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South Africa Statistics
South Africa has a population of 64M (0.8% of the world), a GDP of $401.1B (0.4% of global GDP), and inflation of 4.4%, making it the 40th largest economy worldwide (World Bank, 2024).
Key metrics at a glance
Economy
Output, growth, prices, and the macro picture.
South Africa's gdp was $401.1B in 2024 (World Bank). That is up 4485.2% from 1960. That is below the G7 median of $3.7T.
Demographics
Population size, growth, structure, and life expectancy.
South Africa's population, total was 64M in 2024 (World Bank). That is up 289.3% from 1960. That is below the G7 median of 69.2M.
Labor
Employment, unemployment, and the workforce.
South Africa's unemployment, total was 32.4% in 2025 (World Bank). That is up 40% from 1991. That is above the G7 median of 4.7%.
| Indicator |
Latest |
Year |
Rank |
Source |
| Unemployment, total |
32.4% of total labor force |
2025 |
#1 of 8 in the G7 + South Africa · #2 of 187 worldwide |
World Bank |
Trade
Exports, imports, and the balance with the world.
South Africa's exports was 31.8% in 2024 (World Bank). That is up 24.2% from 1960. That is below the G7 median of 32.4%.
Environment
Emissions, energy, and the environmental footprint.
South Africa's co2 emissions per capita was 6.88 in 2024 (World Bank). That is down 17.4% from 1970. That is below the G7 median of 6.94.
Education & Research
Schooling, literacy, and research and development.
South Africa's literacy rate was 90.8% in 2024 (World Bank). That is up 21.4% from 1980. That is below the G7 median of 99.2%.
Use this data programmatically
# Full country profile (JSON, no signup)
curl "https://autario.com/api/v1/public/entities/south-africa/profile"
# Any indicator for South Africa (MCP, for LLMs like Claude or ChatGPT)
get_entity_profile("ZAF")
Data aggregated and verified on autario.com from World Bank, IMF, Eurostat, OECD and other public sources. Each value links to its primary source.
Open this profile on autario.com.
