Features / 30 September 2026 / Warren Hawkins

This is what the average electric car owner in South Africa earns

The median individual income of a pure battery-electric vehicle (EV) buyer in South Africa is R115,000 per month – R42,000 more than the median for internal combustion (ICE) vehicle buyers.

This is according to the Cars.co.za 2026 South African Automotive Industry Report, which examined data from its own platform, TransUnion and Absa Vehicle and Asset Finance.

In the report’s demographic profile breakdown, it found that the average individual income for an EV buyer is cited at approximately R80,000 per month, compared to R37,000 per month for ICE buyers.

This reinforces the idea that battery-powered cars are still seen as attainable only by those much better off than the average person, especially with the limited number of relatively affordable EV options.

While this segment is growing, and more car manufacturers introduce ‘cheaper’ electric options, the average EV costs around R1 million, while the average ICE vehicle costs less than half of that.

The result, according to Absa’s vehicle finance data, is an average EV buyer age of 43 years, with a monthly salary of R80,000 – with half of these buyers earning R115,000 or more per month.

More than half of these buyers – between 56% and 57% – live in Gauteng, compared to the 37% to 40% of ICE buyers who reside there.

Absa found that EV buyers are far more likely to buy new vehicles, with 79% purchasing new compared to just 39% for ICE buyers, adding that 18% of them already own or owned an EV.

The bank also found a clear preference among battery-electric buyers for BYD, which alone accounts for 61% of EV finance applications.

This is a level of brand dominance Absa noted it hasn’t seen in any other segment, but can be attributed to the wide variety of options the Chinese carmaker offers.

At one end of BYD’s range is the Dolphin Surf hatchback, which was the cheapest EV in South Africa until recently, with a starting price of only R341,900.

At the opposite end of the brand’s stable is the BYD Sealion 7 Performance, a R1,325,900 all-wheel-drive performance SUV.

The cars the average South African EV buyer can afford

According to a calculation by TopAuto, the average EV buyer earning R80,000 per month can realistically afford a vehicle worth up to R740,000.

That is, if they finance the EV for 5 years, or 60 months, at the prime lending rate of 10.75% and pay no deposit or agree to a balloon settlement.

Financial experts recommend that buyers spend less than 20% of their gross monthly salary on vehicle payments, meaning the average EV buyer has around R16,000 per month to spend every month.

Below is a list of some of the cars these buyers can afford to finance. Click on their underlined prices for more information.