Municipality profile, KZN435

Umzimkhulu

Umzimkhulu is a local municipality in KwaZulu-Natal. Census 2022 counted 220 620 people in 40 064 households, about 5.5 people per household. That is up 22.4% from 180 302 people in Census 2011. 56.7% of households lived in a formal dwelling and 24.8% had a flush toilet. It has the 13th largest population of the 44 municipalities in KwaZulu-Natal.

KwaZulu-Natal. Category B4 in the Municipal Infrastructure Investment Framework.

People counted in Census 2022

220 620

Up 22.4% from 180 302 people in Census 2011.

Source: Stats SA, Census 2022 Provinces at a glance (Report no. 03-01-43), Person indicators per municipality, KwaZulu-Natal, page 25. Originally released 10 October 2023, revised edition. Downloaded 27 October 2026. Checked on SA Data Hub 28 October 2026. Original data: Stats SA. Any calculation shown is SA Data Hub's own processing.

Census 2011 and Census 2022

Umzimkhulu: Census 2011 and Census 2022 figures, with the change
Measure	2011	2022	Change
Population	180 302	220 620	+22.4%
Households	42 907	40 064	-6.6%
People per household	4.2	5.5	+1.3
Males per 100 females	82.9	85.1	+2.2
Aged 0 to 14	40.8%	36.4%	-4.4 pts
Aged 15 to 34	33.9%	33.0%	-0.9 pts
Aged 60 and over	8.0%	9.5%	+1.5 pts
Households in a formal dwelling	32.7%	56.7%	+24.0 pts
Households in an informal dwelling	1.1%	0.7%	-0.4 pts
Households with water from a regional or local scheme	28.3%	40.3%	+12.0 pts
Households with a flush toilet	7.0%	24.8%	+17.8 pts
Households with no toilet	3.2%	4.1%	+0.9 pts
Households cooking with electricity	34.5%	63.4%	+28.9 pts
Households cooking with gas	4.6%	16.4%	+11.8 pts
Attending school (ages 5 to 24)	68 486	73 865	+7.9%

Change is SA Data Hub's calculation from the two figures: a percentage change for counts, and the difference in percentage points (pts) for shares. Cooking shares are of households that named a cooking fuel; Stats SA leaves out “none”.

The 2011 and 2022 figures cover the same area. Stats SA, Census 2022 Municipal fact sheet (Report no. 03-01-82, revised), page 1: “Census 2011 indicators were generated based on aligned census data to current municipal boundaries (2021)”.

Source: Stats SA, Census 2022 Provinces at a glance (Report no. 03-01-43), Person indicators per municipality, KwaZulu-Natal, page 25; Distribution of population by broad age groups, KwaZulu-Natal, page 27; General housing information per municipality (1), KwaZulu-Natal, page 29; General housing information per municipality (2), KwaZulu-Natal, page 31. Originally released 10 October 2023, revised edition. Downloaded 27 October 2026. Checked on SA Data Hub 28 October 2026. Original data: Stats SA. Any calculation shown is SA Data Hub's own processing.

See how all municipalities changed between Census 2011 and Census 2022

Compare with another place

Questions people ask: Which province is a municipality in? · Which municipalities grew fastest between Census 2011 and Census 2022? · How many municipalities are there in South Africa?

People

Males: 101 416
Females: 119 203
Males per 100 females: 85.1
Attending school (ages 5 to 24): 73 865

The largest age group in Umzimkhulu in 2022 was aged 0 to 14, at 36.4% of people.

Aged 0 to 1436.4%
40.8% in 2011
Aged 15 to 3433.0%
33.9% in 2011
Aged 35 to 5921.2%
17.3% in 2011
Aged 60 and over9.5%
8.0% in 2011

Source: Stats SA, Census 2022 Provinces at a glance (Report no. 03-01-43), Person indicators per municipality, KwaZulu-Natal, page 25; Distribution of population by broad age groups, KwaZulu-Natal, page 27. Originally released 10 October 2023, revised edition. Downloaded 27 October 2026. Checked on SA Data Hub 28 October 2026. Original data: Stats SA. Any calculation shown is SA Data Hub's own processing.

Housing

Census 2022 counted 40 064 households, with about 5.5 people in each. In 2011 there were 42 907, with about 4.2 people in each.

56.7% of households in Umzimkhulu lived in a formal dwelling in 2022.

Formal dwelling56.7%
22 723 households
Informal dwelling0.7%
264 households
Traditional dwelling42.2%
16 896 households
Other0.5%
181 households

Source: Stats SA, Census 2022 Provinces at a glance (Report no. 03-01-43), General housing information per municipality (1), KwaZulu-Natal, page 29. Originally released 10 October 2023, revised edition. Downloaded 27 October 2026. Checked on SA Data Hub 28 October 2026. Original data: Stats SA. Any calculation shown is SA Data Hub's own processing.

Water, toilets and cooking

24.8% of households in Umzimkhulu had a flush toilet in 2022, and 63.4% cooked with electricity.

Water from a regional or local scheme40.3%
16 133 households. 28.3% in 2011.
Flush toilet24.8%
9 940 households. 7.0% in 2011.
No toilet4.1%
1 629 households. 3.2% in 2011.
Electricity for cooking63.4%
25 357 households. 34.5% in 2011.
Gas for cooking16.4%
6 569 households. 4.6% in 2011.

Shares of households. Cooking shares are of households that named a cooking fuel. Water from another source includes boreholes, tankers, rivers and springs.

Source: Stats SA, Census 2022 Provinces at a glance (Report no. 03-01-43), General housing information per municipality (2), KwaZulu-Natal, page 31. Originally released 10 October 2023, revised edition. Downloaded 27 October 2026. Checked on SA Data Hub 28 October 2026. Original data: Stats SA. Any calculation shown is SA Data Hub's own processing.

How it compares

Population, 2022: Umzimkhulu220 620; Average per municipality in KwaZulu-Natal282 362Umzimkhulu has 21.9% fewer people; Average per municipality in South Africa291 209Umzimkhulu has 24.2% fewer people
People per household: Umzimkhulu5.5; Average per municipality in KwaZulu-Natal5.0Umzimkhulu has 0.5 more people per household; Average per municipality in South Africa3.9Umzimkhulu has 1.6 more people per household
Households in a formal dwelling: Umzimkhulu56.7%; Average per municipality in KwaZulu-Natal81.7%Umzimkhulu is 25.0 pts lower; Average per municipality in South Africa87.0%Umzimkhulu is 30.3 pts lower
Water from a regional or local scheme: Umzimkhulu40.3%; Average per municipality in KwaZulu-Natal60.4%Umzimkhulu is 20.1 pts lower; Average per municipality in South Africa74.3%Umzimkhulu is 34.0 pts lower
Households with a flush toilet: Umzimkhulu24.8%; Average per municipality in KwaZulu-Natal38.4%Umzimkhulu is 13.6 pts lower; Average per municipality in South Africa62.0%Umzimkhulu is 37.2 pts lower
Electricity for cooking: Umzimkhulu63.4%; Average per municipality in KwaZulu-Natal67.0%Umzimkhulu is 3.6 pts lower; Average per municipality in South Africa66.0%Umzimkhulu is 2.6 pts lower

Each average is the simple mean of the municipal figures, so a small municipality counts as much as a large one. Gaps between shares are in percentage points (pts).

56.7% of households lived in a formal dwelling, 25.0 pts below the average per municipality in KwaZulu-Natal.
24.8% of households had a flush toilet, 13.6 pts below the average per municipality in KwaZulu-Natal.

Similar municipalities

The 4 other municipalities in KwaZulu-Natal whose Census 2022 population is closest to Umzimkhulu's (220 620). Where two are equally close, the lower municipal code comes first.

Sources

Every 2011 and 2022 figure on this page is from Stats SA, Census 2022 Provinces at a glance (Report no. 03-01-43, revised edition, originally released 10 October 2023), which gives Census 2011 figures alongside Census 2022 ones. Tables for Umzimkhulu: Person indicators per municipality, KwaZulu-Natal, page 25; Distribution of population by broad age groups, KwaZulu-Natal, page 27; General housing information per municipality (1), KwaZulu-Natal, page 29; General housing information per municipality (2), KwaZulu-Natal, page 31. SA Data Hub checked them against the publication on 28 October 2026.

Changes, shares of the total, averages and similar municipalities are SA Data Hub's own calculations from those figures. Corrections are listed on the updates page.