Could I live on 2000zl in Poland?

I have an internet website that I earn 400 uk pounds per month from, this roughly converts into 2000zl a month.

In the uk 400 pounds isn't enough to live on however I am considering moving to country such as Poland.

My question is could I survive on that kind of money? I would like to rent a small 1 bed flat and preferably live in a city.

Is it possible?

Basically if it was possible I would concentrate on building my internet business instead of working meaningless jobs just to pay the bills.

Depends which city you want to live in.. its perfectly possible in a smaller town.. were i live we have a bed flat plus all bills for approx 1000zl but in a city i would think it would be 1500zl + so no it wouldnt be possible..

IF you really want to come to Poland in that money you would have to live out of city... may i ask what it is you would be doing and were??

Aj

Many Poles live on less than 2000 zl per month. So it's not impossible, but it's not easy, esp. not for a foreigner. Choose one of the smaller cities in Poland. You can get a small flat in the suburbs for 800 zl/month (+bills) if you have some Polish person to help you.

For sure, it's possible to live on 2000 zl in a smaller city. Look at all the Polish students.

If it is net, then you should manage. If you were a Pole, I would say you will manage ok. But as a newcomer it would be hard for you. Interesting idea anyway...

With some experience (and contacts) you can live also in bigger cities on 2000 zl. I know Polish students who live good student-lifes on less than 2000 zl per month in bigger cities like Wrocław etc.

Renting a one-bed flat would still be more expensive in Warsaw or Kraków than in any other major city in Poland. Most people in Poland live on less than 2000 zł, but you must remember that they own their flats or live in co-operative or council flats. A bill for a 40 sq. m. co-operative flat (mieszkanie spółdzielcze) would be 300-400 zloty per month (covering heating, but excluding electricity and gas) in Warsaw or nearby. Buying a flat could be a good solution for you. I recently saw a 3-room one, 52 sq. m., for sale at the price of 350.000 zloty in a town 16 km from Warsaw, in a newly costructed block of flats of four floors.

Thanks for the input so far. Here in England the cost of living is very high so many of us are used to budgeting, finding the cheapest deals etc. One thing I did notice in Poland was the cheap cafe's they have. You can get a basic meal for next to nothing.

2000PLN per month............absolutely, definitely not, no way. A week maybe, a month? - no chance, not even close.

Cooking your own meals are highly recommended if you want to live on 2000 zl per month.


Difficult to know wheather you're ironic or drunk.

what does that mean?

Haha... It's a mix between whether and weather. :)) And it does imply something about tomorrow's weather.

I managed for much less:

Rent with all bills except phone - 550zl.
Food - eating at a milk bar (they're still present in larger cities you just need to know where) about 100zl a month.
My own food (yeah thats when i learned how to cook) cheap stuff like maccaroni, pierogi etc about 200zl.

So thats food and bills for 850 (and i was eating good) earning 1300 zl i still had 450zl to take a date somewhere, an odd beer, pizza etc.

Its completely possible to live relatively comfortably for 2000zl a month and in fact most single people who earn that much dont complain, you will need practice though and you wont be able to pull it off for first weeks since you need to find out cheap eateries, learn to cook polish dishes (which can be very cheap but still very good) etc.

no chance, you need at least a grand a month to live reasonably well and rent a decent flat.

as in..... a UK grand (GBP sterling) x 5zlots approx = 5000 PLN take home, then I agree.

For 1000 pounds you can live without a worry in the world, 400 pounds is all it takes to live "reasonably comfortably".

Of course it depends on your definition of reasonable comfort:)

Yes, Exactly, You could "survive" on less but to "live" reasonably well a grand sterling should see you quite well.

5000zl? For 5000 zl you can live up to a standard of a well earning Western European, its not reasonably well, if you're single its a luxurious life where you can spend without much worry.

If his internet site gives him 2000zl and he takes up a job for 1500-2000zl he's set for an easy cruise.

The point is he don't want a job.

but they don't rent flats... they often share a room with 2-3 people.

but as many said... it's possible to _survive_ for 2000, even for ~1900zl (400 pounds) in smaller cities and towns.. just don't expect that it will be easy.

Maybe you should consider Belarus?

No... Unless you really mean survive... cook at home, don't go out anywhere, don't fly back home etc. and anyway that's outside of Warsaw, Kraków and I think Wrocław too... and 400 GBP is a bit less than 2000 PLN, remember that the exchange rate is fluctuating all the time... On the other hand for 3000 a month you can survive anywhere in Poland and live really quite well in smaller cities/towns... and I think that making 1000-1200 a month teching English part time (If you are a native speaker) should be possible even If don't have qualifications for that.

Never mind... I just read your thread again, and that answered my question.
Thanks.

Guys so am I correct in saying I want to be earning 2500zl? Obviously I want to have some kind of life, not just existing.

I've just had another look at my finances and I think I could scrape together 520 GBP which is 2500zl

What is Belarus like compared to Poland?

You can live a good (but not luxury) life on 2500 zl in most cities (maybe except Wawa and Krakow). It's more than most Poles get per month.


Just google it and you don't want to move there.

Is it f*ck! The average gross monthly wage across Poland in August 2008 was PLN 3,165. In the Mazowieckie region (Warsaw skewing the average no doubt) the average salary then was PLN 3,979 per month.

We're talking about your money after you paid the taxes.

Average salary in Poland is ~2400 net a month but most of low income Poles don't have to pay the rent, older people either live in some municipal or social flats or own flats, which during communism had been owned by companies/institutions they worked in and later they bought them for a small part of real value... and most of young low income Poles either live together with their relatives or rent a flat with some other people. If he didn't have to pay the rent 2500 a month would be really OK but If he wants to rent the flat for himself then that's a different story.

At least where I live it's easy to rent a small flat in the suburbs for 800-1000 zl + bills per month.

I guess hardly any reliable internet connections - I would think broadband is hardly existant there

two years ago it was quite possible to rent a studio flat (sort of) in Gdańsk for lower than 800 zl (maybe things have changed from that time) - these though rather excluded flats with a good internet connection - I rented a studio with shared kitchen and a bath for 500zl in Gdynia (shared with one other guy like me) - of course not a central location

IF YOU ARE SINGLE I THINK THAT YOU WILL MANAGE FINE. YOU WILL HAVE TO FORGO ANY LUXURIES LIKE A CAR. BUT I THINK THAT YOU WILL DO OK IF YOU LIVE IN A SMALLER CITY I.E. UNDER 400,000 PEOPLE. HOWEVER, PRICES ARE GOING UP IN POLAND AND WAGES ARE PRETTY CONSTANT. TAKE A VACATION TO POLAND AND EXPERIMENT WITH THE IDEA

this sum would be better as an additional source of income, but not your only means so you could theoretically pick up some additional work while here, depending on what you are qualified to do. In Warsaw 2500 net per month is not so great even if you share a flat with someone. In small towns it would be OK, but certainly not an extravagant life. If I were you I would think twice, and consider someplace cheaper than Poland, but not Belarus, where because of cryptic bueraucracy you probably wouldnt be allowed to settle there. Consider rural Bulgaria....