Business climate in South Africa
South Africa ranks #51 of 54 on the overall business climate (score 32). Its strongest suit is business taxes, followed by momentum; the weakest is cost of capital.
| Driver | Score | Rank | Measures |
|---|---|---|---|
| Red tape and ease of doing business | 10 | #52 of 54 | Days to start a business (Doing Business): 45 (2017); Procedures to start a business (Doing Business): 7.00 (2017); Ease of doing business rank (Doing Business, 1 = easiest of 190): 82 (2017) |
| Rule of law and legal certainty | 40 | #41 of 54 | Liberal democracy (V-Dem): 0.63 (2025); Corruption perceptions score (higher = cleaner): 41 (2024); Strength of legal rights for borrowers and lenders: 5.00 (2017) |
| Taxes on business | 54 | #29 of 53 | Corporate income tax rate (headline): 27 (2026); Total tax and contribution rate on commercial profits: 29 (2017) |
| Cost of capital | 2 | #26 of 27 | Real interest rate: 7.68 (2025); Bank lending interest rate: 11 (2025) |
| Energy prices for business | – | – | no comparable figure yet |
| Growth momentum and investment trend | 40 | #36 of 53 | Real GDP growth, average of the last five years: 1.87 (2025); Growth trend: last three years against 2015-2019: -0.17 (2025); Foreign direct investment, net inflows: 1.00 (2023) |
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Find the best business sites in South Africa
Open the mapSources as on the business-climate table. Nestlyzer scores each measure 0–100 between the 5th and 95th percentile of the countries it covers. How the method works.