• A new report shows 2025 graduates earn about R6,000 to R9,000, the same as in 2005, despite rising living costs.

• Rent now eats up 64% of pay, food costs have tripled and many young South Africans are forced to live with family or share homes.

A new report by The TEFL Academy shows how much harder life has become for young South Africans over the past 20 years.

It compares Millennials who started working in 2005 with Gen Z graduates in 2025 - and finds that the cost of living has risen far faster than salaries.

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In 2005, most new graduates earned between R6,000 and R8,000 a month and could rent a place for about R1,500. That was just 20% of their income.

By 2025, young workers will earn roughly the same, between R6,000 and R9,000, but rent now costs an average of R8,598. That means it can take up to 64% of their pay, leaving little money for food or transport.

Food prices have also increased, from R1,500 a month in 2005 to more than R5,400 in 2025. Student debt has tripled from R30,000 to R90,000, and fuel prices have climbed from R5 to over R21 per litre.

These increases have made it nearly impossible for young people to live on their own or save. Many now stay with family or share housing to survive.

Rhyan O'Sullivan from The TEFL Academy said Gen Z is not struggling because they are lazy, but because "the economy has changed completely."

Even though they are more educated and tech savvy, many young South Africans feel less secure and cannot afford cars or houses.

One graduate, Brendan Pitt, said he moved to Thailand to teach English because "living costs are lower and life feels easier."