South Africa climbed six spots to 51st on the latest world rankings list, released by Fifa on Thursday.
Up from last month's 57th in the world, Bafana Bafana improved their position for a third consecutive month and have now moved up 18 spots in three months.
Their 51st position is their highest since October 2011, when the country was 49th in the world.
A 2-1 win over Sudan and a 2-2 draw with Nigeria in their last two 2015 Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers allowed Bafana to continue their resurgence under coach Shakes Mashaba. They finished their Afcon qualification campaign unbeaten after six matches.
Meanwhile, South Africa climbed to 11th in the continent's Confederation of African Football (Caf) rankings.
Up from last month's 12th, Bafana are now a place away from being among Africa's top 10 teams.
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