It was the highest number in the 24-hour cycle since the country reported its first case in early March.
Health Minister Zweli Mkhize said the total number of the confirmed COVID-19 cases has risen to 13,524.
A further nine deaths have also been recorded, bringing the country’s total deaths to 247.
Tweeted Mkhize:’ As of today, the total number of confirmed #COVID19 cases in South Africa is 13 524, the total number of deaths is 247 and recoveries are now 6083.
Around 28,000 health workers have been mobilised over the past month, aiming to test 10,000 people per day.
So far, they have tested more than 420,000 people.
They have also screened over nine million people so far, around 15 percent of the population.
“This is the largest and most extensive public health mobilisation in the history of our country,” President Cyril Ramaphosa said during an address this week.
But labs have been struggling to keep up and medical staff say it can now take up to two weeks for test results to arrive, up from an initial two to three days.
“The labs are being filled with community testing,” said doctor Ian Proudfoot, MSF clinical educator in Khayelitsha.