Job Discussion Forums

[Blasphemer]

Cost of living with a small price list of necessities (written by a Polish - three person family) May be a bit confusing at times but it was an Excel spreadsheet.

1 cigs 7 to be increased
2 condoms (3) 4 to 12 I strongly recommend the most expensive for several reasons
3 can of beer 1,5 to 3 for grass-roots , may be more expensive if you're Irish
4 wine 0,75 12 to 25 for grass-roots , may be cheaper for students or more expensive if you want to impress her/him
5 vodka 0,5 20 to 26 a great great variety
6 whiskey 0,7 40-90
7 coca-cola 2l 4.7
8 coca-cola 0,33 1.2
9 ketchup 450g 4
10 mustard 1.5
11 pizza large 25-30 very delicious da Grasso pizza, 20-25 for midium size
12 water 1,5l 1,5 to 2,2
13 closet paper 8pc 5 to 9 i still can't find the reason why to buy the most expensive - smells good, looks good, tastes good?
14 Happy meal /BIG MAC 10
15 baked chicken (halve) 7 to 8

other less important products

dairy-goods
16 white chease semi-fat) 1kg 10 to 15
17 yellow chease 1kg 15 to 30
18 milk 0,5% 1l 2.5
19 cream 10% 200g 1.5
20 white chease granulated 150g 1.5
21 natural jogurt 500g 1,12 to 2
22 fruit jogurt 500g 2,5 to 3
23 kefir 1l 3.6
24 eggs 30pc 9 to 13
25 mozzarella chease 1kg 23
26 butter 250g 3 to 4

bakery products

27 roll 0.2
28 baquetts 1.4
29 white bread 2
30 brown bread 4 (healthy out of not destilated flavour)

31 meat
32 chicken (raw) 1kg 7
33 turkey (whole) 25-35 I'm not sure
34 ground turkey (mielone) 1kg 13
35 ground prok 1kg 9
36 ground beaf 1kg 10
37 liver 6 to 10
38 beaf 1kg 16 to 20
39 pork 10 to 15
40 drawn pudding (salceson) 1kg 8 to 12
41 ham 1kg 17 to 30
42 frankfurter sausage 5pc 4 to 5
43 sausage (thin) 1kg 10 to 14
44 black pudding (kaszanka) 1kg 8 to 10
45 salami 300g 8 to 15
46 smoked mackerel (makrela) 1kg 13
47 smoked salmon 250g 10 5 durring sales
48 frozen mintaj 1kg 12
49 salmon (raw) 1kg 15 to 30
50 can of tuna in oil 170g 3,5 to 4
51 can of sardines in oil 2,5 to 3,5

fruits (prize depend on season)

52 apples 1kg 2 to 2,5
53 bananas 1kg 3,5 to 4
54 oranges 1kg 3.7
55 mandarines 1kg 4,5 to 5
56 grapefruit 1kg 5 to 6
57 melon 1pc 6 to 8
58 grapes 1kg 8 to 15
59 kiwi 1 kg 5

vegetables (prize depend on season)

60 eggplant (bakłażan) 1kg 7 to 12
61 zucchini 1 kg 5 to 8
62 cauliflower pc 3 to 6
63 tomato 1kg 4,5 to 7
64 cucamber 1pc 2,5 to 4
65 green salad 1pc
66 potatoe 1kg 1,5 to 2
67 cabbage pekińska 1kg 2,5 - 3,7
68 cabbage 1kg 1
69 carrot 1kg 1.2
70 paprica 5 to 8

other

71 coffee Nescafe 200g 24
72 Lipton tea 50bags 9
73 oil 3,9 to 4,5
74 olive oil 750ml 20 to 25
75 can of corn 380g 1,5 to 2,5
76 can of green peas 380g 2
77 muesli 300g 3 to 8
78 flavour 1kg 2.4
79 sugar 1kg 2.7
80 spagetti (pack) 3.5
81 noodles (pasta) (pack aprox 0,5 kg) 3.5
82 rice (10 bags for 2 persons) 6
83 lasagne (cake) 9
84 sour cucambers 1l 3.7
85 marmolade (low sugar) 0,5kg 4.5
86 rusks (pack) 4
87 frozen vegetables (soups) 1kg 3,7 to 5
88 chockolate (bar 100g) 2,6 to 5
89 juice 1l 3,5 to 4
90 juice for babies 0,7l 2,7 to 3 healthy
91 juice for babies 330ml 1.5 healthy
92 milk for children 350g (powder) 13
93 jar of food for babies 150-200g 3 to 5
94 gruel for babies 250g 3 to 5

higiene items

95 toothpaste 4 to 8
96 paste for cleaning kitchen, bath 1l 6
97 liquide for cleaning floor 5 to 8
98 shaving foam 10 to 15
99 razor blades 10 pc 10 to 14
100 nivea cream for adults 250ml 14
101 soap block/liquid 0,5l 2 to 10
102 shampoo / shampoo for children 6 to 10
103 olive for children 5 to 15
104 washing powder 4kg 20 - 40 depends on brand
105 pampers 56 - 86 pc 47 amount in a pack depends on size but you already know it

kitchen/bathroom equipment prizes vary a lot depending on energy consumption class, design and brand, I quote almost the lowest prizes
when buying on internet may be cheaper

130 gas oven 650
131 washing machine 1000
132 fridge 1000
133 microwave 350
134 dishwasher 1300
135
136 cloth
137 cloths for babies/children 7 to 20 depend on shop, size, brand and quality, I quote average lowest prizes from a REAL/GEANT mall chain
138 cloths for children 10 to 50
139 clothes in good brand shops may be even threefold higher but you can buy a lot of cheap and relatively good cloths in large mals outside the city
140
141 cloth in a good shop "RESERVED" on sale my favourite one - good value for money
142 T - shirt 16 to 50 there are interesting seasonal sales - you can make a good deal - 50-70% discount
143 jeans 60 to 200
144 blouse 23 - 60
145
146 shoes for adults of realatively good brands and quality, you can buy twofold cheaper in REAL/GEANT/other mall chains but of lower quality
147 for men 150 - 250
148 for women 200 - 400 fashion, fashion, fashion

other expences/prizes

151 electricity /month 80 with resonable (limited) consumption of light, oteher consumption: washing mashine, dish -washer, fridge, TV, electric oven, kettle, computer in use
152 rent (all included apart form light) / mont /52 m2 320 expences on cloths and child may be included in 15% margin
153 fundusz remontowy na mieszkanie /month 70
154 internet, cable TV / month 120
155 mobile telephone 75 depend on tariffs - here 120 free minutes/per month
156 monthly ticket for all menas of public transport /quarter 200
157 gasoline 1l 4.2
158 sqush /12 games for 2 pers! 360 - 450
159 gym (bodybuilding) / month 120
160 swimming pool /1hour 15
161 cinema 12 to 20 depends on day, time, other bonuses
162 barber 15-20 for men
163 25 - up to hell knows for women

THIS IS THE IMPORTANT PART

our average monthly budget

165 food + 0 to 15% 1500 my wife and me spend aprox. 1500 PLN/month but our diet is not balanced - once I eat regularly and healthy once like a pig

166 TV + internet + 1 mobile 200
167 house+electricity 500
168 sport 200
169 gasoline (me) 200
170 public transport (wife) 70
171 insurance 200 voluntary (life, house, ect)

172 TOTAL +0 to 15% 2870

[the new guy]

i got a basic key(garage) cut today

13.50zl

what a ripoff!!

i'm going back with a PL native, same key and see if the price changes. Male & female.

[dynow]

[simon_porter00]

Dynow, what city do you work in?

[Sgt Bilko]

[Harry from NWE]

[dynow]

[Blasphemer]

[dynow]

[/quote]I didn't include rent because that varies depending on where you are located.[quote]

what else could "home + electricity" mean???

and exactly what "reference point" can someone get out of your list, when you supply, at the end, a grand total that basically means nothing to the avg. guy?

you say that everybody spends differently, rents differ depending on where you live, so what's the point of even listing how much these people eat per month, let alone in bold, if it varies?

if you want to give people a REAL "reference point", try giving them at least the approx. costs of things that actually will hurt their paycheck, like RENT/MORTGAGE, ZUS or a car once they have a child (it's -15C outside today.....I don't think a 15 minute walk to the nearest Carre Four today with a kid in each hand, let alone the walk back with bags in your hands, is rational thought).

it seems strange that someone would post a list (to help out future Poland goers reading this forum) of costs of living in Warsaw for a family of 3, yet conveniently leave out the biggest expenses of all. after all, the numbers you listed were an approximation, so why not approximate what you left out, instead of listing some bogus number of "House + electricity 500zl" and a grand total that would apply to a very very select few living in Poland......such as people without mortgages or car payments

again, sorry to have played the bad guy again on this forum, but hear this all future Poland goers:

If you want to know what it REALLY costs to live in Poland, especially for those of you looking to stay here long term and buy some real estate, feel free to PM me.

If you want to know how much 150g of white granulated cheese costs in Warsaw, see number 20 on Blasphemer's list. He has put together a nice price list of fruits and vegetables for you all as well.

[Richfilth]

For those coming here Dynow, mentioning ZUS and rent on Blasphemer's list would be unfair - I lived here for four years without paying ZUS a penny, so calling it a "considerable chunk" seems rather harsh.
Rent I can understand, but again, that can vary wildly from 500 to 2000 a month, depending on what you want and where you want it.

I have to admit, Blasphemer, adding petrol costs but not car insurance is a bit of an oversight. For any English though, pointing out that there's no road tax in Poland is a plus - that's 200 quid a year on your car saved.

Dynow, if you're in one of Poland's biggest cities, working as a freelance, why are you only making 4000-odd a month? No criticism, but it seems like you might be underselling yourself. Are you getting 60PLN net? That means you're only working 70 hours a month. If you're working 100 hours, are you really only getting 40PLN an hour? Either way, a 20% pay rise or a 20% rise in hours would yield a doubling of your disposable income (from 900 to 1800 a month.)

[Harry from NWE]

[Richfilth]

I bought my apartment two years ago at a time when I wasn't paying anything to ZUS. I also took a considerable time off work for travelling (which could equate to being in hospital; I wasn't earning) before I contributed to ZUS. If your earnings are high enough you can save for a rainy day to compensate for ZUS' generous sick-day renumeration (to a point.)

The company point is the key here; ZUS 'contributions' are a by-product of setting up your own company, which in itself I would have thought was a stepping stone to a higher level of earnings. If you make less than (to pluck a vague number) 6000PLN monthly, then work for a school under an umowa o dzielo contract. Pay your tax on 50% of your earnings, and don't pay ZUS anything (as there's no obligation to.) If you want to make more than 6000PLN, THEN set up a company, take the consequences of an 80% taxable income and being raped by ZUS, but only if the increase in monthly revenue deserves it.

Under the Umowa o dzielo, 6000PLN gross becomes 5400PLN net. To make 5400PLN with your own company, you have to earn 6400PLN a month gross (presuming introductory 30% ZUS payments - more like 7000PLN gross after that.)

If you're working for a school, I don't see what benefit is to be had by having your own company if the school pays you such a low income to start with. Or have I missed a trick and there's something that's forced dynow to set up his company; that umowa o dzielo wasn't an option as an employment contract?

[Blasphemer]

[dynow]

[simon_porter00]

When I worked under umowa o dzielo I didn't pay ZUS and i understand the situation to be the same nowadays. It was (if you cold find a school who wasn't diddling your tax) one of the advantages of Um.o.D.

No wonder you're not earning much if you're working for your own company, freelancing for a school paying zus and tax. Wroclaw (and i've never been there, so please correct me) seems to be unlike Krakow insofar that it has this old town appeal with an established business sector. Under those circumstances I really can't understand why you're not earning 8k a month or so net, because if you put yourself about a bit you'll find it.