Map of Potchefstroom, South Africa

Potchefstroom is a city in North West, South Africa, with a population of about 178,285. It lies at 26.7167°S, 27.1000°E. Potchefstroom is about 153 km (95 mi) southwest of Pretoria, the capital. The nearest city on our map is Stilfontein, 36 km to the southwest.

Potchefstroom at a glance

Where is Potchefstroom?

• The 35th largest city in South Africa by recorded population.
• The 3rd largest city in North West on this site.
• Located in the Southern and Eastern hemispheres.
• Daylight ranges from about 10 h 27 min on the shortest day to 13 h 49 min on the longest day (around 21 June and 21 December).

Cities near Potchefstroom

• Stilfontein — 36 km southwest
• Parys — 41 km southeast
• Klerksdorp — 46 km west
• Fochville — 47 km northeast
• Carletonville — 49 km northeast
• Orkney — 52 km southwest
• Viljoenskroon — 57 km south
• Westonaria — 70 km northeast
• Sasolburg — 72 km east
• Vanderbijlpark — 73 km east

Largest cities in North West

• Rustenburg — 373,695
• Klerksdorp — 227,039
• Brits — 122,497
• Orkney — 110,052
• Stilfontein — 93,110
• Ga-Rankuwa — 90,945
• Mahikeng — 77,110
• Schweizer-Reneke — 70,214
• Lichtenburg — 65,863
• Fochville — 62,416

Largest cities in South Africa

• Johannesburg — 9,418,183
• Cape Town — 4,772,846
• Durban — 3,338,026
• Pretoria — 2,112,693
• Soweto — 1,695,047
• Port Elizabeth — 1,050,078
• Pietermaritzburg — 839,327
• Benoni — 605,344
• Bloemfontein — 556,637
• Tembisa — 511,655

Map of South Africa and all its cities →

Sources: place names, coordinates, populations and time zones from GeoNames (CC BY 4.0, data retrieved October 2026). Population figures are the latest values recorded in GeoNames; depending on the country they refer to the city proper, a municipality or a wider urban area, so they can differ from census or metro-area figures. Map © OpenStreetMap contributors.