South African households are facing mounting financial pressure, with a growing share of people struggling to cover everyday expenses, save for emergencies and keep up with debt repayments.
More than half of respondents to JustMoney’s 2026 Money and Me survey said they spent over 40% of their take-home pay on debt repayments. This was up from 38% in 2025.
The survey, which collected more than 5,400 responses during July and August 2026, found that 65% of respondents experienced financial difficulty every month, compared with 61% the previous year. A further 43% said they needed to borrow money before the end of the month to cover living costs.
The findings point to the strain many households face when income is stretched across debt, everyday necessities and family responsibilities.
Retirement savings increasingly used to cover shortfalls
JustMoney head of customer experience Sarah Nicholson said people were being forced to make difficult financial decisions to get through the month. Some were turning to credit and retirement savings to bridge the gap between income and expenses.
Among respondents with a retirement annuity (RA), the proportion who had made a withdrawal under South Africa’s two-pot retirement system increased from 56% in 2025 to 62% in 2026. The figure rose to 69% among respondents earning between R10,000 and R35,000 a month.
At the same time, the share of respondents without an RA declined from 41% to 32%. However, the survey’s findings on withdrawals suggest that retirement savings are also being used by some people to meet immediate cash-flow needs. The largest reported withdrawal category was below R5,000.
Nicholson warned that prioritising immediate financial needs over long-term planning could have lasting consequences.
Emergency savings also appear limited. Fewer than one in five respondents said they could cover an unexpected R10,000 expense using their savings. Even among those earning more than R35,000 a month, 57% said they could not meet that cost from savings alone.
Family responsibilities add to the challenge. The survey found that 46% of respondents supported four or more people. Among this group, the likelihood of saving at least 10% of monthly income was just 7%.
These results suggest that a regular salary or a relatively higher income does not automatically provide financial security when debt and household obligations absorb much of the available money.
Gambling can put essential household spending at risk
The survey found that respondents were exploring different ways to earn extra money, including side businesses, online buying and selling, gambling and lottery tickets. Some 54% said they regularly gambled or played the lottery in the hope of improving their finances.
Gambling, however, is not a dependable source of income and can expose financially stretched households to further losses.
A separate South Africa Gambling Impact Study released earlier in 2026 found that 57% of surveyed gamblers had sacrificed essential household items during the preceding six months to fund betting activities.
Timothy Treagus, founder and researcher at Yazi Market Research, said the research showed that some participants hoped to double their money and continued betting on the same day to recover losses.
The study indicated that the financial harm associated with gambling depends not only on how much people wager, but also on whether the money comes from funds needed for basic living expenses.
Airtime and mobile data were among the first costs respondents reported cutting, with around 24% to 30% reducing spending in this area. Some 9% to 11% reported sacrificing grocery spending, while 8% to 10% cut back on debt repayments. Transport expenses, including taxi fares and fuel, were reduced by approximately 7% to 8%.
Housing costs and family support were also affected. About 4% reported reducing rent or housing spending, while around 3% to 4% cut financial assistance to relatives.
The findings highlight the risks of using money intended for essentials to fund gambling. For households already struggling with repayments and limited savings, losing funds needed for food, transport or housing could deepen financial insecurity.