904 to 2011
1904 Census
South African population figures for the 1904 Census.
1960 Census
Sources: Statesman's Year-Book 1967–1968; Europa Year Book 1969
1904–85 national census numbers
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.
1996 Census
Source: The People of South Africa: Population Census, 1996
2001 Census
Source: Statistics South Africa: Census 2001
2011 Census
Source: Census 2011: Census in Brief
Historical and projected population for the years 1 to 2100
UN 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. All population estimates are rounded to the nearest thousand.
UN population projections: 2019 to 2100
Vital statistics
Statistics South Africa: From 2002 to present
The following statistics are obtained from the mid-year population estimates published by Statistics South Africa:
United Nations estimates, 2019
The Population Department of the United Nations prepared the following estimates. (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.)
Age and sex distribution
Age and race distribution
Age distribution within each racial group
By generation
Racial composition of each age group in 2015 (estimates)
By five-year cohorts
Racial composition of each age group in 2020 (estimates) Source:
Fertility rate (The Demographic Health Survey) Fertility rate (TFR) (Wanted Fertility Rate) and CBR (Crude Birth Rate):
Fertility rate (TFR) (Wanted Fertility Rate) by ethnic group.
Life expectancy
Life expectancy at birth from 1950 to 2020 (UN World Population Prospects):
Ethnic groups
Statistics South Africa asks people to describe themselves in the census in terms of five racial population groups. 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%.
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, 8.9% in 2011 and 7.65% in 2022. Coloured South Africans replaced Whites as the largest minority group around 2010.
Languages
South Africa has twelve official languages: isiZulu 22.7%, isiXhosa 16%, Afrikaans 13.5%, English 9.6%, Sepedi 9.1%, Setswana 8%, Sesotho 7.6%, Xitsonga 4.5%, siSwati 2.5%, Tshivenda 2.4%, isiNdebele 2.1% and South African Sign Language.
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 2022 census, the three most spoken languages in the household are Zulu (24.4%), Xhosa (16.3%), and Afrikaans (10.6%).
The country also recognises several unofficial languages, including Sekholokoe, Fanagalo, Khwe, Lobedu, Nama, Northern Ndebele, Phuthi, San and South African Sign Language. 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.