| Number | Captain | Tests as Captain | Debut as Captain |
| 1 | HH Castens | 1 | 1891 |
| 2 | RCD Snedden | 1 | 1891 |
| 3 | AR Richards | 1 | 1891 |
| 4 | FTD Aston | 3 | 1896 |
| 5 | BH Heatlie | 2 | 1896 |
| 6 | A Frew | 1 | 1903 |
| 7 | JM Powell | 1 | 1903 |
| 8 | HW Carolin | 1 | 1906 |
| 9 | PJ Roos | 3 | 1906 |
| 10 | DFT Morkel | 2 | 1910 |
| 11 | WA Millar | 5 | 1910 |
| 12 | FJ Dabbin | 1 | 1912 |
| 13 | TB Pienaar | 0 | 1921 |
| 14 | WH Morkel | 3 | 1921 |
| 15 | PK Albertyn | 4 | 1924 |
| 16 | PJ Mostert | 4 | 1928 |
| 17 | BL Osler | 5 | 1931 |
| 18 | PJ Nel | 8 | 1933 |
| 19 | DH Craven | 4 | 1937 |
| 20 | F du Plessis | 3 | 1949 |
| 21 | BJ Kenyon | 1 | 1949 |
| 22 | HSV Muller | 9 | 1951 |
| 23 | SP Fry | 4 | 1955 |
| 24 | SS Viviers | 5 | 1956 |
| 25 | JA du Rand | 1 | 1956 |
| 26 | JT Classen | 9 | 1958 |
| 27 | DC van Jaarsveld | 1 | 1960 |
| 28 | RG Dryburgh | 2 | 1960 |
| 29 | AS Malan | 10 | 1960 |
| 30 | GF Malan | 4 | 1963 |
| 31 | CM Smith | 4 | 1964 |
| 32 | DJ de Villiers | 22 | 1965 |
| 33 | TP Bedford | 3 | 1969 |
| 34 | JFK Maraia | 11 | 1971 |
| 35 | Piet Greyling | 1 | 1972 |
| 36 | M du Plessis | 15 | 1975 |
| 37 | MTS Stofberg | 4 | 1980 |
| 38 | W Classen | 7 | 1981 |
| 39 | DJ Serfontein | 2 | 1984 |
| 40 | HE Botha | 9 | 1986 |
| 41 | JC Breedt | 2 | 1989 |
| 42 | JF Pienaar | 29 | 1993 |
| 43 | CP Strauss | 1 | 1994 |
| 44 | AJ Richter | 1 | 1995 |
| 45 | GH Teichmann | 36 | 1996 |
| 46 | CPJ Krige | 18 | 1999 |
| 47 | J Erasmus | 1 | 1999 |
| 48 | JH van der Westhuizen | 10 | 1999 |
| 49 | AN Vos | 16 | 1999 |
| 50 | RB Skinstad | 12 | 2001 |
| 51 | JW Smit | 83 | 2003 |
| 52 | Victor Matfield | 21* | 2007 |
| 53 | GJ Muller | 1 | 2007 |
| 54 | Jean de Villiers | 37* | 2012 |
| 55 | Schalk Burger | 1* | 2015 |
| 56 | Fourie du Preez | 2* | 2015 |
| 57 | Adriaan Strauss | 3* | 2016 |
| 58 | Warren Whiteley | * | 2017 |
| 59 | Eben Etzebeth | * | 2017 |
| 60 | Pieter Steph du Toit | 1 | 2018 |
| 61 | Siya Kolisi | 3* | 2018 |
| 62 | |||
| 62 | |||
| 63 |
* Player still active. Number of tests subject to change
Photo: Anton Geyser / Rugby 15
