Guides
Retirement
Employer funds, retirement annuities, tax-free investments and the two-pot rules.
A deduction is useful if you pay tax. Access is restricted on purpose. Withdrawing because you can is often expensive.
Fees on a retirement product compound for decades. Ask for the effective annual cost.
How to use this section
Read the guide, then open the comparison or calculator it links to. If a comparison has no live figures, that is deliberate. Unverified rates are not published.
Guides in this section
Retirement planning in South Africa
A pension fund, a provident fund, a retirement annuity and a preservation fund are all retirement money. They are not an emergency fund, and a two-pot withdrawal is not a salary. Reviewed 29 October 2026.
Read guideThe two-pot retirement system
From 1 September 2024, new contributions split into a savings component and a retirement component. Older rights can sit in a vested component. A withdrawal from the savings component is taxed. Reviewed 29 October 2026.
Read guideLiving annuities and guaranteed annuities
A living annuity keeps your capital invested and pays a drawdown you choose, inside the rules. A guaranteed annuity pays an income the insurer promises and usually takes the capital. Reviewed 29 October 2026.
Read guide
Calculators and comparisons
Questions readers ask
Is this advice?
No. It is general information for South African readers. Personal recommendations belong with an authorised financial services provider.
Sources
Page updated 28 October 2026. A source date is the day WiT Money checked that page, not a promise the institution has not changed it since.
- Financial Sector Conduct Authority
Financial Sector Conduct Authority · checked 28 October 2026
- National Credit Regulator
National Credit Regulator · checked 28 October 2026