City of Tshwane Metropolitan Municipality is one of South Africa’s eight metropolitan municipalities, governing 6 298 square kilometres of Gauteng with no district municipality above it.

4 040 315residents recorded in Census 2022, making City of Tshwane one of the largest municipalities in the country

The essentials

Measure Value
MDB code TSH
Province Gauteng
Population 4 040 315
Households 1 322 252
Area 6 298 km2
People per km2 641.5
Council seats 214
Parties in council 15
Governing party DA/ActionSA/FF Plus/ACDP/UDM/COPE Coalition
Executive mayor Nasiphi Moya

Money

In its most recent audited year City of Tshwane reported R48.1 billion in operating revenue against R46.9 billion in expenditure, an operating surplus of R1.1 billion. Its audit outcome was recorded as qualified audit.

Measure Value What it means
Financial health grade E Distressed
Score out of 100 27.8 Ranked 8 of 8 metros
Operating margin 2.3% Revenue exceeded operating costs
Current ratio 0.34:1 Short-term bills exceed short-term assets
Months of cash -4.8 Less than a month of cover
Irregular spending 11.0% Share of expenditure flagged by the Auditor-General

Household services

Service City of Tshwane All 8 metros average
Piped water inside dwelling 71.3% 71.6%
Flush toilet connected to sewerage 81.5% 85.6%
Electricity for lighting 91.8% 95.1%
Weekly refuse removal 81.0% 81.3%

How it compares with the other metros

City of Tshwane ranks 8 of the eight metropolitan municipalities on financial health. Ranked against all 257 municipalities in the country, it sits in the lowest band.

Metro Grade Score Operating margin Months of cash
Cape Town B 81.1 4.6% 3.6
eThekwini C 56.5 -4.7% 4.9
Nelson Mandela Bay D 43.2 -9.0% 2.7
City of Johannesburg E 38.9 -3.4% 1.5
City of Ekurhuleni E 38.7 -4.8% -3.4
Buffalo City E 38.6 -18.1% 5.2
Mangaung E 34.8 -10.8% 9.7
City of Tshwane E 27.8 2.3% -4.8

What the figures suggest

City of Tshwane collected more than it spent on operations, an operating surplus of R1.1 billion, which is the position a municipality should be in. Cash cover is below one month, which leaves no buffer for an unexpected cost. Short-term obligations exceed short-term assets, which is a common early indicator of cash-flow strain.

Who runs it

The council has 214 seats across 15 parties, and is governed by DA/ActionSA/FF Plus/ACDP/UDM/COPE Coalition. The executive mayor is Nasiphi Moya. All of these positions are contested at the local government elections on 4 November 2026.

In context

City of Tshwane is one of 11 municipalities in Gauteng. See the full City of Tshwane profile for contact details, the complete council, five years of audited figures and published documents, or put it beside another municipality in the comparison tool.

Common questions

How many people live in City of Tshwane?

Census 2022 recorded 4 040 315 residents across 6 298 square kilometres, which works out to 641.5 people per square kilometre.

What is City of Tshwane’s annual budget?

It reported R46.9 billion in operating expenditure and R48.1 billion in operating revenue in its most recent audited year.

Who is the mayor of City of Tshwane?

Nasiphi Moya. The full council and senior management are listed on the City of Tshwane profile, which is updated as appointments change.

Figures on this page come from National Treasury, Statistics South Africa and the Auditor-General, as set out in the sources and methodology. Read the methodology