Expats’ happiness with their lives in South Africa has improved considerably over the past year, but they still face several pressing issues, particularly those related to safety.

This is according to the latest Expat Insider 2024 survey by InterNations, where South Africa ranks 29th out of 53 countries in the overall rankings of “Best Destinations for Expats in 2024.”

This is a 19-spot improvement from 2023, climbing out of the bottom 10 after spending four consecutive years there.

“In early 2024, more than 12,500 expats from around the world shared with us their thoughts on what it’s like to live and work abroad [representing] 175 nationalities living in 174 countries or territories,” said InterNations.

“This gain [in South Africa’s ranking] was spurred on by improvements across all five indices,” being Quality of Life, Working Abroad, Expat Essentials, Ease of Settling In and Personal Finance, said InterNations.

Looking at these individual indices rankings (out of 53), South Africa placed:

• Personal Finance  18th;

• Expat Essentials  22nd;

• Ease of Settling In  23rd;

• Working Abroad 40th;

• Quality of Life  43rd.

As shown above, South Africa’s ranking is skewed by the Working Abroad and Quality of Life indices, with the country ranking among (and the) lowest in several subcategories of these indices.

Specifically, South Africa ranks the lowest out of all the measured countries in terms of Safety and Security.

“The ranking is pulled down by personal safety and political stability, both of which are also dead last (53rd),” said InterNations.

“Justifiably so, as more than half of expats (54%) in the country rate personal safety as poor, compared to just 8% globally �` and for political stability, a much higher share than the global average rate it negatively, 47% vs 16% globally.”

Additionally, the country is weighed down by the Travel & Transit subcategory, ranking 52nd. This is due to poor affordability (53rd) and availability of public transport (52nd). 

Nearly two-thirds of respondents (65%) agree that it is not easy nor safe to get around South Africa on foot or by bicycle (vs. 13% globally).

Conversely, South Africa does best in the Personal Finances Index (18th) as well as the Housing (9th) and Leisure Options (10th) subcategories.

South Africa achieves its best position in the Personal Finance Index, ranking 18th. It scores well in the general cost of living, placing 15th, and in disposable household income, being adequate for a comfortable lifestyle, where it ranks 19th.

Impressively, 73% of expatriates in South Africa report that their disposable income is sufficient or more than enough, exceeding the global average of 70%. 

Despite these positive indicators, South Africa receives a relatively modest ranking of 31st for expatriates’ satisfaction with their financial situations.

Looking at the subcategories, Environment & Climate (ranked 16th) and Healthcare (ranked 23rd) showed strong performance as well. Specifically, the natural environment ranks third and climate & weather fifth in their respective areas of satisfaction. 

InterNations said that outcome is expected, considering over ninety-five percent (95%) of participants positively rated South Africa’s nature and wildlife. This is notably higher than the global average of eighty-two percent (82%). 

Furthermore, eighty five percent (85%) of respondents are satisfied with the weather, which greatly surpasses the global satisfaction rate of fifty-eight percent (58%).

Healthcare availability is above average (22nd) and of good quality (13th), but it could be more affordable (32nd) with better equal access to healthcare services (38th), given that the majority of these responses are looking at private healthcare.

Nearly a third of expats (32%) rate the current access negatively (vs. 21% globally).

According to the survey, the average age of expats is just over 51 years old, with the majority being male.

The biggest sectors for expats is seen to be hospitality, construction and information technology. 

Looking at the overall rankings, the top 10 best countries for expats are:

Rank Country

1 Panama

2 Mexico

3 Indonesia

4 Spain

5 Colombia

6 Thailand

7 Brazil

8 Vietnam

9 Philippines

10 UAE

According to the rankings, the bottom-ranked countries for expats are:

Rank Country

53 Kuwait

52 Türkiye

51 Finland

50 Germany

49 Canada

48 Norway

47 Italy

46 Malta

45 Ireland

44 UK