Payday loans in South Africa
A payday loan is short-term credit you repay in one instalment when your salary lands — usually R500 to R3 000 over a single month. Under the National Credit Act a registered lender may charge you at most 5% interest a month on a first loan, plus a capped initiation fee, a R60 monthly service fee and VAT on those fees. That makes the real cost knowable in advance, which is what this page is for.
NCR-registered lenders offering short-term credit
ordered by what each discloses · how we rank| Lender · NCR registration | Amount | Term | Interest | Basis | Details |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Boodle NCRCP5361 | R500 – R8 000 | 1–6 months | Up to 5%/mo capped | ✓ Lender-confirmed | View details |
| Atlas Finance NCRCP3994 | R500 – R20 000 | 1–9 months | Up to 5%/mo capped | ✓ Lender-confirmed | View details |
| Letsatsi Finance NCRCP895 | R500 – R7 000 | 1–6 months | Up to 5%/mo capped | ✓ Lender-confirmed | View details |
| DirectAxis NCRCP20 | R5 000 – R350 000 | 24–72 months | Annual, risk-based | ✓ Lender-confirmed | View details |
| Wonga NCRCP12875 | Not disclosed | Not disclosed | Up to 5%/mo capped | ✓ Lender-confirmed | View details |
| Lime24 NCRCP8077 | Not disclosed | Not disclosed | Up to 5%/mo capped | ✓ Lender-confirmed | View details |
| FinChoice NCRCP8162 / NCRCP23514 | Not disclosed | Not disclosed | Up to 5%/mo capped | ✓ Lender-confirmed | View details |
| Barko NCRCP1764 | Not disclosed | Not disclosed | Up to 5%/mo capped | ✓ Lender-confirmed | View details |
| African Bank Not disclosed | R2 000 – R350 000 | 7–72 months | Annual, risk-based | Snapshot only | View details |
| Nedbank Not disclosed | R2 000 – R400 000 | 6–84 months | Annual, risk-based | Snapshot only | View details |
| Sanlam Not disclosed | R5 000 – R350 000 | 12–84 months | Annual, risk-based | Snapshot only | View details |
- Boodle✓ Lender-confirmedNCRCP5361
- Amount
- R500 – R8 000
- Term
- 1–6 months
- Interest
- Up to 5%/mo capped
- Provider
- Boodle (Pty) Ltd
- Atlas Finance✓ Lender-confirmedNCRCP3994
- Amount
- R500 – R20 000
- Term
- 1–9 months
- Interest
- Up to 5%/mo capped
- Provider
- Atlas Finance
- Letsatsi Finance✓ Lender-confirmedNCRCP895
- Amount
- R500 – R7 000
- Term
- 1–6 months
- Interest
- Up to 5%/mo capped
- Provider
- Letsatsi Finance and Loan (Pty) Ltd
- DirectAxis✓ Lender-confirmedNCRCP20
- Amount
- R5 000 – R350 000
- Term
- 24–72 months
- Interest
- Annual, risk-based
- Provider
- FirstRand Bank Limited
- Wonga✓ Lender-confirmedNCRCP12875
- Amount
- Not disclosed
- Term
- Not disclosed
- Interest
- Up to 5%/mo capped
- Provider
- Wonga Online (Pty) Ltd
- Lime24✓ Lender-confirmedNCRCP8077
- Amount
- Not disclosed
- Term
- Not disclosed
- Interest
- Up to 5%/mo capped
- Provider
- Lime Loans South Africa (Pty) Ltd
- FinChoice✓ Lender-confirmedNCRCP8162 / NCRCP23514
- Amount
- Not disclosed
- Term
- Not disclosed
- Interest
- Up to 5%/mo capped
- Provider
- FinChoice Africa Ltd / FinChoice Finance (Pty) Ltd
- Barko✓ Lender-confirmedNCRCP1764
- Amount
- Not disclosed
- Term
- Not disclosed
- Interest
- Up to 5%/mo capped
- Provider
- Barko Financial Services (Pty) Ltd
- African BankSnapshot onlyNot disclosed
- Amount
- R2 000 – R350 000
- Term
- 7–72 months
- Interest
- Annual, risk-based
- Provider
- African Bank Limited
- NedbankSnapshot onlyNot disclosed
- Amount
- R2 000 – R400 000
- Term
- 6–84 months
- Interest
- Annual, risk-based
- Provider
- Nedbank Limited
- SanlamSnapshot onlyNot disclosed
- Amount
- R5 000 – R350 000
- Term
- 12–84 months
- Interest
- Annual, risk-based
- Provider
- Sanlam group entity
Every figure is transcribed from the provider’s own published material. Where a provider does not disclose something, this table says so rather than estimating it. Last checked 10 August 2026. ZarCash may earn a commission when you apply through a partner — it never changes this order. Affiliate disclosure
What it costs — work it out
Set the amount and the term and see the instalment and the total repayable, with every fee the National Credit Act allows and VAT included. An estimate at the legal maximum — not a quote, and not an offer.
Rates and fees use the NCA caps for short-term credit agreements: interest 5%/month (3% repeat), initiation fee R165 + 10% of the amount over R1 000 (max R1 050), service fee R60/month, VAT 15% on fees.
| Principal — what you receive | R3 000 |
|---|---|
| Interest (5%/mo × 3 months) | R450 |
| Initiation fee | R365 |
| Service fee (3 × R60) | R180 |
| VAT on fees (15%) | R82 |
| Total cost of credit | R1 077 |
Check these three things before you sign — here or anywhere
- The lender’s NCRCP number is published on its own site, and it checks out in the National Credit Regulator’s register.
- The pre-agreement quote breaks out the total cost of credit: interest, initiation fee, service fee and VAT — as one figure you can compare.
- Nobody asks you for an upfront “release fee”. A registered credit provider never charges you before it pays out.
What R2 000 over 1 month actually costs
At the NCA maximum for a first short-term loan (5% a month). An illustration, not a quote.
| Line | Amount |
|---|---|
| Amount borrowed | R2 000 |
| Interest (5% × 1 month) | R100 |
| Initiation fee | R265 |
| Service fee (R60 × 1) | R60 |
| VAT on fees (15%) | R49 |
| Total you repay | R2 474 |
| Monthly instalment | R2 474 |
Cost of credit: R474 on R2 000 borrowed. Figures are calculated at the statutory maximum — your own quote may be cheaper, and must be shown to you in full before you sign.
What the National Credit Act allows a lender to charge
Maximums for short-term credit under the National Credit Act 34 of 2005. A registered lender may charge less — never more.
| Charge | Legal maximum | How it works |
|---|---|---|
| Interest — first loan | 5% per month | Applies to your first short-term loan in a calendar year. |
| Interest — repeat loan | 3% per month | Applies to further short-term loans taken in the same calendar year. |
| Initiation fee | R165 + 10% above R1 000, capped at R1 050 | Charged once, on the amount you borrow. Excludes VAT. |
| Service fee | R60 per month | Charged monthly for the life of the loan. Excludes VAT. |
| VAT | 15% on the fees | Added to the initiation and service fees — not to interest. |
Fee caps are published excluding VAT. With 15% VAT a R1 050 initiation fee costs you R1 207,50 and a R60 service fee costs R69 a month. Always compare the VAT-inclusive figure on your pre-agreement quote.
What separates a payday loan from other short-term credit
The defining feature is the repayment date, not the amount. A payday loan is structured around one salary cycle: you borrow now and settle the whole balance — capital, interest and fees — on your next pay date. Nothing rolls over, and there is no second instalment to plan for.
That single-instalment structure is what makes it expensive per rand borrowed and cheap in total. One month of interest at the 5% cap on R2 000 is R100. The same R2 000 stretched over six months costs R600 in interest, plus five more service fees. Borrowing over the shortest term you can genuinely afford is almost always the cheaper decision.
The trade-off is the size of the single payment. If repaying the full balance on payday would leave you short enough to borrow again in the same month, a payday loan is the wrong product — a short-term loan over two or three months will cost more in total but will not push you into a second loan.
There is no legal “no credit check” loan in South Africa
The National Credit Act requires every registered credit provider to run an affordability assessment and check your credit record before granting credit. A lender advertising guaranteed approval or no checks at all is either not registered or not telling you the truth. What does vary is how much weight a lender puts on your credit score — some short-term lenders look harder at your recent bank statements than at your bureau record.
Payday loan questions
Most South African short-term lenders start first-time borrowers between R500 and R4 000, and open larger amounts once you have repaid on time. The ceiling is set by the affordability assessment the lender must run, not by a fixed advertised limit — what you can borrow depends on what your income and existing commitments leave over.
Contact the lender before the debit order goes off, not after. A missed instalment adds default fees and interest, and is reported to the credit bureaux. Registered credit providers must have a process for arrangements, and if you are already over-committed you can apply for debt review — which stops new credit but protects you from legal action while you repay.
It depends entirely on how long you use it. Over a single month a payday loan at the 5% cap is often cheaper than an unarranged overdraft. Over several months it is usually more expensive, because the initiation fee and monthly service fee are charged regardless of how small the balance is.
A credit enquiry is recorded when a lender assesses you, and several applications in a short space of time can read as distress borrowing. Repaying on time is reported too, and helps. The single worst outcome for your record is a default, so borrow the amount you can clear rather than the maximum offered.
Related
Sources and last checked
- National Credit Regulator — register of credit providers — Regulator, as at 10 August 2026.
- National Credit Act 34 of 2005 and its regulations — Government, as at 10 August 2026.
- NCR Consumer Credit Market Report, Q2 2025 — Regulator report, as at 30 June 2025.
Page last checked 10 August 2026. Statutory caps and lender terms change — confirm anything you intend to rely on with the provider or the National Credit Regulator. Found something wrong? Tell us and we will correct it.