Class of 2025: NSC Matriculants Clock Historic 88% Pass Percentage, KZN Leads the Pack
With the opening of schools now upon the nation, all eyes were on the release of the Matric results of the class of 2025 countrywide on the 12th of January 2026. The release saw the Independent Examinations Board (IEB) learners register an impressive 98.31% collective pass rate, a slight drop from the previous year’s crop. National Senior Certificate (NSC) matriculants on the other hand notched an 88% pass rate.
The result, a hairline increase from last year’s 87.3%, is the country’s highest ever NSC pass rate. According to Government Communications, in the 2025, over 900 000 learners, with 764 014 of those being full-time candidates, sat down and took the exam nationally, which also made the cohort of Grade 12s the biggest turnout in history. In addition to the development, this year’s NSC results marked the first time that every single school district nationwide touched the 80% mark at the very least.
Check out the Department of Basic Education’s infographics on X:
The province of KwaZulu-Natal (KZN) topped the standings of both the NSC and the IEB provincial ladders, securing pass rates of 90.6% and a near-perfect 99.98%, respectively. Trailing KZN was the Free State with a pass rate of 98.99% for the IEB exams and 89.33% for the NSC results. Gauteng took the third spot in the NSC rankings with their pass rate of 89.06%.
On the flip side, Mpumalanga, Limpopo, and the Eastern Cape were the three worst performing provinces, coming out with 86.55%, 86.15%, and 84.17%, respectively.
Top Grade 12 Achievers on stage | SUPPLIED
Of the matriculants that wrote their NSC final papers, 46% achieved a Bachelors Pass, whilst 28% pointed towards Diploma passes. Higher Certificate getters amounted to 13.5%.
A heartening aspect of the results was the progression of children living in impoverished conditions. Over 66% of all obtained Bachelor Passes within the NSC framework emerged from no-fees school. Paradoxically, the percentage of learners receiving social grants suffered in 2025, with the crop taking a decline and landing on 78%.