{"id":647075,"date":"2026-05-12T14:58:31","date_gmt":"2026-05-12T12:58:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/mybroadband.co.za\/news\/?p=647075"},"modified":"2026-05-12T15:11:07","modified_gmt":"2026-05-12T13:11:07","slug":"capitec-gave-away-free-data-worth-r26-per-gigabyte","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/mybroadband.co.za\/news\/cellular\/647075-capitec-gave-away-free-data-worth-r26-per-gigabyte.html","title":{"rendered":"Capitec gave away free data worth R26 per gigabyte"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Capitec Connect customers received 3 petabytes (3 million gigabytes) of free data over the past year, valued at R78 million, for an average of R26 per gigabyte.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The bank offers free data to customers through its Live Better Rewards programme, which requires subscribers to link their Capitec Connect SIMs to their banking profile to qualify.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Customers who participate in the programme receive 1GB of free data per month, worth at least R30 per gigabyte, as well as a 20% bonus on every recharge.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Earlier this year, Capitec also launched a promotion through its mobile virtual network operator (MVNO), offering free data to customers who buy their smartphones through the bank.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Capitec began selling smartphones in October 2025, together with zero-deposit finance options for customers who need them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Since early 2026, when a client\u2019s Connect number is linked to their banking profile, every device purchase included 5GB of free data per month<\/a> for 12 months: 60GB in total, worth R1,200, or R20 per gigabyte.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Capitec said that over the past year, it returned R108 million in value to Connect clients through free data and Live Better rewards, which included the free data rewards.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cSubscriber numbers grew 67% year-on-year, data usage tripled, and voice usage rose sharply \u2014 clear signs that for a growing share of clients, the Connect SIM is now the primary SIM, not the backup.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Capitec said that for many South Africans, connectivity was not a given, yet smartphones are the primary gateway to banking, education, job applications, and small business tools.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It said that pairing a reliable device with affordable data meant clients don\u2019t have to choose between staying connected and staying financially afloat.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cPrepaid users have long paid more per megabyte than contract clients, on data that expires and pricing that shifts without warning,\u201d Capitec stated.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cCapitec Connect was built to challenge that reality, and the latest figures show how far that approach has travelled in just over three years.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The following table summarises Capitec Connect\u2019s mobile data options, including the effective per-gigabyte price excluding the bonus data which linked SIMs receive.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Non-expiring bundles<\/strong><\/td><\/tr>
Unlinked<\/em><\/strong><\/td>Linked<\/em><\/strong><\/td>Price<\/em><\/strong><\/td>Price\/GB<\/em><\/strong><\/td><\/tr>
100MB<\/td>100MB + 20MB<\/td>R4.50<\/td>R45.00<\/td><\/tr>
250MB<\/td>250MB + 50MB<\/td>R11.25<\/td>R45.00<\/td><\/tr>
500MB<\/td>500MB + 100MB<\/td>R22.50<\/td>R45.00<\/td><\/tr>
1GB<\/td>1GB + 200MB<\/td>R45<\/td>R45.00<\/td><\/tr>
2GB<\/td>2GB + 400MB <\/td>R90<\/td>R45.00<\/td><\/tr>
3GB<\/td>3GB + 600MB<\/td>R135<\/td>R45.00<\/td><\/tr>
5GB<\/td>5GB + 1GB<\/td>R225<\/td>R45.00<\/td><\/tr>
<\/td><\/tr>
1-day bundles<\/strong><\/td><\/tr>
Unlinked<\/em><\/strong><\/td>Linked<\/em><\/strong><\/td>Price<\/em><\/strong><\/td>Price\/GB<\/em><\/strong><\/td><\/tr>
100MB<\/td>100MB + 20MB<\/td>R3<\/td>R30<\/td><\/tr>
500MB<\/td>500MB + 100MB<\/td>R10<\/td>R20<\/td><\/tr>
<\/td><\/tr>
7-day bundles<\/strong><\/td><\/tr>
Unlinked<\/em><\/strong><\/td>Linked<\/em><\/strong><\/td>Price<\/em><\/strong><\/td>Price\/GB<\/em><\/strong><\/td><\/tr>
250MB<\/td>250MB + 50MB<\/td>R7.50<\/td>R30.00<\/td><\/tr>
1GB<\/td>1GB + 200MB<\/td>R25<\/td>R25.00<\/td><\/tr>
2GB<\/td>2GB + 400MB<\/td>R35<\/td>R17.50<\/td><\/tr>
5GB<\/td>5GB + 1GB<\/td>R85<\/td>R17.00<\/td><\/tr>
<\/td><\/tr>
30-day bundles<\/strong><\/td><\/tr>
Unlinked<\/em><\/strong><\/td>Linked<\/em><\/strong><\/td>Price<\/em><\/strong><\/td>Price\/GB<\/em><\/strong><\/td><\/tr>
2GB<\/td>2GB + 400MB<\/td>R59<\/td>R29.50<\/td><\/tr>
5GB<\/td>5GB + 1GB<\/td>R100<\/td>R20.00<\/td><\/tr>
10GB<\/td>10GB + 2GB<\/td>R150<\/td>R15.00<\/td><\/tr>
<\/td><\/tr>
60-day bundles<\/strong><\/td><\/tr>
Unlinked<\/em><\/strong><\/td>Linked<\/em><\/strong><\/td>Price<\/em><\/strong><\/td>Price\/GB<\/em><\/strong><\/td><\/tr>
20GB<\/td>20GB + 4GB<\/td>R250<\/td>R12.50<\/td><\/tr>
50GB<\/td>50GB + 10GB<\/td>R450<\/td>R9.00<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Free voice calls and 1.5 million active users<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

During its most recent annual results for the financial year ended 28 February 2026, published in April, Capitec revealed that its MVNO had reached 1.5 million active users.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It also announced the launch of free on-network voice calls between Capitec Connect SIMs. \u201cIt\u2019s an industry first, and the latest move towards lowering the real cost of staying connected,\u201d it said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Dalene Steyn, executive head for Capitec Connect, said they focused on creating real value for customers by providing more data at more affordable prices.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cFree Connect-to-Connect calling is a natural extension of that. As the network grows, so does the value we can give back. That value compounds the more clients use Capitec Connect,\u201d stated Steyn.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cPhones and tablets from brands including Samsung and Apple are available directly through the Capitec app, no deposit, flexible payment terms, and will soon be available across all 860 Capitec branches.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Steyn said Capitec Connect had moved beyond being a connectivity product. \u201cIt is now a core part of how clients engage with Capitec every day,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt is one of the forces behind our 90% digital adoption rate. The growth reflects how deeply embedded Connect has become in our clients’ financial lives.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Capitec has revealed the total value and amount of free data it gave away over the past year, making it possible to calculate an average.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":15,"featured_media":647077,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[14,17934],"tags":[5334,81699,101082],"class_list":["post-647075","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-cellular","category-smartphones","tag-capitec","tag-capitec-connect","tag-dalene-steyn"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/mybroadband.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/647075"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/mybroadband.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/mybroadband.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mybroadband.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/15"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mybroadband.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=647075"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/mybroadband.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/647075\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":647081,"href":"https:\/\/mybroadband.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/647075\/revisions\/647081"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mybroadband.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/647077"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/mybroadband.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=647075"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mybroadband.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=647075"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mybroadband.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=647075"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}