This paper reports on an interview study of contraceptive practice among a representative sample of 1,022 white married women in Johannesburg, South Africa. More specifically, the paper tries to answer four important questions with regard to family limitation and planning and the methods of contraception used by various social and economic groups: (1) the prevalence of contraception and when the practice is started; (2) the use of contraception, family planning and unwanted pregnancies; (3) the incidence of specific means of contraception; and (4) the relationship between types of methods used and various socio-economic characteristics. It was found that most of the couples have used contraception at some time during their married life (82 per cent), the highest use being among fecund couples. A high proportion of couples used contraceptives before their first pregnancy, and a very small proportion of fecund women never use any form of contraception at all during their married lives. Family planning and the spacing of children are widespread and generally accepted by the population. However, there are still unwanted pregnancies and births and the incidence of family planning practices differ among religious, language, occupation and income groups. The incidence of the different contraceptive methods (the five most popular being rubber sheath, withdrawal, rhythm, diaphragm, and vaginal jelly, in that order) and types of methods: chemical and appliance, non-appliance and mixed, also differ significantly among the various socio-economic, especially religious, groups.