Gold Price in South Africa Today (ZAR)

Gold in South Africa: local context

For most of the twentieth century South Africa was the world's largest gold producer, and gold mining shaped Johannesburg and the Witwatersrand. Its best-known export to investors is the Krugerrand, first minted in 1967. A one-ounce Krugerrand is struck in 22K gold and weighs about 33.93 grams in total, but it contains exactly one troy ounce of fine gold, so its metal value equals the per-ounce price on this page. Fractional coins contain 1/2, 1/4 and 1/10 oz.

The rand is a freely floating, actively traded emerging-market currency. Gold in ZAR therefore depends on both the US-dollar gold price and the USD/ZAR exchange rate, and the two often move in opposite directions: when global risk appetite falls, gold tends to rise while the rand weakens, which can make the rand gold price jump more than the dollar price.

South African jewellery is often made in 9K and 18K as well as 14K, so the karat table goes down to 9K (37.5% gold). Krugerrands issued through the South African Reserve Bank are generally exempt from VAT, while jewellery carries VAT at the standard rate; check current South African Revenue Service guidance for your situation.

How this price is calculated

Live: spot $4,072.10 per troy ounce × 16.4529 ZAR per USD ÷ 31.1035 = R 2,154.03 per gram of pure gold. Each purity multiplies this by its gold content (for example 22K = 22 ÷ 24 = 91.67%), and each unit multiplies by its weight in grams. Figures are the value of the gold content only; local retail, jewellery and buy-back prices differ.

To value a piece you own in ZAR or another currency, use the gold value calculator. For the global picture see the gold price today page, the live gold chart and our gold forecast.