Municipality profile, MP321

Thaba Chweu

Thaba Chweu is a local municipality in Mpumalanga. Census 2022 counted 118 474 people in 45 903 households, about 2.6 people per household. That is up 20.4% from 98 387 people in Census 2011. 82.7% of households lived in a formal dwelling and 70.8% had a flush toilet. It has the 13th largest population of the 17 municipalities in Mpumalanga.

Mpumalanga. Category B3 in the Municipal Infrastructure Investment Framework.

People counted in Census 2022

118 474

Up 20.4% from 98 387 people in Census 2011.

Source: Stats SA, Census 2022 Provinces at a glance (Report no. 03-01-43), Person indicators per municipality, Mpumalanga, page 40. 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

Thaba Chweu: Census 2011 and Census 2022 figures, with the change
Measure	2011	2022	Change
Population	98 387	118 474	+20.4%
Households	33 352	45 903	+37.6%
People per household	2.9	2.6	-0.3
Males per 100 females	105.1	99.7	-5.4
Aged 0 to 14	25.2%	25.5%	+0.3 pts
Aged 15 to 34	38.5%	35.2%	-3.3 pts
Aged 60 and over	7.4%	8.0%	+0.6 pts
Households in a formal dwelling	74.6%	82.7%	+8.1 pts
Households in an informal dwelling	20.4%	16.0%	-4.4 pts
Households with water from a regional or local scheme	72.4%	83.5%	+11.1 pts
Households with a flush toilet	68.4%	70.8%	+2.4 pts
Households with no toilet	2.9%	1.7%	-1.2 pts
Households cooking with electricity	71.9%	57.4%	-14.5 pts
Households cooking with gas	2.3%	26.6%	+24.3 pts
Attending school (ages 5 to 24)	21 637	26 429	+22.1%

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, Mpumalanga, page 40; Distribution of population by broad age groups, Mpumalanga, page 41; General housing information per municipality (1), Mpumalanga, page 42; General housing information per municipality (2), Mpumalanga, page 43. 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: 59 143
Females: 59 331
Males per 100 females: 99.7
Attending school (ages 5 to 24): 26 429

The largest age group in Thaba Chweu in 2022 was aged 15 to 34, at 35.2% of people.

Aged 0 to 1425.5%
25.2% in 2011
Aged 15 to 3435.2%
38.5% in 2011
Aged 35 to 5931.3%
28.9% in 2011
Aged 60 and over8.0%
7.4% in 2011

Source: Stats SA, Census 2022 Provinces at a glance (Report no. 03-01-43), Person indicators per municipality, Mpumalanga, page 40; Distribution of population by broad age groups, Mpumalanga, page 41. 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 45 903 households, with about 2.6 people in each. In 2011 there were 33 352, with about 2.9 people in each.

82.7% of households in Thaba Chweu lived in a formal dwelling in 2022.

Formal dwelling82.7%
37 971 households
Informal dwelling16.0%
7 355 households
Traditional dwelling0.9%
433 households
Other0.3%
143 households

Source: Stats SA, Census 2022 Provinces at a glance (Report no. 03-01-43), General housing information per municipality (1), Mpumalanga, page 42. 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

70.8% of households in Thaba Chweu had a flush toilet in 2022, and 57.4% cooked with electricity.

Water from a regional or local scheme83.5%
38 307 households. 72.4% in 2011.
Flush toilet70.8%
32 489 households. 68.4% in 2011.
No toilet1.7%
779 households. 2.9% in 2011.
Electricity for cooking57.4%
26 304 households. 71.9% in 2011.
Gas for cooking26.6%
12 197 households. 2.3% 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), Mpumalanga, page 43. 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: Thaba Chweu118 474; Average per municipality in Mpumalanga302 549Thaba Chweu has 60.8% fewer people; Average per municipality in South Africa291 209Thaba Chweu has 59.3% fewer people
People per household: Thaba Chweu2.6; Average per municipality in Mpumalanga3.4Thaba Chweu has 0.8 fewer people per household; Average per municipality in South Africa3.9Thaba Chweu has 1.3 fewer people per household
Households in a formal dwelling: Thaba Chweu82.7%; Average per municipality in Mpumalanga90.7%Thaba Chweu is 8.0 pts lower; Average per municipality in South Africa87.0%Thaba Chweu is 4.3 pts lower
Water from a regional or local scheme: Thaba Chweu83.5%; Average per municipality in Mpumalanga80.6%Thaba Chweu is 2.9 pts higher; Average per municipality in South Africa74.3%Thaba Chweu is 9.2 pts higher
Households with a flush toilet: Thaba Chweu70.8%; Average per municipality in Mpumalanga64.1%Thaba Chweu is 6.7 pts higher; Average per municipality in South Africa62.0%Thaba Chweu is 8.8 pts higher
Electricity for cooking: Thaba Chweu57.4%; Average per municipality in Mpumalanga63.7%Thaba Chweu is 6.3 pts lower; Average per municipality in South Africa66.0%Thaba Chweu is 8.6 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).

82.7% of households lived in a formal dwelling, 8.0 pts below the average per municipality in Mpumalanga.
70.8% of households had a flush toilet, 6.7 pts above the average per municipality in Mpumalanga.

Similar municipalities

The 4 other municipalities in Mpumalanga whose Census 2022 population is closest to Thaba Chweu's (118 474). 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 Thaba Chweu: Person indicators per municipality, Mpumalanga, page 40; Distribution of population by broad age groups, Mpumalanga, page 41; General housing information per municipality (1), Mpumalanga, page 42; General housing information per municipality (2), Mpumalanga, page 43. SA Data Hub checked them against the publication on 28 October 2026.

The 2022 figures for Thaba Chweu are the revised ones. Stats SA's erratum (page ii) says the population and households of Thaba Chweu and City of Mbombela were revised, and that pages 40 to 43 changed.

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.