SA Electricity Tariff Tracker 2026/27: what every metro charges

By Kagiso Mahlangu, The Bill Detective · Updated 27 October 2026 · Tariffs and bills

Last updated: 27 October 2026. Next change: NERSA's decision on Eskom's 2027/28 tariffs, due around 26 November 2026.

Short answer, as of 27 October 2026: a South African home using 500 kWh a month pays from about R1,985 (City of Johannesburg (City Power): Residential Prepaid High) to about R2,727 (City of Johannesburg (City Power): Residential Conventional, single phase 60 A) including VAT, across the main metro tariffs below. Eskom's Homelight tariffs for its own direct customers are cheaper per unit still (R1,718 on Homelight 60A). The gap comes mostly from fixed monthly charges, which hit small users hardest, and from stepped rates that make every extra unit dearer.

This page puts the published 2026/27 numbers for Tshwane, Johannesburg, Cape Town, eThekwini and Eskom direct customers side by side, adds what each one charges a home with solar, and links the official source for every figure. Use the calculator to run your own bill and solar payback.

Monthly bill at four usage levels (incl VAT)

Bills include VAT at 15%, fixed charges and any network surcharge, using a month of 30.42 days for daily charges. They exclude the indigent and lifeline tariffs, free basic electricity, and rates, water and refuse on a municipal account.

What a registered solar home pays and earns

The export credit is far below what you pay for a unit, which is why solar pays best when you use your own power rather than sell it. NERSA said in February 2026 that grid-connected systems of 100 kW or less must register with their distributor whether or not they export (SAnews, 3 February 2026).

Solar payback calculator

The calculator needs JavaScript. The tables on this page give the same tariffs if it doesn't load.

How it works. Units your panels make and you use at home come off the top of your bill, at your most expensive step first. Spare units earn the export credit only where the system is registered and we can model the tariff. The default output per kW comes from PVGIS for your metro (Pretoria 1,736 kWh, Johannesburg 1,737 kWh, Cape Town 1,728 kWh, Durban 1,481 kWh a year). That assumes panels at 30 degrees facing north with 14% system losses, so shade or an east or west roof will make less. The default price of R110,000 is a published 2026 estimate for a 5 kW system with a 5 kWh battery from our 5 kW cost guide. Change it to your quote.

What it leaves out. Panel ageing, battery replacement, maintenance, finance costs, time-of-use tariffs and your exact meter fees. The share used at home is your estimate: without a battery, most homes use only the power made while they're awake and at home. Treat the payback as a starting point for comparing quotes, not a promise. When you're ready to compare, ask for quotes.

Every tariff in detail

City of Tshwane

Domestic (prepaid and conventional). Homes supplied by the City of Tshwane, prepaid or conventional. Midstream and Eskom-supplied areas use other tariffs. Effective 1 July 2026, increase 8.8%.

If you add solar: A registered grid-connected solar home pays a fixed R324.00 a month (excl VAT) per metering point and is credited 94.13c a unit (excl VAT) for power fed back. A single-phase two-way meter costs R2,820.31 (excl VAT).

Sources: NERSA, reasons for decision on City of Tshwane tariffs 2026/27; City of Tshwane, 2026/27 tariff increases.

City of Johannesburg (City Power)

Residential Prepaid High. City Power prepaid homes that are not on the indigent Prepaid Low tariff. Some parts of Johannesburg are supplied by Eskom instead and use Eskom tariffs. Effective 1 July 2026, increase 9.01% on energy rates. Fixed charges: Service charge R70.00 plus capacity charge R140.00 a month.

If you add solar: City Power's tariff book says residential customers with embedded generation must move to a time-of-use conventional tariff, and prepaid customers must migrate. That bill is not modelled here; the calculator only adds the export credit of 124.60c a unit (excl VAT) to your current tariff, so treat the Joburg result as a rough guide.

Sources: City of Johannesburg, Council Item 76: electricity tariffs 2026/27; City of Johannesburg, electricity tariffs 2026/27 explainer; NERSA, reasons for decision on City Power tariffs 2026/27.

Residential Conventional, single phase 60 A. City Power homes billed monthly on a 60 A single-phase supply (two-part tariff). Effective 1 July 2026, increase 9.01% on energy rates, fixed charges unchanged. Fixed charges: Service charge R235.79 plus network charge R694.58 a month.

If you add solar: City Power requires residential embedded generators to be on a time-of-use conventional tariff. The calculator keeps this two-part tariff and adds the export credit of 124.60c a unit (excl VAT), so treat it as a rough guide.

Sources: City of Johannesburg, Council Item 76: electricity tariffs 2026/27; NERSA, reasons for decision on City Power tariffs 2026/27.

City of Cape Town

Home User. Credit-meter homes, prepaid homes valued at R1 million or more, and every registered solar home. Eskom-supplied parts of the metro use Eskom tariffs. Effective 1 July 2026, increase about 6% on a typical bill (City figures). Fixed charges: Service and wires charge.

If you add solar: Registered solar homes must be on Home User (or the opt-in residential time-of-use tariff) and pay an AMI meter administration fee of R5.91 a month (excl VAT). Exports earn the feed-in tariff of 107.98c plus a 25.00c incentive, 132.98c a unit (excl VAT). Export size is capped by your connection, for example 3.45 kVA on a 60 A single-phase supply.

Sources: City of Cape Town, electricity consumptive tariffs 2026/27 (Budget Annexure 6); City of Cape Town, generation tariffs 2026/27 (Budget Annexure 6); City of Cape Town, understanding residential electricity tariffs 2026/27.

Domestic (prepaid). Prepaid homes valued above R500,000 and below R1 million. Effective 1 July 2026, increase about 6% on energy rates. Fixed charges: Service and wires charge of R2.14 a day on prepaid.

If you add solar: A registered solar home moves to the Home User tariff, with its R368.96 monthly charge, plus the R5.91 AMI fee. The calculator applies that switch.

Sources: City of Cape Town, electricity consumptive tariffs 2026/27 (Budget Annexure 6); City of Cape Town, understanding residential electricity tariffs 2026/27.

eThekwini (Durban)

Residential Scales 3, 4, 8, 9 and 13. Most eThekwini homes, prepaid or credit. The indigent Scale 12 and the residential time-of-use tariff are different. Effective 1 July 2026, increase 9.0%.

If you add solar: eThekwini moves registered solar homes to residential net billing. NERSA's decision lists a basic charge of R76.83 per kVA a month and an energy rate of 160.52c a unit (excl VAT) for that tariff. The bill depends on your supply size in kVA, so it is not modelled here: ask the municipality for the figure for your connection.

Sources: NERSA, reasons for decision on eThekwini tariffs 2026/27; eThekwini Electricity, small-scale embedded generation.

Eskom direct

Homepower 4 (single phase, up to 16 kVA). Homes billed directly by Eskom on Homepower 4. The energy rate here combines the energy, ancillary and network demand charges; the daily fixed amount combines the service and administration, network capacity and generation capacity charges. Effective 1 April 2026, increase 8.76%. Fixed charges: R9.08 service and administration, R5.74 network capacity and R0.71 generation capacity a day.

If you add solar: Eskom says a time-of-use tariff is mandatory for grid-tied generation, so a registered solar home moves to Homeflex. That bill is not modelled here.

Sources: Eskom, Tariffs and Charges Booklet 2026/27; Eskom, 2026/2027 tariff increase.

Homelight 60A. Eskom direct homes on a 60 A prepaid supply (or existing 80 A supplies) on the Homelight tariff. Effective 1 April 2026, increase 8.76%.

If you add solar: Eskom requires a time-of-use tariff for grid-tied generation. Not modelled here.

Sources: Eskom, Tariffs and Charges Booklet 2026/27.

Homelight 20A. Eskom direct homes on a 20 A supply, typically low users. Effective 1 April 2026, increase 8.76%.

If you add solar: A 20 A supply limits appliances to about 4,400 W at once. Eskom requires a time-of-use tariff for grid-tied generation. Not modelled here.

Sources: Eskom, Tariffs and Charges Booklet 2026/27.

What changes next

• Eskom direct customers (1 April 2027). NERSA is due to decide Eskom's 2027/28 retail tariffs around 26 November 2026. Eskom's implementation of the revenue decision of 7 February 2026 works out to an expected average increase of 8.83% for Eskom direct customers from 1 April 2027. We'll update this page when NERSA publishes its decision (NERSA ERTSA consultation paper for 2027/28).
• Municipal customers (1 July 2027). Councils table their 2027/28 budgets in the first half of 2027 and NERSA approves each municipal tariff before 1 July. Eskom's bulk price to municipalities goes up on the same date.
• Fixed charges keep growing. Eskom is phasing fixed costs into its Homepower and Homeflex tariffs, and metros are moving costs into fixed monthly charges. Read whether solar is still worth it for what that means for payback.

Use this data

You're welcome to use these tables in articles, research or apps. Please credit The Bill Detective with a link to this page. The data is free under CC BY 4.0:

• Download CSV (one row per tariff step)
• Download JSON (everything on this page, including solar rules)

Spotted a figure that's wrong or out of date? Tell us with the source and we'll correct it and note the change.

Sources

All checked on 27 October 2026.

• NERSA, reasons for decision on City of Tshwane tariffs 2026/27: nersa.org.za
• City of Tshwane, 2026/27 tariff increases: tshwane.gov.za
• City of Johannesburg, Council Item 76: electricity tariffs 2026/27: propertywheel.co.za
• City of Johannesburg, electricity tariffs 2026/27 explainer: joburg.org.za
• NERSA, reasons for decision on City Power tariffs 2026/27: nersa.org.za
• City of Cape Town, electricity consumptive tariffs 2026/27 (Budget Annexure 6): capetown.gov.za
• City of Cape Town, generation tariffs 2026/27 (Budget Annexure 6): capetown.gov.za
• City of Cape Town, understanding residential electricity tariffs 2026/27: capetown.gov.za
• NERSA, reasons for decision on eThekwini tariffs 2026/27: nersa.org.za
• eThekwini Electricity, small-scale embedded generation: ee-services.durban.gov.za
• Eskom, Tariffs and Charges Booklet 2026/27: eskom.co.za
• Eskom, 2026/2027 tariff increase: eskom.co.za
• NERSA, ERTSA consultation paper for 2027/28, September 2026.
• SAnews, NERSA clarifies Small-Scale Embedded Generation regulations, 3 February 2026.
• European Commission JRC, PVGIS 5.3: PVGIS 5.3 (European Commission Joint Research Centre), SARAH3 radiation data, 1 kW of crystalline silicon panels at 30 degrees facing north, 14% system losses, run on 27 October 2026.