Life / Cost of living in Katowice, Poland [53]


I've been living in Katowice for nearly 2 years and have to say that living here has been a very nice experience. The country itself has its own issues like any other, but in overall, the quality of life is very good, despite what the Poles say :)

@Cletter, please tell us how much money are you being offered in Polish Złotys, as this is the currency that this country uses.

As many people said in this post, there's a bunch of posts within this forum where you can find info about cost of living, but very quickly I will tell you the following:

- Rent: between 1300 to 2200 (depending how far are you from City Centre)
- Food for 2 people: 1000zl
- Media (Services): 150-220zl
- Internet 30MB: 59zl
- Cellphone (PLAY): From 9zl to 21zl depending on the plan
- One way bus ticket: 3,20zl

I would strongly recommend that don't accept any salary below 8000zl netto (after deductions - which is around 30-32%).

For less than that, it's not worth coming here unless you're leaving a very bad country.

Hope this helps.

Life / Cost of living in Katowice, Poland [53]

I believe that for a single person would not be enough, also it depends what kind of area of expertise are you aiming for.

In my opinion it would be fair to ask for 5000PLN netto AT LEAST. If not, maybe you would have better chances to find a job in your country.

Real Estate / Where can I find a nice area to rent a studio or one-bedroom apartment in or near Katowice? [48]

Hi Kabir.

Of course I can help, gladly.

Tysiaclecia is a nice place to live, but on one hand you would have to take a bus from and to IBM, which is about 30-45mins depending on the bus you take. Personally I will move fron Tysyaclecia by the end of March looking for some flat near the office.

If you decide for Tysiaclecia, there's a lot of supermarkets (Tesco, Lidl and others), pharmacy, bakery and several little shops for daily needs.

If you change your mind, you can search and apartment in the following zones:

- Paderewskiego
- Francuska
- Rodzkinzkiego
- Maja
- Jagiellonska

Those are close to IBM like 15-20 mins by foot. Also in those places there's lots of colleagues from India, Lebanon, etc.

I have to say that people is very friendly so there's nothing to afraid. Of course there's zones that you need to avoid, for that there are other posts around here that can help you.

Public transport is relatively good, sometimes you can find delays but in general is good. You can use a bicycle around city and also, IBM is bicycle friendly...meaning that there's a bike parking and showers/lockers.

You can come by car as well with no issues.

Feel free to ask more questions and I will help.

Cheers!

Law / Buying a car in Poland or Germany? [36]

Hi guys, thanks for your answers.


I was looking for a VW Passat, Skoda Octavia or Volvo S6o from 2007 to 2010


My budget is around 28k PLN, looking for a sedan.

Also, I have been told that buying used cars here is a bit tricky, must be careful with painting, rust, crashed & fixed cars, butcher mechanics and so on. Do you know any trusted dealer or maybe some more advice?

Thank you very much to all :)

regards

Law / Buying a car in Poland or Germany? [36]

Merged: Best (low costs, replacement parts, etc.) used car to buy in Poland (Katowice). Or maybe in Germany?

Hey guys,

I've been living in Katowice for 3 months and I think is time for me to buy a used car.

I always been a fan of Renault but several people told me that those cars are not the best for this kind of weather... so they recommend me these brands:

- BMW
- Audi
- Opel
- Volvo
- Seat

Please could you tell me your opinion based on:

- Maintenance costs
- Repair costs
- Availability for replacement parts
- Insurance
- Weather

Also it would be better yo buy it in Germany?

Thanks a lot in advance.

Cheers.

Real Estate / Where can I find a nice area to rent a studio or one-bedroom apartment in or near Katowice? [48]

Hello loghyr. Yes I found a nice flat on Tysiaclesia. IBM doesn't help you with this. It's not very difficult to find a flat as long as you speak polish.

If you use a real estate agent the may charge you with commission fees that sometimes is equal to a monthly rent of a flat.

Regarding the documents just a copy of your passport and/or visa.

Hope this help.

Please inform us about you finding a flat.

Regards

Real Estate / Where can I find a nice area to rent a studio or one-bedroom apartment in or near Katowice? [48]

Thanks Smurf! Excellent description of the place.

In a couple of minutes I'm going to see a flat in Os. Tysiaclecia for 1200PLN a month... It seems OK but according to google maps it's like 6km far from IBM... any detailed comments about that zone?

Thanks again!!

Real Estate / Where can I find a nice area to rent a studio or one-bedroom apartment in or near Katowice? [48]

Merged: Just arrived Katowice and looking for a flat

Hello everybody.

I just arrived Katowice to work with IBM, I have to say that I expected a gray city without life because several comments I read on this forum, but in my opinion this city has its charm, lot of green areas and people seems friendly.

Anyway, I wanted your valuable help to find a nice place to live.... A couple of months ago some of you guys recommended me Os. Tysiaclecia, but it seems a little far for IBM on Francuska 34, so I found a place called Os. Paderewskiego and it's really close by walking to IBM.

Can you give me some advice about that zone? Also, does anyone know somebody whose renting a flat?

Ps: My wife and I are from Venezuela and we're not caucasian, should I be worried about racism in Os. Paderewskiego?

Thanks again for your kind help.

Hello everybody.

Any help please?

Thanks!!

Life / TV+Internet providers in Katowice? [10]

Thanks kevvy88 !!

Life / TV+Internet providers in Katowice? [10]

Thanks kevvy88.

What VPN client do you use?

Life / Cost of living in Katowice, Poland [53]

Hello to everybody,

I'm very grateful for your kind answers guys... now, I have more doubts that I'd like to clear:

Monitor:


Yes, it's true... here in Venezuela we live under a dictatorship that is disguised as a democracy... government has full control of USD and nobody can use it freely... When we're going for a trip outside the country, we must ask for permission and also, we have limits on our credit cards so, we can't spend more than the governments states... if I convert my monthly salary to USD, I earn $140.... it's very awful what we are living on our country and the people doesn't do anything to change the situation...


Public TV has international channels? I was wondering if I could get access to western channels that I can understand, because I don't understand polish already xD.

Smurf:


I was looking Tysiąclecia and it seems like a nice place to live... kindly can you recommend me other places near the city centre?

Finally, I have more questions of my own If you all can help me:

- Can you tell me how many Zlotys should a couple spend montly for health and body products (shampoo, soap, etc.)
- Is there work opportunities to spanish speaker people on Katowice?

I really appreciate all your help on this, thanks a lot.

Regards

Life / Cost of living in Katowice, Poland [53]

Hi Harry,

Thanks for your wide explanation.

About healthcare:


It will be Private Health Care... This insurance is paid by me or by IBM?

Thanks again for everybody for your kind help.

Regards.

Life / TV+Internet providers in Katowice? [10]

And no TV service? If so, do you know if Netflix is available on Poland?

Thanks a lot

Life / Cost of living in Katowice, Poland [53]


This includes services???


I'll working with IBM, so they'll cover my wife and I with medical and life insurance... so 300 zloty will be ok?


The housing costs are electricity, water, heating, etc.

Life / TV+Internet providers in Katowice? [10]

Thanks a lot for your answer kpc21... please kindly tell me, how much will it cost montly this TV+Internet service?

Regards.

Life / Cost of living in Katowice, Poland [53]

For both of us... Is this OK?

What about the other expenses?

Thanks JollyRomek

Life / Cost of living in Katowice, Poland [53]

Thanks Monitor and Harry for your answers.

I asked this because I have read many different opinions and got confussed.

Doing my math, this is an estimate of what I think will be my monthly expenses for me and my wife:

Expense Cost PLN
Food 500
Public transport 252
Rent 1200
Internet+TV 55
Cell plan x 2 114
Misc 300
Housing Services 400

Is my math OK?

By the way... I'm Venezuelan and I've heard about racism, but I read on some posts that this is only seen in some zones over Katowice.

Thanks a lot to everyone.

Greetings.

Life / Cost of living in Katowice, Poland [53]

Merged: 9000 PLN Gross for couple in Katowice

Hello,

Is 9000 PLN gross enough for a couple in Katowice?

Thanks a lot in advance.