What is the minimum and average salary in Poland in 2025?

Salary is the most important factor influencing the choice of work. In Poland, as in other countries, salary parameters are multifaceted and not always clear to foreigners who have recently moved to this country. Basic data on the minimum and average, median and real salaries in the Republic of Poland, how much people in different specialties earn and much more related to salaries, read in this material.

What is the minimum and average salary in Poland in 2025?

In Poland, as in other countries, salary parameters are multifaceted and not always clear to foreigners who have recently moved to this country. Basic data on the minimum and average, median and real salaries in the Republic of Poland, how much people in different specialties earn and much more related to salaries, read in this material.

What is gross and net?

The minimum gross wage in Poland from 01.01.2025:
In zlotys 4,666 zł (gross) 30.50 zł (gross)

The average salary in Poland is indicated according to the latest data published by the Main Statistical Office (GUS).

What is gross and net?

The salaries indicated above are presented as gross income. This means that income tax and social contributions ZUS (Social Insurance Institution of the Republic of Poland) will be deducted from this amount. The gross amount minus these data forms the net salary, i.e. the amount that an employee in Poland will receive in hand. We will return to these parameters later when we consider examples of calculating wages.

Minimum wage in Poland and rules for determining it The minimum wage in Poland is a gross amount set by the state, below which it is prohibited to pay for work. The minimum rate in Poland is set at the legislative level at least once a year from January 1. However, according to the current rules, if the inflation rate in the previous year is double-digit (i.e. from 10%), then the minimum wage must be increased twice a year – from January and July.

What types of contracts does the minimum wage apply to?

It is no secret that in addition to a full-fledged employment contract – wokowy o prace, which is fully subordinated to the norms of the Labor Code of Poland, in the Republic of Poland foreigners are often employed under citizenship contracts, namely wokowy zlecenia and wokowy o dzielo, which are regulated by the Civil Code. In accordance with the provisions of the Ustawy o minimalnim wynagrodzenia za pracę (Minimum Wage Act), the minimum wage standards are set for a month or hour of work, both in employment relationships (under a work agreement) and in the provision of services (under civil law contracts that are used instead of employment contracts). In other words, the salary cannot be lower than the minimum, regardless of the type of contract. This rule does not apply to B2B contracts. Due to the extension of the rule to all types of contracts, understanding that under civil law contracts the work schedule may be of a non-standard type, two types of minimum wages were introduced – monthly, which is more often applied to work agreements, and hourly – most often used under zlecenia agreements and dzielo agreements.

Rules for Determining the Minimum Wage

The minimum wage is established by a special government regulation, but it must be preceded by a stage of approval, separately prescribed in the legislation. In accordance with the provisions, art. 2 Ustawy o minimalnim wynagrodzenie: In order to attempt to establish a new minimum wage for the following year, the so-called Social Dialogue Council (Rada Dialogu Społecznego), consisting of representatives of employers’ organizations, as well as trade unions and other employee representatives, is convened. The Polish government submits to the Council its proposals on the minimum wage for the following year by 15 June of each year, as well as data on inflation (actual and projected), average wages, household expenses, etc.

After receiving the proposals and the necessary information, the Social Dialogue Council approves the minimum wage within 30 days of receiving the data. If the Council fails to agree on the amount within the deadline, it will be established by the Council of Ministers of Poland by its resolution, which must be issued before 15 September. At the same time, the minimum wage cannot be lower than the proposal that the government previously submitted to the Council for discussion. Simply put, the government proposes the minimum wage for the next year, and the Council must approve or reject it by making its agreed decision. If the Council cannot agree on anything, the minimum wage (monthly and hourly) is determined by the government. All parameters of the minimum wage have always been set by the Council of Ministers of the Republic of Poland.

Changing the rules In May 2024, the Minister of Labor, Family and Social Policy of Poland announced that a bill was being developed that would change the formula for setting the minimum wage. According to her, the new method would imply that the minimum wage would always be equal to 60% of the average wage. When the draft will be reviewed, for what period the average wage will be taken into account, and other parameters are currently unknown.

When is the next salary increase in Poland?

A new minimum wage is set at least once a year – from the beginning of the calendar year. As already noted, in case of high inflation (10% or more in the previous year), the parameter should change twice.

The projected inflation rate in 2025 should not be double-digit, which means that the salary increase in Poland will be once – from January 1, 2026.

What will be the “minimum” in 2026?

At the moment, there is no information on the minimum wage from 2026. As soon as new information appears, this section will be updated.

What is the average salary in Poland?

That is, the arithmetic mean of the income of all persons in the study group. If the minimum wage is calculated, justified, they try to agree on it, then the average is a statement of fact, a recording of what has already happened.

The average salary in Poland is determined for the economy as a whole, for individual industries, for private businesses, etc. It is the average salary at enterprises that is most often used in various reports, as it excludes the income of public sector employees, civil servants, etc. Data on the average salary is published by the Main Statistical Office of Poland (GUS) in the form of data: for each month; quarterly; based on the results of the entire year. This information is interesting not only in itself, but can also be used to form other payments, benefits, etc.

Dynamics of changes in the minimum and average wages Obviously, the values ​​of the minimum and average wages differ. However, their dynamics are usually equally directed.