If you look at ads, a room to rent costs around 600-1000 PLN, usually bills are included, just a room not an apartment. If you want a studio for yourself I think you should prepare around 1500 PLN
1 month ticket for all buses, trams and even trains in the city is 90 PLN urbancard.pl/en/article/show/category,1,id,63-.html
The cost of food really depends how much you eat and what you eat. Polish food is cheaper than food not very common in Poland like for example crabs or shrimps. You will manage with 600 PLN for food per month, if you desperatelly want to save you will manage even with 300PLN but you will really have to count like crazy and travel to different supermarkets to get food in promotons. You can check some supermarkets websites to compare prices. The cheapests are lidl lidl.pl , biedronka biedronka.pl there are also big supermarkets like tesco tesco.pl and many others.
Entertainment can be expensive, but depends what entertainment you like, a swimming pool ticket can be around 10 PLN per hour, cinema around 15-25 PLN, opera 100PLN
A one room studio apartment with all utilities and internet included is going to cost 1600 PLN or more. Maybe a little less if you live on the fringes of the city, but the commuting time will not be worth the savings.
Transportation will cost 90 PLN a month if you get the Urban card. More, even much more, if you don't.
Food is going to cost you about 900 PLN for a no-frills diet. 600 PLN perhaps for a small woman, but a man will have to eat a very spartan diet at that price. 300 PLN is just impossible. Your diet would consist solely of potatoes, onions and pasta. I spend about 1000 PLN for food, and that's mostly cooked and eaten at home. And you'll have to figure in household supplies.
Entertainment is expensive if you like nightclubs and alcohol, or want to see the latest films in the cinemas. I know expats who spend over 1000 PLN a month on going out.
In short, living in a studio apartment, you'll need at least 2700 PLN per month AFTER TAXES just to survive as a single man who doesn't smoke or drink. Less than that, and you're life is going to be grim and spartan to the extreme. Even with 2700 PLN a month, you'll have no money left over at the end of the month, and you won't be able to save anything up or send home. Life doesn't begin to get comfortable until you make more than 4000 PLN AFTER TAXES as a single man.
Merged: American looking to relocate to Wroclaw, Poland
Hi, I'm curious about any tips for an American relocating to Wroclaw, Poland. My girlfriend is Italian, but works and lives in Wroclaw, and I would like to join her there at some point. I'm fairly financially independent with a masters degree so money isn't a critical issue. I would probably want to work there, at least in some capacity, if anything just to keep myself busy. Unfortunately, I don't know any Polish, just English and Italian. The language I understand is very difficult and job opportunities scarce. Perhaps there are some American companies located there where Polish is not essential. I also am an experienced teacher, so that might be an option as well. Any information would be valuable about work or residency there. Thanks you.
Foreigners without Polish working in Poland work usually in outsourcing centers, English teaching, IT and management. How are you going to regulate your stay in Poland? To work you probably need work permit which is another obstacle. In case you had the work permit you could search for example here:
I speak and write polish was born there and even I find getting a job there....confusing. I actually gave up on ever doing it or moving back Which annoys me several times a week. Good luck!
I only applied for 1 job, but for what it's worth it asked for a native English speaker to work in a department (not teaching) and field that I could easily demonstrate my experience and knowledge in. I never even got an interview (I am in my 40s). From that I conclude they had a respectable number of native English speaking applicants. So, I don't think it's easy to find non-teaching work here. I also believe the teaching opportunity is much less than it was.
It might come down to networking and contacts for the best or only chance of a foot in the door.
Networking is important in all countries. Here in oz its taken to the extreme where it will often trump qualifications Thats why we only mine stuff mainly now and do very little else. It's making us a bit backward. In Poland thankfully it's not as stupid as that and I hope it continues to be qualification based. However, networking is still important so if I go there for several weeks this is very little time for networking. My best option is to start a business which I did here twice. Unfortunately starting a business is even harder than just getting a job And much more risky. Catch 22.
Thanks! Yes, from what I've read on the web getting a work permit and finding a decent job can be daunting there, especially as I don't know Polish, nor all the red tape there. Maybe I'll just live off my U.S. pension there. Another question though, if I do just live off my U.S. pension would residency be easier or more difficult there? I would think easier as they know at least I am not a drain on the state.
If you have banking related knowledge or IT knowledge you could try BNY Mellon, Credit Suisse or Nokia... but not sure what chances would you have in your situation..
@Magician: If you have a guaranteed monthly income of at the very least $1500 USD after taxes, then by all means, Wrocław is a great place to live. I'm an American who lived there for many years myself, and I think it is the best city in Poland.
If you need to work, then things get tougher. Work is very difficult to find once you arrive, especially well-paid work. There are very few viable options unless you have kicka$$ qualifications and experience.
If you do have serious qualifications, then the WORST thing you can do is to come to Poland and try to find a job there. You would be MUCH better off finding a job with an international company that does business in Poland while you are still in the West, and then get transferred to Poland at Western wages, which isn't likely to happen if you get hired in Poland.
Frankly, if you are thinking in terms of a longterm
If you lack serious qualifications and experience that are salable on the very competitive Polish job market, that leaves call centers and English teaching. Call centers are generally awful and pay very low, so even as a supplement, they don't make much sense. Even if you are desperate enough to work in a call center, it would always be better to go back to the States.
Teaching can be rewarding if you can establish your own business, as I did. I wouldn't want to do it full time, but as a supplement, it was fun and relatively well paid. Problem is that the golden age of teaching English has long past in Poland, and there is an abundant supply of teachers from the UK and Ireland, so no schools have any incentive to hire an American because it's a major hassle. Also, because of the glut of native speakers in Wroclaw, it is hard to find reliable students who are willing to pay a reasonable rate until you build up a reputation and can rely on word of mouth. That can take a while.
Frankly, the chances of you both making a goal of it financially are astronomically higher in the States than in Poland, and her chances in the States are vastly higher than yours in Poland. If you are thinking of a serious LTR leading to marriage, then Poland is not a viable longterm option.
Thank you very much for all the information. I do appreciate it. Your comments echo a lot of things I've seen online about Poland. I do have a very good pension of over 1500 u.s. dollars a month, and also I own a house in the U.S. which I could get additional rental income from. My girlfriend also has a good job and I have a good savings and investments so I'm not too concerned about finances there. I'm more concerned that I don't want to be just a lazy bum sitting around the house while she works (my girlfriend has a good job with a company in Wroclaw and likes the city very much). I would even take a low paying job just to stay busy and productive (I've always worked in my life). I know it is much easier for schools to hire E.U. citizens as opposed to Americans to teach, and also I've heard Polish students can be a challenge. I teach at a mainly wealthier school district in the U.S. where the only discipline problem is students being a little late to class occasionally. Also I know I am at a big disadvantage not knowing Polish. Perhaps I could study it but I'm told it's a brutal language to learn. I'll be visiting Wroclaw for the first time this summer and will check out the scene. Thanks and be sure to keep any good information coming. This is a girl I plan to spend the rest of my life with.
, if I do just live off my U.S. pension would residency be easier or more difficult there?
I don't think it matters. You need to get a job in Poland or fulfill one of other conditions in order to get temporary residency permit:
Starting or continuing work in Poland; Performance of work in an occupation requiring high skills (what does it mean to perform work in an occupation requiring high skills?); Performance of work by a foreigner delegated to Poland by a foreign employer; Conducting business activity in Poland; Starting or continuation of studies in Poland; Completion of a preparatory course prior to starting education in undergraduate, postgraduate or doctoral studies in Polish; Conducting academic research in Poland; Visiting family members by a Polish citizen or family member of a foreigner...
migrant/temporary-residence-permit.html
But you can buy permanent residency of other EU country in order to be able staying in Poland: second-citizenship.org/permanent-residence/investment-programs-in-comparison telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/europe/spain/9689008/Foreigners-offered-chance-to-stay-in-Spain-for-130000.html
