Engen is the most popular petrol station franchise in South Africa, according to a new study from Lightstone Auto.
While the data only reflects the popularity of various forecourts in Gauteng, the province has the largest population in the country at an estimated 16 million residents.
It also has more than double the cars of any other province, meaning the dataset is large enough to generalize South African motorists as a whole.
According to the Natis database, approximately 3.3 million of the nation’s 8 million passenger vehicles are registered in Gauteng, representing 41% of all cars in South Africa.
The Lightstone analysis captured data from more than 600 service centres located in and around Johannesburg.
Additionally, the survey collected information from 5,000 other locations around the country, based on the real-world travel behaviour of Gauteng’s passenger cars.
According to this data, Engen emerged as the top pick for motorists in 2025.
“Among the brands competing for Joburg drivers’ attention, Engen stands clearly ahead,” said Lightstone.
Engen accounted for roughly 30% of fuel stop visits, followed by Shell at 18%, BP at 16%, Sasol at 14%, Astron Energy at 11%, and Total Energies at 9%.
The remaining 2% was then attributed to private petrol stations.
The analysis also highlighted Engen stations that saw particularly high visitor numbers, including Oxford Service Centre, M1 North and South, My City Sandton Court, and Midway Mews Convenience Centre.
Other top-performing forecourts identified by the research include the BP’s Grayston Drive, Shell’s Glenhove and Cosmo City Convenience Centres, and Sasol’s Waterfall.
More than a petrol stop
Another interesting detail highlighted by Lightstone’s study is that petrol stations are often the default stop for households needing to stock up on goods.
Part of this is attributed to the convenience that these locations offer, but the main draw is often the fact that fuel stations are open much later than traditional storefronts.
“This shift is clearly visible in the data, where the proportion of convenience-led visits spikes between 19h00 and 06h00,” Lightstone said.
Different franchises also see popularity spikes at different times, as Astron stations experience higher visitor traffic between 06h00 and 10h00, pointing to a commuter-focused routine that’s unique among its peers.
Engen is currently the most widespread petrol chain in South Africa with over 1,000 stations, which is likely part of the reason for its popularity.
Astron, which took over from Caltex following a massive rebranding campaign in 2022, is not far behind, as it will have 850 outlets once the last stations are re-opened.
In stark contrast, Shell previously announced that it would exit South Africa, and is still in the process of selling its outlets to potential buyers.
Shell has nearly 600 forecourts, which will significantly add to the total of the remaining brands once its exit is complete.
Total Energies is the fourth largest with 550 stations, followed by BP and Sasol with 500 and 354 locations, respectively.
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