The hustle is real – and it’s here to stay.
More than half of working South Africans are now “poly-jobbers”, juggling multiple income streams to stay financially afloat. Among 18-to-29-year-olds, that figure leaps to 75%.
These are some of the headline findings from the 2025 Old Mutual Savings & Investment Monitor (OMSIM), which tracks the financial habits and attitudes of households earning R8 000 or more a month.
Once a survival tactic during the Covid-19 lockdowns, poly-jobbing – a term coined by Old Mutual – has evolved into a structural feature of the South African economy. For many, side hustles are no longer optional; they’re essential.
According to Vuyokazi Mabude, the head of knowledge and insights at Old Mutual, having multiple sources of income has become the primary way for many South Africans to manage everyday expenses. “We’ve seen that number increase over the last couple of years, and it definitely now is part of how people just make ends meet – that poly-job behaviour,” she said. “We’re encouraged by that, and I think that that will continue into how people are earning an income.”
Poly-jobbing now plays a critical role in helping people to navigate rising living costs, growing debt burdens, and stagnant wages. Whether it’s freelancing, food delivery, e-hailing, tutoring or selling online – the trend is about making every extra rand count.
But Mabude cautioned that the key to making poly-jobbing truly work is how that extra income is managed. She said more people need to use that money to settle debt and boost savings rather than falling into new spending habits that undo their hard-earned gains. “It’s great that people are earning more but also making sure that they’re using that money for the right thing… and making sure that they’re not eroding the gains that they’re making.”
A reality check on money habits
John Manyike, the head of financial education at Old Mutual, said that for many South Africans, salary growth is simply not keeping pace with the cost of living. As a result, people are being forced to look for alternatives – and that’s where poly-jobbing enters the picture.
“The days of a single income certainly have come and gone,” he said. “It’s not surprising that we are seeing more and more people saying they are poly-jobbers. They are looking for alternative streams of income.”
However, Manyike points out that while earning more is helpful, it does not automatically translate into financial security. The real challenge, he said, lies in how that money is used. Extra income should be directed towards reducing debt, building savings, and laying the groundwork for long-term financial health – including goals such as creating generational wealth.
“It cannot happen until you make sure that you work on your income,” he said. “If your income is not enough, look at how do you supplement your income? How do you pay off your debt over time and live within your means at the same time?”
Read: South Africans need spending discipline to turn financial plans into reality
But living within one’s means is easier said than done. According to the OMSIM data, 69% of respondents admit to overspending either often or sometimes. The reasons are wide-ranging: compulsive purchases (29%), the rising cost of living (22%), unexpected expenses (15%), retail therapy (8%), and sales or promotions (5%). Family obligations and the pressure to support extended households also play a role.
Manyike said compulsive spending, in particular, is a growing concern. “It highlights the fact that a lot of people are struggling with boundaries. A budget is a boundary. It tells you how much you can afford.”
He emphasised that without these boundaries – and the discipline to stick to them – even the benefits of multiple jobs can be undone. “Unless you do that, it doesn’t matter, even if you’re going to become a poly-jobber – you also need to be responsible about where you spend the money.”
A shift in income streams
Poly-jobbing may be on the rise, but it’s just one part of a broader shift in how South Africans – particularly younger ones – are rethinking income, spending, and survival.
According to the OMSIM, nearly half (48%) of employed South Africans now own or co-own a business. Entrepreneurship is thriving, particularly among Gen Z and Millennials (18 to 49), with one in five younger consumers listing “saving for a business” as a top financial goal.
And the social media economy is playing an increasingly significant role. Almost four in ten South Africans earn at least some income via platforms such as WhatsApp and Facebook. Among 18-to-29-year-olds, this jumps to 54%, with nearly a quarter saying it makes up a substantial portion of their income.
Encouragingly, income levels are beginning to rebound. Mabude notes that 44% of respondents are earning more than they did a year ago – a six-point improvement from 2024. That number rises to 55% among younger working adults, and 57% among higher earners.
“The OMSIM 2025 study showcases a nation who, despite the tough economic challenges, are driven and resolute in persevering, through taking every action within their reach, rippling across all aspects of their finances – whether this be looking for alternate sources of income through hustling or rental income; shaving away at debt, negotiating better repayment terms, working rewards points, or preserving their savings – doing this to sustain the desire for forward momentum,” the study reads.
Still, the top financial priority remains the same: income security. More than half (54%) worry about losing their job or income – rising to 64% among those earning R8 000 to R15 000 a month. Cutting expenses and paying off debt (both 48%) continue to dominate financial goals, although the urgency to slash costs has softened slightly since 2024.
Cutting costs creatively
In a challenging economy, cost-cutting has become not just necessary, but creative. Two-thirds of working South Africans now use loyalty programmes, with 69% actively leveraging points or rewards to make ends meet. Nearly 40% even consider loyalty points a key contributor to their financial health.
Manyike is a big believer in this trend.
“I can endorse that because I have probably more than 10 of these loyalty cards, and I move around with them,” he said. “Whether it’s a filling station, whether it’s a retail shop, whether I’m buying something online, I found that these are quite useful to have. This is the new emergency fund of the future.”
South Africans are also scaling back in other smart ways. Twenty-nine percent have switched to cheaper streaming services. A quarter are buying supermarket house brands. Roughly one in five have cut back on domestic help, changed to cheaper data plans, or delayed major purchases such as cars or appliances. Some have even downgraded schools or homes to balance the books.
Manyike said these trade-offs show a promising shift in mindset. “We need to continue to encourage people to downgrade,” he said. “For example, people struggling with expensive data on their cellphone – today, we have Wi-Fi, and because of that, people are spending less. Look at how people can make calls overseas using WhatsApp – it’s helped people stay connected without spending a fortune.”
He is particularly encouraged by the 18% of South Africans putting big-ticket purchases on hold and that they are able to consider cheaper schools.
“What’s the point of insisting to send your child to an expensive private school when you can only afford a public school?” he asked. “These are things that we need to be looking at. You don’t have to be married to an expensive private school so that our children can speak English without an accent, but you cannot afford that school.”
As more South Africans build resilience through multiple income streams and smarter spending, there seems to be a strong shift from survival to strategy. And while poly-jobbing may be here to stay, hustle alone isn’t enough – what matters is how you make it count.
