Low income medical aid in South Africa in 2026: income bands and prices

On these plans the price you pay depends on your income band, so find your own band rather than the headline price. Income figures are as each scheme publishes them. Thebemed publishes its bands in small amounts, so confirm the income basis with the scheme.

Some schemes ask for proof of income, so ask what they accept. Compare plans in the same band, and check the network before you decide. Individual plan pages: Discovery KeyCare, Bonitas BonCap and Momentum Ingwe.

If your income puts you in a high band, a flat-price plan can cost less. Momentum Ingwe's top band is R4 546 for one adult, more than the R2 029 that Evolve costs at any income.

See the cheapest medical aid guide for the catches on each and our hospital plans guide for hospital-only cover.

Every registered plan must pay PMB care in full, without a co-payment or deductible. That includes emergencies and the chronic conditions on the PMB list. The scheme can require you to use a designated service provider, and can charge a co-payment if you choose a non-DSP voluntarily. See our PMB guide.

What you give up on a low-cost plan:

• Choice. Hospital and GP networks. On Bonitas BonCap the co-payment at a non-network hospital is 30%, and on BonStart it is R1 850 per admission.
• Day-to-day cover. Often a few GP visits or a small limit. On BonStart there is a R130 co-payment per network GP visit.
• Waiting periods. If you have had no cover for 90 days or more, a scheme may impose up to three months general and up to 12 months condition-specific waiting periods, but not for PMB treatment. See the waiting periods guide.

Several employer, industry and profession schemes have income or salary bands too, but you can join only through the group they serve. Some are subsidised by the employer.

If you work for a qualifying employer, ask HR about the scheme. If not, the open-scheme plans above are the ones you can join.

Products priced below the plans above are usually health insurance. They pay stated benefits, are not bound by the PMB rules and complaints go to the National Financial Ombud, not the Council for Medical Schemes (CMS).

Why are they insurance? A framework for low-cost benefit options at medical schemes has never been approved. The CMS says its 2015 framework was not approved by the Minister, the Gauteng High Court dismissed an application by the Board of Healthcare Funders (BHF) to let schemes offer them on 1 April 2025, and the Supreme Court of Appeal agreed in October 2025 to hear the BHF's appeal. Insurers' primary care and hospital cash products run under a CMS exemption that was extended to 31 March 2027. Read our medical aid vs health insurance guide.

Public clinics and hospitals remain the safety net if private cover is out of reach. Read our guides on what to do if you cannot pay and on NHI and medical aid.

If you can afford a basic plan, keeping continuous cover protects you from a late-joiner penalty. If you first join at age 35 or older without enough earlier cover, the scheme may add up to 5% for 1 to 4 years of missing cover, 25% for 5 to 14 years, 50% for 15 to 24 years and 75% for 25 years or more to your own share of the contribution. See the late joiner penalty guide.

1. Find your income band and price it for your whole household, using the scheme's adult and child rates.
2. Check that a network hospital and GP are close enough to use.
3. Ask about co-payments and what proof of income is needed.
4. Ask whether the price is fixed for the year. Fedhealth has announced 8% for myFED in 2027 and Medshield MediPhila at R2 295, while most other schemes had not announced by 29 September 2026. See the 2027 increases guide.
5. Check the scheme's health. Sizwe Hosmed is under provisional curatorship and CompCare reported solvency below the 25% minimum for 2024.