Do I need cash in South Africa, or can I use cards?

South Africa is more card-friendly than much of the region. Contactless cards, Apple Pay and Google Pay work well, and Visa and Mastercard are accepted at restaurants, shops, malls and hotels in cities and tourist areas.

But carry rand cash for the extras: markets, car guards, petrol station attendants, tips and small vendors, some of which are cash-only. A card covers most of the day, cash handles the rest.

When a card terminal or ATM asks whether to charge in dollars or rand, always choose rand. Dollars trigger dynamic currency conversion at a rate about 3 to 8% worse than your own bank's. Decline it every time.

For cash, use ATMs at major banks (such as Standard Bank, FNB, Absa or Nedbank). Use a debit card to avoid cash-advance fees, and take out a sensible amount at once.

ATM fraud is a real risk, so use machines inside malls or bank branches, not isolated street ATMs, and shield the keypad. If a stranger offers to help at the ATM, decline firmly and walk away: this is a common scam to distract you and swap or capture your card.

For tipping norms, see tipping in South Africa, and for the wider picture, the South Africa money guide.

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More on South Africa

The little money things nobody warns you about.

• Tipping in South AfricaSouth Africa does have a tipping culture, and it is expected: 10 to 15% at restaurants. There are also two local customs to know, tipping car guards and petrol attendants. Here is what you actually owe.
• Taxis in South Africa, and the airport e-hailing baysUber and Bolt make getting around South Africa's cities easy, but the airports have a pickup quirk and there is some turf tension worth understanding. Here is the app to use, where it collects you, and what to avoid.
• Common money scams in South Africa, and what they cost youSouth Africa is a magnificent country to travel in and most visits are trouble free, and the money scams here are unusually well documented, which makes them unusually avoidable. But we are not going to pretend the context is ordinary. The US State Department has South Africa at Level 2 with crime, terrorism, unrest and kidnapping indicators, and it notes that kidnappers target foreign travelers specifically to make them withdraw cash or hand over account passwords. So the advice is partly about the con at the cash machine, and partly about limiting what anyone can take. Read the full advisory for the wider picture; this page covers money.
• Staying connected in South Africa.South Africa has a real price gap hidden in plain sight: an ordinary MTN data bundle and a Vodacom tourist bundle can differ by four times for the same gigabytes. The catch on both is RICA, the registration law, and whether it is worth your first afternoon.
• What does getting sick in South Africa cost a visitor?South Africa has two health systems living in one country. The private one is excellent, and it is where a visitor belongs; the private hospitals where a visitor belongs ask for a substantial deposit or proof of cover at admission. The public one is overstretched, and it is not the plan.