South African online shopping delivery prices beat US and Australia

While shipping costs have been identified as a significant obstacle to e-commerce growth in South Africa, delivery fees to South Africa’s major cities can be up to half that of countries like Australia and the US.

This is according to a MyBroadband price comparison of orders placed for domestic delivery at popular online stores in all three countries.

According to a report by World Wide Worx and Ask Afrika, South Africa’s e-commerce market is currently valued at R71 billion and accounts for only 6.15% of retail in the country. However, they expect e-commerce to grow to 10% of retail by the end of 2025.

However, couriers are beginning to experience increased operating costs because of the increased number of criminals targeting their operations.

To compare how much South Africans are charged to have goods delivered to their doorstep or office relative to other countries, MyBroadband selected a product as a constant.

This would allow the shipping price to be calculated as a percentage of the retail price, simplifying the comparison.

The product selected was the Logitech M240 Wireless Mouse, which was below the free delivery threshold and available in online stores in other countries.

The South African stores had the mouse priced at R330, except for Amazon.co.za, where the cheapest merchant listed it for R379. Each platform had a different standard delivery price.

Makro had the cheapest standard delivery at R50, followed by Amazon at R70, and Takealot charging R75.

Therefore, the shipping prices as percentages of the items from each shop were 15.5%, 21.21%, and 22.80%, respectively.

This worked out to quite a lot less than the foreign online stores.

The mouse cost $19.99 in the US, and shipping was $6.99 or 34.97% of the price.

On Amazon Australia, the mouse cost AUD34.99, and shipping was AUD12.57, equating to 35.92% of the product’s price.

This indicates that although shipping in South Africa may be expensive compared to the average household’s purchasing power, it is relatively affordable compared to other countries.

The table below shows the shipping as a percentage of the price of the item bought from each store, the shipping cost, and the country and city delivery was calculated in.

Shipping costs are higher for those who can’t afford it

As mentioned, while delivery costs may be more affordable in South Africa than in other countries, many South Africans still find them unaffordable.

According to Bob Group managing director Andy Higgins, people living in townships and rural areas are most profoundly impacted.

“Currently, many courier companies impose premiums or surcharges for deliveries to these areas, which they consider high-risk,” Higgins told Mybroadband.

“For example, delivery costs to townships can be multiple times higher than in standard metro areas, creating a barrier to affordability and accessibility for these consumers.”

Because of its service mandate, this is one area where a functioning state postal service could be very beneficial for South Africa.

Zulzi CEO Donald Valoyi said that while private postal and courier services have filled the gap left by the Post Office, the state utility used to cater to all South Africans, especially those in lower-income segments.

“One of the biggest problems with private delivery services is that they are very expensive, meaning many people can’t afford to use them,” he said.

“Private delivery services also struggle to reach remote areas, resulting in expensive delivery fees.”

According to Valoyi, this lack of access to affordable delivery services is impeding the growth of e-commerce in South Africa, which requires high volumes to increase penetration.

However, Valoyi admits that the South African Post Office, as we know it, which is on the verge of collapse, won’t do.