This trend emerged from the recently released Visa and Discovery Bank’s Spend Trend 2026 Report.
The report explores six themes shaping consumer behaviour, some of which were discussed in Spend Trend 2026 Part 1: Social engineering and its impact on fraud.
Rather than cutting spending across the board, consumers have become more selective, with essentials being a priority. Consumers are also using rewards, budgeting tools and value-seeking strategies to stretch their spending.
“They have been much more judicious in terms of taking advantage of the kind of injection rate reduction that provides,” says Hylton Kallner, CEO, Discovery Bank and Discovery SA.
For example, consumers are using the rewards and incentives they have access to, drawing down on them, and they're engaging much more in these programmes.
The report shows that 54%, up from 36%, of respondents say that rewards and benefits are more of an active part of how their household spends.
It is not just about the kind of incentive itself, he says. “It's about how you're using it to shop smartly and be much more aware.
“The trend towards smarter spending is incredibly strong, and the increased spend outpacing inflation is one of the headline findings at a macro level.”
This upturn in spending is supported and driven by four key trends: travel, online betting, weight management medicine as a new health spending trend, and AI reshaping shopping decisions.
There was a significant rebound in travel across all income groups in 2025.
However, consumers remain value-conscious, and value for money has really become the most important factor when planning a trip.
This is a move away from the vacation and rest focus to getting the best deals as a consumer - a trend expected to continue.
“The travel trend itself is an incredibly complicated and complex one in the current geopolitical environment, which has seen mass disruption.”
As South Africans, we love our sport, and what sports betting has really enabled is a much more engaged interaction.
Online gambling spend now accounts for the majority of gambling spend in the country.
Kallner points out an unbelievable stat: 75% of South African survey respondents engage in sports betting in some shape or form, underlining the take-up of sports betting.
“It also talks about how sports betting is marketed, how to engage with it, and how we can encourage responsible betting, changing how they actually manage their finances and able to engage in areas like sports betting at the same time.
“The question that obviously materialises is what is entertainment versus what becomes unhealthy?"
The survey shows that 46% of South Africans are spending less online this year than they did last year. Over 40% budget for online betting, while 43% surveyed said they stick to that budget.
A key spending priority remains health and wellness.
While the most common wellness purchases are supplements and vitamins, followed by fitness, weight management support and cosmetic procedures, there is a growing use of weight management medicine such as GLP-1 therapies.
About 16% of spend is on dieticians or weight loss clinics, and 14% on weight loss medicine.
Of the respondents, 14% say somebody in their house is currently using a smart weight loss medication, particularly a GLP one.
“What's interesting for us is how people are thinking about how they budget these costs and how they can manage the rest of their health.
“Of respondents, 59% said they're spending more on healthier foods and 48% spending less on takeaways, 45% are spending less on alcohol, and 38% spending less on groceries in total.
“Overall health becomes a key focus area for the family, and that is an important insight for retailers and other stakeholders in the healthcare system.
Touched on in Part 1, AI is influencing virtually every aspect of our lives.
In the survey, 40% of respondents use AI weekly to inform purchase decisions.
This is mainly for price comparison, product research and deal finding.
Forty-two percent (42%) are using AI to identify the most cost-effective option.
The other half was a genetic shopping, but 35% use AI to shop smarter and more securely, to avoid fraud and making a risky purchase.
“We see this in our clients at Discovery Bank. They use AI to identify fraudulent messages that they receive and to check them,” says Kallner.
They have seen an 85% reduction in fraud using AI technology at a per-transaction level - a remarkable impact, says Kallner.
