Plain-English guides to borrowing, credit and the National Credit Act — written for real South African wallets.
Borrowing money in South Africa is safer and cheaper when you understand how it works. These free guides explain what loans really cost under the National Credit Act, how to get approved with bad credit, and how to spot loan scams — in plain English, with real rand examples. New to loans? Start with loan costs, then check your options.
Our guides are written by the Cash Today editorial team and reflect current National Credit Act rules. Whether you're taking your first payday loan or consolidating debt, these cover the essentials every South African borrower should know before signing anything:
Blacklisted or scored too low? The lenders that still say yes, how to boost your approval odds, and how to rebuild your record while you borrow.
Read the guide →Interest caps, initiation fees, service fees and credit life insurance — every legal charge explained with worked rand examples.
Read the guide →Upfront-fee fraud costs South Africans millions every year. The 7 red flags, how to verify any lender with the NCR, and what to do if you've been caught.
Read the guide →Estimate any loan's instalment and total cost using official NCA caps — from a R500 payday loan to a R250,000 personal loan.
Open the calculator →Our 2026 comparison of SA's top NCR-registered online lenders — amounts, rates, payout speeds and mini reviews.
See the comparison →Done reading? Put it into practice — one free 2-minute application, matched against SA's top lenders.
Get started →2 minutes · R0 cost · Offers from SA's top NCR-registered lenders
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