Tax revenue as share of GDP in South Africa
South Africa: Tax revenue as share of GDP was 28.1% in 2022. ▲ Rising
Latest (2022)
28.1%
Change on year
up 0.8%
World rank
48th
of 192 countries
All-time high
28.1%
in 2022
All-time low
18.5%
in 1981
Years of data
43
1980–2022
Tax revenue as share of GDP in South Africa, 1980–2022
Source: UNU-WIDER Government Revenue Dataset (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in % of GDP.
Analysis
In 2022, tax revenue as share of gdp in South Africa stood at 28.1%. That is the highest value across all 43 years on record.
The figure is up 0.8% on the previous year and up 11.6% over ten years.
Over the whole period, tax revenue as share of gdp in South Africa peaked at 28.1% in 2022 and was at its lowest, 18.5%, in 1981.
That places South Africa 48th out of 192 countries with data for 2022, putting it in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 43 years of available data.
Tax revenue as share of GDP in South Africa, year by year
| Year | % of GDP | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1980 | 19.2% | — |
| 1981 | 18.5% | -3.7% |
| 1982 | 19.6% | +6.1% |
| 1983 | 19.6% | -0.1% |
| 1984 | 20.6% | +5.0% |
| 1985 | 22.3% | +8.0% |
| 1986 | 21.6% | -2.7% |
| 1987 | 21.4% | -1.3% |
| 1988 | 22.2% | +4.0% |
| 1989 | 24.7% | +11.1% |
| 1990 | 22.9% | -7.4% |
| 1991 | 22.8% | -0.3% |
| 1992 | 20.7% | -9.2% |
| 1993 | 21.7% | +5.0% |
| 1994 | 21.8% | +0.2% |
| 1995 | 22.0% | +0.9% |
| 1996 | 22.4% | +2.2% |
| 1997 | 23.4% | +4.1% |
| 1998 | 24.2% | +3.4% |
| 1999 | 23.9% | -1.1% |
| 2000 | 23.2% | -3.0% |
| 2001 | 23.6% | +1.6% |
| 2002 | 22.8% | -3.4% |
| 2003 | 20.5% | -10.1% |
| 2004 | 23.7% | +15.7% |
| 2005 | 25.0% | +5.5% |
| 2006 | 26.0% | +4.2% |
| 2007 | 26.5% | +1.7% |
| 2008 | 25.9% | -2.3% |
| 2009 | 23.6% | -8.9% |
| 2010 | 24.3% | +3.0% |
| 2011 | 24.6% | +1.5% |
| 2012 | 25.2% | +2.3% |
| 2013 | 25.7% | +2.1% |
| 2014 | 26.4% | +2.8% |
| 2015 | 27.0% | +2.0% |
| 2016 | 26.8% | -0.6% |
| 2017 | 26.7% | -0.4% |
| 2018 | 27.0% | +0.9% |
| 2019 | 27.0% | +0.1% |
| 2020 | 25.4% | -5.8% |
| 2021 | 27.9% | +9.8% |
| 2022 | 28.1% | +0.8% |
South Africa compared with similar countries
- South Africa's 28.1% is above the median for upper middle income countries, which is 21.4%, 1.3× the median. (56 countries reporting)
- South Africa's 28.1% is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 13.5%, 2.1× the median. (47 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980s | 21.0% | 18.5% | 24.7% | 10 |
| 1990s | 22.6% | 20.7% | 24.2% | 10 |
| 2000s | 24.1% | 20.5% | 26.5% | 10 |
| 2010s | 26.1% | 24.3% | 27.0% | 10 |
| 2020s | 27.1% | 25.4% | 28.1% | 3 |
Countries ranked near South Africa
More economy & growth data for South Africa
- Africa's Development Dynamics (AfDD) Table 04 - Annual real GDP 0.4836 Percent per annum (2029)
- Africa's Development Dynamics (AfDD) Table 02 - Annual real GDP 1.4 Percent per annum (2029)
- Foreign direct investment, net outflows (BoP, current US$), gaps -4.01 billion BoP, current US$ (2025)
- Foreign direct investment, net outflows (BoP, current US$), per unit -0.0094 BoP, current US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Foreign direct investment, net outflows (BoP, current US$), per capita -61.95 BoP, current US$ per person (2025)
- Foreign direct investment, net inflows (BoP, current US$), gaps filled -2.16 billion BoP, current US$ (2025)
- Foreign direct investment, net inflows (BoP, current US$), annual -192.73 % change on previous year (2025)
- Foreign direct investment, net inflows (BoP, current US$), per unit -0.0051 BoP, current US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Foreign direct investment, net inflows (BoP, current US$), per capita -33.37 BoP, current US$ per person (2025)
- Total reserves (includes gold, current US$), annual growth rate 16.18 % change on previous year (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is tax revenue as share of gdp in South Africa?
- Tax revenue as share of gdp in South Africa was 28.1% in 2022, according to UNU-WIDER Government Revenue Dataset (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest tax revenue as share of gdp recorded in South Africa?
- The highest recorded value was 28.1% in 2022.
- What is the lowest tax revenue as share of gdp recorded in South Africa?
- The lowest recorded value was 18.5% in 1981.
- How does South Africa rank for tax revenue as share of gdp?
- South Africa ranks 48th out of 192 countries with data for 2022.
- Is tax revenue as share of gdp rising or falling in South Africa?
- Over the last ten years it is up 11.6%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this South Africa data come from?
- The figures come from UNU-WIDER Government Revenue Dataset (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Tax revenue as share of GDP. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 43 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Direct and indirect taxes as well as social contributions included.