(Photo: Maroela Media)
Banks in South Africa are becoming increasingly competitive in terms of their banking costs and they are also expanding their value proposition beyond traditional banking services.
According to Solidarity’s 2026 banking cost report, it appears that several banks, depending on the category in question, offer the best value for consumers.
Theuns du Buisson, economic researcher of the Solidarity Research Institute, says banks remain under pressure to lower their costs and at the same time offer additional benefits to customers.
“The banks are becoming increasingly competitive in terms of their banking costs and they are also continuing to expand their value proposition beyond just simple financial services,” says Du Buisson.
In the middle class category, according to the analysis, Capitec Bank remains the cheapest option for consumers. However, other banks’ reward programs can also play a role in the total value that customers get from their accounts.
Middle-class consumers pay the least at Capitec, but if the benefits of other banks’ reward programs are of value to these consumers, Nedbank’s MiGoals account, with a total cost of approximately R123 for their transaction basket, may be the cheapest.
Among the bundle accounts, Nedbank is the cheapest, with a monthly administration fee of R99 compared to Absa’s R115 and the R120 from Standard Bank and FNB.
In the low-cost category, Absa’s Transact account remained the cheapest again this year, with a cost of around R25 in the 12-transaction category. Capitec is in second place with approximately R35.
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“However, when transaction volumes increase, the competition between Absa and Capitec becomes significantly tougher, with Absa still slightly cheaper at around R44 compared to Capitec’s R50.50,” says Du Buisson.
In the premium category, according to the analysis, Nedbank’s MiGoals Premium account is also the cheapest, with a total cost of approximately R262. Absa’s Ultimate Plus account follows close on its heels with a total cost of R273,50.
Du Buisson says this year the analysis also focused on the added value that banks offer to customers, especially benefits that are available to all account holders and are not dependent on a reward program’s level.
“In the cheaper category, it is difficult to determine which one of the two accounts, Absa’s Transact account or FNB’s Easy PAYU account, offers the most value for customers. For example, Absa includes R5 000 of life cover in the monthly administration fee of R7.50. FNB Easy PAYU, which also costs R7.50, again offers four loaves of bread at 99c per month and a relatively simple way to redeem a R25 Pick n Pay voucher monthly to unlock.”
In the middle class and premium category, banks’ value propositions are relatively similar, according to Du Buisson, although certain benefits are outliers.
“Absa distinguishes itself here by including R100 000 of life cover in its Ultimate and Ultimate Plus account. Such additional benefits play an increasingly important role when consumers decide which bank they want to do their business with,” he says.
Solidarity encourages consumers to look not only at monthly bank charges, but also at the overall value an account offers, including rewards programs, insurance and other benefits that form part of the package.
- See the bank charges report for 2026 here.