Construction costs in South Africa rose 0.9% month-on-month in April 2026, taking the rolling 12-month inflation rate on residential build to 9.4%. That is well above CPI (4.6%) but slightly below the 10-year construction-inflation average of 10.1%.
Province snapshot
The provincial spread continues to compress. Twelve months ago, the gap between the cheapest (North West) and the most expensive (KZN) was 88%. Today it is 86%.
| Province | Median rate, May 2026 | MoM | YoY |
|---|---|---|---|
| KwaZulu-Natal | R 14 860 / m² | +0.7% | +9.8% |
| Gauteng | R 13 330 / m² | +1.1% | +10.2% |
| Western Cape | R 13 150 / m² | +1.4% | +11.6% |
| Free State | R 12 700 / m² | +0.9% | +9.1% |
| Eastern Cape | R 12 300 / m² | +0.8% | +9.0% |
| Mpumalanga | R 9 190 / m² | +0.6% | +7.8% |
| Limpopo | R 8 450 / m² | +0.5% | +7.4% |
| Northern Cape | R 9 100 / m² | +1.0% | +8.9% |
| North West | R 7 980 / m² | +0.4% | +6.8% |
Western Cape continues to run hot on year-on-year, driven by demand from semigration and a thin contractor pool. North West is the only province still under 7% inflation.
What's moving
Roofing — up 16.6% YoY
Concrete roof tile prices are the biggest single mover in 2026. Marley raised list prices three times in the last twelve months. Imported clay alternatives (Spanish, Portuguese) have followed.
The driver is energy: tile-making is an electricity-intensive process and producers are passing through the 2025 NERSA tariff increases.
Cement — up 14.2% YoY
PPC 42.5N moved from R 113 to R 129 per 50kg bag. Cement is now the second-fastest-moving line in the BOQ.
Paint — up 10.4% YoY
Plascon, Dulux and Prominent all raised twice in the past year. Linseed and titanium dioxide pass-through is the cited reason.
Steel — up 4.5% YoY
The good news. Steel rebar is the line that broke in 2023 (+38% YoY). It has settled, but watch for a Q3 lift as infrastructure projects pull demand.
What it means for your build
If you're quoting today:
- Demand 90-day quote validity on any line item up >10% YoY.
- Lock in cement and roof tiles before mobilisation — order against the stage-payment schedule.
- Steel is OK to procure progressively. No advantage to bulking.
If you're contracting today, push for a fixed-price contract with limited escalation on materials moving more than 10% YoY. JBCC has standard escalation clauses; use them.
If you're finishing now (handover this month), congratulate yourself. The May 2026 cohort of completions had the steadiest 12-month input cost environment since 2022.
Index methodology
Provincial rates are the median of three published sources for a standard-finish, single-storey, suburban new build: ooba (Q2 2026), Architect's Cost Index (April 2026) and a third dataset of 412 contractor quotes collected through The Build Hub matching network over March and April 2026.
Material price moves are taken from PPC, AfriSam, ArcelorMittal SA, Macsteel, BUCO and Plascon published price lists, weighted by typical BOQ share.
The April 2026 Index is available as a free PDF. Get it here.