Getting ready for Black Friday 2026: what our data says about how South Africa shops

Black Friday lands on 27 November this year, and South African shoppers are already showing different shopping habits compared to even a year ago: they try new payment methods, shop online more than ever before, and expect to pay over time without friction.

Our report, How South Africans Shop in 2026, combines a consumer survey with Stitch platform data. Here, we break down what the latest shopping trends and preferences mean for your Black Friday checkout, and the tools you can use to make buying more seamless over that weekend.

Shoppers are more open to new payment methods than ever

93.3% of South African consumers tried a payment method beyond cash and card in the past year, and there's no significantly dominant way to pay anymore. The way people choose to pay now depends on what they're buying, where and how much it costs.

The new methods shoppers adopted for the first time in the last 12 months:

• One-click wallets (Apple Pay, Google Pay, Samsung Pay): 57.5%
• Buy now, pay later: 38.9%
• Capitec Pay: 38.6%
• PayShap: 35.0%
• Pay by bank: 27.8%

On Black Friday especially, a missing payment method could make the difference between a sale and cart abandonment, and one of the busiest weekends of the year is the worst time to make a shopper settle for their second choice.

Digital wallets are now the default for online checkout

Apple Pay became the most-used payment method for e-commerce on Stitch in Q1 2026, overtaking card, and the big reason for this is the speed at which these payments happen. The median wallet payment takes about 3 seconds, compared with 15 to 30 seconds for card. On a day when shoppers race against limited stock and timers, every second counts.

Wallets also add an element of trust. Black Friday is a popular time for scammers, and security is the second-biggest factor in how South Africans choose to pay (23.6%), just behind convenience (31.1%). The device authentication and tokenisation that are an inherent part of digital wallets give cautious shoppers the confidence to complete larger purchases.

Accept Apple Pay with Stitch, along with Google Pay and Samsung Pay, through a single integration.

Capitec Pay and PayShap bring bank-native payments to the mainstream

Capitec Pay is now the second most preferred method for online shopping across purchase categories, at 24.6% just three years after launch. PayShap follows close behind as a first-time choice, with 35% of shoppers having tried it in the past year.

Shoppers who'd rather not use a card still want a fast, secure way to pay from their bank. Offer Capitec Pay at checkout and Pay by bank to reach them both online and in store.

Buy Now, Pay Later has gone mainstream, so give shoppers a reason to buy now

71% of credit-active South Africans now use buy now, pay later, and the SA market is projected to reach $1.11 billion in 2026. It isn't only for big-ticket items anymore either. People use it for everyday buys, including groceries.

Most of them can afford to pay, with 58% citing convenience as the top reason, followed by interest-free terms (49%) and managing cash flow (44%). As one shopper in our research put it: "I had the full amount, but I didn't want to use all my money." It’s not just about affordability - many people want to be able to plan their budget over time, and know what their expenses will be each month.

That makes this payment method a natural fit for Black Friday spending. Shoppers are more likely to commit when they can spread the cost of multiple deals over months.

Stitch Pay Later

With Stitch Pay Later, your customers can pay over flexible monthly instalments, and you get settled in full within 24 hours. Stitch takes on the credit risk, manages instalment collections and sends repayment reminders, so missed payments never land on you.

Nearly half of consumers (48.7%) want BNPL both online and in store, and Stitch Pay Later works across both. Enterprise businesses integrate it alongside their other payment methods through the Stitch API, and merchants on Stitch Express, the e-commerce product of Stitch, can switch it on from their dashboard and add the widget to their Shopify or WooCommerce store.

Peak hours run later than you think

Stitch platform data shows when South Africa shops:

• 20:00 is the peak shopping hour. Shoppers buy after work, so checkout, fraud rules and customer service need to perform well beyond close of business.
• Payday drives bigger baskets, with the 25th being the busiest shopping day of the month, and the average basket on the 24th being 46% higher than on the 8th.
• Fridays are busy: there are 37% more transactions on Friday than on Sunday.

Black Friday 2026 falls on the 27th, two days after the 25th, when many South Africans have just been paid, so merchants can expect a heavier-than-usual weekend, with larger planned purchases and evening spikes. It’s especially important, then, that payments infrastructure holds up when it counts.

Shoppers are spread across more channels than ever

62.5% of digitally active South Africans surveyed shop online as much as, or more than, in store. Only 2.2% still shop almost exclusively in physical stores. At the same time, 48.5% now shop on Temu, Shein or AliExpress, up from a negligible amount two years ago.

Local brands still have the edge on trust, however: 74.6% of online shoppers buy directly from brand websites, ahead of retailer sites (68%) and marketplaces (61.8%). A fast, familiar checkout with the payment methods shoppers know is one of the clearest ways to win that sale over an international platform.

For merchants with physical stores, a consistent experience matters too. With Stitch in-person payments, you can accept the same payment methods at the till as online, with one view for all your transactions on your Stitch dashboard.

AI shopping assistants are already influencing what people buy

Between 31% and 34% of South Africans actively use ChatGPT, and some already use it to research and compare products before they buy. According to Shopify, AI-referred shoppers convert at nearly 50% higher rates and spend 14% more per order than shoppers from organic search.

This Black Friday, plenty of shoppers will ask an AI assistant for the best deals before they open a single tab. Clear product data and API-first payments put your store in a stronger position as agentic commerce moves from research to checkout.

Fund your Black Friday stock with Stitch Express Business Funding

Peak season needs stock, staff and marketing spend before the revenue arrives. Stitch Express Business Funding gives eligible Stitch Express merchants working capital based on the sales they already process through Stitch.

You see an offer in your dashboard, get an outcome on your application immediately and, if approved, the funds reflect in your Express balance within seconds. Instead of fixed monthly repayments, a set percentage of each sale goes towards the funding, so a busy Black Friday clears more of your balance and a quieter week means smaller payments. Merchants who've traded on Stitch Express for at least six months can check their dashboard to see if an offer is waiting.

Prepare your checkout for Black Friday with Stitch

Stitch gives South African merchants everything they need for peak trading through one provider:

• Payment methods that convert: Apple Pay, Google Pay, Samsung Pay, Capitec Pay, Pay by bank, card and Pay Later through a single integration
• Online and in store: the same payment methods across your website and your tills
• Infrastructure built for peaks: redundancy and failover designed for the busiest hours of the year
• Funding when you need it: Business Funding for eligible Stitch Express merchants

Enterprise businesses can contact our team to make sure their payments stack is ready for the weekend. Growing businesses on Shopify or WooCommerce can start accepting payments with Stitch Express in as little as a day.

For practical changes you can make now, see how to optimise your checkout flow ahead of Black Friday.