Mbabane – A newspaper published in one of the world’s smallest economies is outselling some of South Africa’s most recognisable daily titles on paid copies, with the Times of Eswatini posting a paid circulation of 6,668 in the first quarter of 2026, according to figures released by the Audit Bureau of Circulation on Thursday, 21 May 2026.
The figures were first reported by Bizcommunity.
What gives the number its real significance is that every single one of those 6,668 copies was paid for by a reader. Unlike many of its regional counterparts, the Times of Eswatini carries zero free distribution copies, meaning its entire circulation is built purely on readers who chose to reach into their pockets for the newspaper in a country of roughly 1.2 million people. 
That distinction puts the Kingdom’s flagship daily ahead of six established South African titles when measured strictly on paying readers. The Mercury recorded 4,484 paid copies against a total circulation of 7,108 when its 2,624 free copies are included. The Witness posted 3,817 paid copies and 6,094 total. The Star achieved 3,750 paid copies, though its total circulation of 18,752 is propped up by 15,002 free copies distributed across its market. The Daily News recorded 3,154 paid copies and 5,778 total, the Cape Times 2,932 paid copies and 7,424 total, while the Cape Argus managed 2,253 paid copies and 7,739 total, again heavily dependent on free distribution.
| Publication | Frequency | Paid circulation |
Free circulation |
Total circulation |
% change quarter |
% change year |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Daily Nation | MD, Mo-Sat | 49,028 | 49,028 | 7.7% | -8.3% | |
| Burger, Die Daily | MD, Mo-Fr | 26,481 | 26,481 | -4.1% | -9.2% | |
| New Vision | MD, Mo-Fr | 14,463 | 103 | 14,566 | 0.2% | -5.0% |
| Bukedde | MD, Mo-Sat | 13,904 | 13,904 | -1.8% | -10.3% | |
| Isolezwe | MD, Mo-Fr | 13,015 | 4,219 | 17,234 | -0.6% | -9.0% |
| Business Day | MD, Mo-Fr | 11,052 | 2,714 | 13,766 | 3.1% | 9.5% |
| Citizen, The (Daily) | MD, Mo-Fr | 9,956 | 10,024 | 19,980 | -8.5% | -4.6% |
| Sowetan | MD, Mo-Fr | 9,875 | 5,084 | 14,959 | -19.4% | -21.7% |
| Daily Dispatch | MD, Mo-Fr | 9,281 | 566 | 9,847 | -2.0% | -2.4% |
| Herald, The | MD, Mo-Fr | 9,192 | 500 | 9,692 | -2.6% | -0.5% |
| Times of Swaziland | MD, Mo-Fr | 6,668 | 6,668 | -12.6% | ||
| Mercury, The | MD, Mo-Fr | 4,484 | 2,624 | 7,108 | -3.2% | -15.8% |
| Witness, The | MD, Mo-Fr | 3,817 | 2,277 | 6,094 | 10.8% | -0.1% |
| Star, The | MD, Mo-Fr | 3,750 | 15,002 | 18,752 | 2.7% | -5.0% |
| Daily News | MD, Mo-Fr | 3,154 | 2,624 | 5,778 | -5.8% | -19.3% |
| Cape Times | MD, Mo-Fr | 2,932 | 4,492 | 7,424 | -2.0% | -10.5% |
| Cape Argus | MD, Mo-Fr | 2,253 | 5,486 | 7,739 | -1.6% | -8.2% |
| Total | 193,305 | 55,715 | 249,020 | -1.7% | -5.3% |
Strip away the free copies from all six of those papers and the Times of Eswatini stands above each one of them on the only circulation number that truly reflects reader demand.
The broader context makes the performance even more telling. Daily newspapers as a category fell 7% year-on-year across the region in the first quarter of 2026, with the Sowetan recording a steep drop of 21.7% year-on-year and the Daily News falling 19.3% over the same period. Weekend newspapers were down 17.1% year-on-year, and the overall newspaper market declined by 1.3% year-on-year, kept afloat largely by a stable performance from free newspapers.
South Africa, with its population of more than 60 million people and dozens of competing print and digital titles, provides the backdrop against which the Times of Eswatini’s numbers should be read. The Kingdom has a fraction of that population, a much smaller advertising market and an economy that has faced its own pressures in recent years, yet its daily newspaper is sustaining a paid readership that major metropolitan titles operating in far larger markets are struggling to match.
The ABC data, which covers the first quarter of 2026, was released on 21 May and captured the performance of daily, weekly, weekend, local and free newspapers across the region. The Times of Eswatini, which appears in the data under its former name Times of Swaziland, was among the dailies tracked in the audit.
