Tap water in South Africa

Not safe to drink

This reflects the CDC's travel health guidance for South Africa; no WHO coverage figure is published for this country. National figures describe a country, not the tap in front of you.

What the sources say

US CDC Travelers' Health

Advises travellers that tap water is generally not safe to drink in South Africa.

Numbeo

65.17/100 on the water drinkability and accessibility index, which Numbeo reads as “High”. This one is crowdsourced from residents rather than measured.

Lonely Planet

High-quality water is widely available in South Africa and drinking from taps is fine, except in rural and drought-struck areas.

This is a national picture, and it varies. Some cities treat their water to a standard the country as a whole does not reach. Where the water is not safe, boiling, filtering or sealed bottles are the usual options, and ice and raw salad washed in tap water carry the same risk as the water itself.

What bottled water costs you here

Drinking tap water instead of bottled would save one adult about 591$ a year in South Africa, and keep several hundred plastic bottles out of circulation.

Work out your own saving

Places in South Africa

Water quality is local. These places have their own readings.

Elsewhere in Africa