A new survey by infoQuest, together with Decapod Customer Experience, showed that households are making tough choices as the economy continues to struggle.
The research, conducted in August 2025 among 300 consumers, found that only 15% of people are very satisfied with their financial situation.
On average, people rated their finances at just 5.8 out of 10, only a small improvement from 5.4 in 2023, the first real year of recovery from the Covid-19 economic shock.
According to infoQuest, this shows that the current situation for most South Africans has not improved in any substantial way, even after a further two-year period.
Some people feel slightly better off than they did a year ago. However, this is mostly because of lifestyle changes rather than higher income. Older South Africans, especially those over 50, are struggling more than younger groups.
Most households are cutting back on day-to-day spending. Nine out of ten are hunting for bargains and promotions, while 85% are spending less on luxuries and impulse buys.
Eating out and socialising have also been reduced by 83% of people, and the same number are sticking to strict monthly budgets.
Big sacrifices are also being made. Two-thirds of South Africans have cancelled or reduced subscription services such as streaming, 65% are choosing local rather than imported products, and 62% have switched where they shop for groceries.
Many are cutting back on hobbies (56%), carpooling or using public transport (51%), and cancelling gym memberships (49%). Alarmingly, almost four in ten have downsized their homes to cope.
The pressure is so severe that some have paused education (37%), sold or pawned possessions (29%), or borrowed money from family and friends (27%).
This type of informal borrowing is more common than taking personal loans from banks (24%).
People also lean on existing credit, with 22% taking funds from their home loan and 20% increasing their credit card limits. More than half say they are struggling to keep up with credit card repayments.
