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Landline phone subscriptions per 100 people in South Africa

South Africa: Landline phone subscriptions per 100 people was 1.58 per 100 people in 2024. ▲ Rising

Latest (2024)
1.58 per 100 people
Change on year
down 26.1%
World rank
162nd
of 212 countries
All-time high
11.8 per 100 people
in 1999
All-time low
1.58 per 100 people
in 2024
Years of data
65
1960–2024

Landline phone subscriptions per 100 people in South Africa, 1960–2024

2.557.51012.5196019922024

Source: International Telecommunication Union (ITU), via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in per 100 people.

Analysis

In 2024, landline phone subscriptions per 100 people in South Africa stood at 1.58 per 100 people. That is the lowest value across all 65 years on record.

That represents a change of down 26.1% on the previous year and down 75.9% over ten years.

Over the whole period, landline phone subscriptions per 100 people in South Africa peaked at 11.8 per 100 people in 1999 and was at its lowest, 1.58 per 100 people, in 2024.

That places South Africa 162nd out of 212 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the bottom quarter.

The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 65 years of available data.

Landline phone subscriptions per 100 people in South Africa, year by year

Year per 100 people Change
1960 3.93 per 100 people —
1961 3.8 per 100 people -3.4%
1962 3.8 per 100 people +0.0%
1963 3.8 per 100 people +0.0%
1964 3.8 per 100 people +0.0%
1965 3.93 per 100 people +3.5%
1966 3.89 per 100 people -1.0%
1967 3.89 per 100 people +0.0%
1968 3.89 per 100 people +0.0%
1969 3.89 per 100 people +0.0%
1970 4.1 per 100 people +5.1%
1971 4.15 per 100 people +1.4%
1972 4.15 per 100 people +0.0%
1973 4.15 per 100 people +0.0%
1974 4.15 per 100 people +0.0%
1975 4.48 per 100 people +8.0%
1976 4.64 per 100 people +3.5%
1977 4.82 per 100 people +3.8%
1978 5 per 100 people +3.9%
1979 5.25 per 100 people +5.0%
1980 5.54 per 100 people +5.4%
1981 5.92 per 100 people +6.8%
1982 6.24 per 100 people +5.5%
1983 6.5 per 100 people +4.2%
1984 6.57 per 100 people +1.1%
1985 6.81 per 100 people +3.6%
1986 7.26 per 100 people +6.7%
1987 7.39 per 100 people +1.7%
1988 7.66 per 100 people +3.7%
1989 7.97 per 100 people +3.9%
1990 8.14 per 100 people +2.2%
1991 8.24 per 100 people +1.2%
1992 8.15 per 100 people -1.1%
1993 8.3 per 100 people +1.8%
1994 8.58 per 100 people +3.4%
1995 8.99 per 100 people +4.8%
1996 9.44 per 100 people +5.0%
1997 10.2 per 100 people +8.1%
1998 11 per 100 people +7.8%
1999 11.8 per 100 people +7.3%
2000 10.52 per 100 people -10.8%
2001 10.35 per 100 people -1.6%
2002 10.24 per 100 people -1.1%
2003 10.12 per 100 people -1.1%
2004 10.01 per 100 people -1.1%
2005 9.89 per 100 people -1.1%
2006 9.78 per 100 people -1.2%
2007 9.66 per 100 people -1.2%
2008 9.54 per 100 people -1.3%
2009 9.41 per 100 people -1.3%
2010 9.29 per 100 people -1.3%
2011 9.16 per 100 people -1.4%
2012 9.01 per 100 people -1.6%
2013 7.09 per 100 people -21.4%
2014 6.56 per 100 people -7.4%
2015 7.28 per 100 people +11.0%
2016 7.9 per 100 people +8.5%
2017 8.35 per 100 people +5.7%
2018 5.71 per 100 people -31.6%
2019 3.4 per 100 people -40.5%
2020 3.47 per 100 people +2.0%
2021 2.39 per 100 people -30.9%
2022 2.1 per 100 people -12.3%
2023 2.14 per 100 people +2.0%
2024 1.58 per 100 people -26.1%

South Africa compared with similar countries

  • South Africa's 1.58 per 100 people is below the median for upper middle income countries, which is 10.7 per 100 people, 15% of the median. (58 countries reporting)
  • South Africa's 1.58 per 100 people is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 0.3436 per 100 people, 4.6× the median. (48 countries reporting)

Biggest year-on-year movements

Years where Landline phone subscriptions per 100 people in South Africa changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.

YearChange FromTo
2019 -40.5% 5.71 per 100 people 3.4 per 100 people
2018 -31.6% 8.35 per 100 people 5.71 per 100 people
2021 -30.9% 3.47 per 100 people 2.39 per 100 people
2024 -26.1% 2.14 per 100 people 1.58 per 100 people

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1960s 3.87 per 100 people 3.8 per 100 people 3.93 per 100 people 10
1970s 4.49 per 100 people 4.1 per 100 people 5.25 per 100 people 10
1980s 6.79 per 100 people 5.54 per 100 people 7.97 per 100 people 10
1990s 9.28 per 100 people 8.14 per 100 people 11.8 per 100 people 10
2000s 9.95 per 100 people 9.41 per 100 people 10.52 per 100 people 10
2010s 7.37 per 100 people 3.4 per 100 people 9.29 per 100 people 10
2020s 2.34 per 100 people 1.58 per 100 people 3.47 per 100 people 5

Countries ranked near South Africa

  1. 159 Indonesia 1.64 per 100 people compare
  2. 160 Senegal 1.61 per 100 people compare
  3. 161 Gambia 1.6 per 100 people compare
  4. 163 Nepal 1.38 per 100 people compare
  5. 164 Mali 1.33 per 100 people compare
  6. 165 Norway 1.31 per 100 people compare

See the full ranking of 212 places →

More reference data data for South Africa

All data for South Africa →

Frequently asked questions

What is landline phone subscriptions per 100 people in South Africa?
Landline phone subscriptions per 100 people in South Africa was 1.58 per 100 people in 2024, according to International Telecommunication Union (ITU), via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
What is the highest landline phone subscriptions per 100 people recorded in South Africa?
The highest recorded value was 11.8 per 100 people in 1999.
What is the lowest landline phone subscriptions per 100 people recorded in South Africa?
The lowest recorded value was 1.58 per 100 people in 2024.
How does South Africa rank for landline phone subscriptions per 100 people?
South Africa ranks 162nd out of 212 countries with data for 2024.
Is landline phone subscriptions per 100 people rising or falling in South Africa?
Over the last ten years it is down 75.9%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
Where does this South Africa data come from?
The figures come from International Telecommunication Union (ITU), via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Landline phone subscriptions per 100 people. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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Landline phone subscriptions per 100 people in South Africa. Statizoid, drawing on International Telecommunication Union (ITU), via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data. Retrieved 23 September 2026, from https://reference.statizoid.com/stat/fixed-telephone-subscriptions-per-100-people-2/south-africa/

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About this data

Indicator
Landline phone subscriptions per 100 people
Unit
per 100 people
Source
International Telecommunication Union (ITU), via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
212 places, 11,787 data points, 1960–2024
Last refreshed