Merged: Life in Poznan without Polish knowledge (only English), cost of living
Hello everyone,
Recently I have got an offer from a company(IT services) which is located in Poznan. I have gone through the forum there is very less information on cost of living in Poznan, there were few but it seems to be outdated almost 3-5years old.
I would like to know few things like. 1. Is it possible for me to lead a life with out Polish language knowledge, and with english? (I dont hesitate to learn Polish, but it will be long way)
2. Money matters, how much would it cost for an individual, renting a studio apartment, travel, groceries, gas + electricity + water + heating?
1) Yes I actually know many expats that after more than one year they cannot string 2 words in polish and they're even not interested into learning the language, but fact is that most of them don't even plan to live in Poland for 5+ years and they mingle among educated people that speak English.
The language barrier could be a problem when dealing with govt employees like at the post office or at the urząd, but even in international banks.
You can enjoy Poznań with only English but not at 100%.
2) In Poznań even pretty close to the center (Katowicka, Polanka, Zawady, Rataje, ...) you can get a full 50 sqm flat for 1500-2000 zl /month bills included (bills are generally paid all together with the rent). There are many sites where you can check prices and free flats, like Otodom, OLX and Gumtree; now would be a great period to check for a flat since PZ is an univeristy city and better to move when the students don't have to move ;)
Travelling to Berlin or other cities with PolskiBus is very cheap ... flights in PZ are ok but is not really a great hub, Berlin and Wroclaw are better.
Groceries depends where you want to shop and what you want to buy ... is not supercheap like someone could think ... I can compare it with the Southern Europe since I lived there too, and groceries for a week for a mid-class family cost approx. the same as in Italy.
I am glad to see your response, Thank you so much for the insight about the place as well as expenses analogy.
What is the duration of winter, I mean snow and long nights. I was living in Sweden, I believe it will be almost similar in terms of weather over there.
Its not to meet you Jane
I meant its nice to meet you.. there is a typo there.
Now there's an uncommon mild winter, is pretty warm and rainy in these days, but the winter used to be long and cold, I think pretty much like in Sweden, and is dark at 3:30/4:00 PM.
Be prepared for all the year, here in Poznan it rains a lot and is even windy, the days of sun are very few during the year.
Hi, I have been offered a working contract to pursue my PhD at AMU with University of Hertfordshire in UK as a partner university. So I will be moving to Poznan sometime in summers this year. I have been offered PLN 3000 per month for my stay in Poznan with additional funds available for visits to UK. I am from Pakistan and just wanted to ask if anybody knows any suitable places to live which I can afford in that money. Also if anybody knows any forum for PhD students in Poland kindly tell me about that as well.
Hi, I will be working at AMU as a PhD candidate on a project with University of Hertfordshire, UK as a partner university. I have been offered PLN 3000 per month for my stay in Poznan with additional funds available for my visits to UK. I wanted to know if this amount will be sufficient to live on and where can I live in Poznan. I am from Pakistan and will be coming to Poznan in summers.
I'm considering move to Poznan from non-EU (Russia), with my wife and 2 kids. I guess we'll need a decent 3 room flat (or house, not sure). Will 10K Pln/month suffice for supporting 2 kids family? What are tax deductions for having a family with kids, if any?
Hi, I got offer 10500k PLN Gross as an IT Consultant in Poznan. Is this salary right for 9 yrs experience person in IT? Is it ok for 3 people with a normal medium lifestyle?
I want to know about monthly rent of 2 rooms furnished with kitchen and balcony, bills(electricity, water, trash) in decent area (normal standard) and food(we use vegetable, egg, rice, wheat, milk, chicken etc) expense if we cook own.
I have 2 yrs old one kid, so can you please give information about pre school expense. Should I opt the offer and relocate in Poznan or not with this salary Because I pay 3k pln per month as an installment for home loan.
Please give suggestions, It will be helpful to me, thank you so much in advance for replying.
It's not especially exciting for someone with 9 years experience. That's 7000 PLN after tax.
Right off the top, you have to deduct the cost of your travel and relocation to and from Poland, including all travel expenses and tickets and the cost of your visas and residency permits. That's about 1000 PLN a month right there.
Modest one bedroom apartment: 2000 to 2500 PLN, all inclusive: rent, administration fees, and all utilities except for internet/TV/phone.
Food and regular household expenses for three: 1500 to 2000 PLN. Less if you eat all your meals at home, More if you eat or snack away from home a lot.
Plus occasional expenses like clothing, recreation and travel. Children's clothing is especially expensive in Poland.
You will definitely not be able to have 3000 a month to pay for your mortgage, no matter how frugally you live.
