SHED ALL THE DEBT WEIGHT

Learn how Mzansi copes with bad financial stress

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SOUTH Africans are less stressed about money, but pressures persist.

On Tuesday, 22 July 2025 - DebtBusters made public their fourth annual Money-Stress Tracker, which surveyed over 27 000 mense during May and June.

This makes it one of the largest online surveys about how financial stress impacts lives.

To me, the biggest and most surprising revelation of the survey showed how South Africans are less worried about money than they have been for the past two years.

Despite this, money stress remains a big issue for many people.

The 2025 survey found that 70 percent of respondents experienced money stress. This is down from 78 percent in 2023 and 75 percent in 2024.

Although the extent of financial anxiety is declining, the impact on daily life continues to take a toll on mense.

Of those experiencing financial stress, 91 percent felt it affected their home life, 73 percent their, work life and health.

Women continue to bear a disproportionately higher burden of financial stress. Nearly three out of four female respondents reported feeling stressed.

Women are around 10 percent more stressed about finances. They are 20 percent more stressed about work life, home life and health compared to men, although stress levels for both genders have decreased by five percent to 15 percent across all facets of life since 2024.

The shift is attributed to fewer national crises, such as load shedding, reduced inflation, and people starting to manage their finances better, allowing them to look beyond short-term survival.