Statistically, an adult Pole has assets worth PLN 105,000. dollars – more than seven times more than in 1989. Thus, Poland is among the countries that have achieved an increase in wealth over the last three decades, second only to China.
Although the distance to the richest Western economies remains significant, Polish households are no longer poor in terms of assets – Poles have accumulated real assets that constitute an important source of the economy's resistance to shocks.
After the transformation in 1989, the average wealth of an adult Pole increased from PLN 15,000. to over 105 thousand dollars in 2024. This is still much less than in developed countries – in the United States, the average wealth was over PLN 550,000. dollars, i.e. more than five times more. However, Poland is above the level of Ukraine (approx. USD 21,000) and Russia (approx. USD 61,000), and additionally, in terms of private wealth, it is already approaching the averages observed in some southern European countries.
The growth recorded by Poland is among the highest in the world – among the compared countries, only China grew richer faster, where wealth per person increased from approx. to over 82 thousand dollars.
Poland is still a long way from being in the richer part of Europe
However, the achieved level of private wealth of adult Poles is not so impressive if we look at European countries. Even though we are ahead of most countries in the region, including Hungary, Slovakia, Romania and Bulgaria, and we are also approaching the level of Estonia (USD 110,000) and Greece (USD 114,000). However, there is a large distance between us and the richer part of Europe. The wealth of an average German is approximately PLN 358,000. dollarsand a resident of Luxembourg as many as 683 thousand. dollars. Poland is moving more and more clearly from the group of countries catching up towards countries with established wealth, but it should be taken into account that the process of becoming rich may take several more years.
Poles are lagging behind in saving
In 2024, the average Pole accumulated an average of approx. PLN 24,000 in deposits and financial investments. dollars. This gives us the penultimate place in Europe, behind us only Romanians. About 12.5 thousand hole. is invested in foreign currency deposits and savings. By using these products, they have more than us, including: Croatians ($15.6 thousand) and Slovaks ($12.6 thousand). Compared to Western European countries, the differences are huge – e.g. in Denmark, deposits on average amount to PLN 41.6 thousand. dollars, and in Sweden 32 thousand. hole. per adult resident.
In 2024, the average Pole had approximately 11.4 thousand more diversified financial assets. hole. This also puts us at the bottom of the pack. Significantly higher levels are observed in countries such as Hungary (USD 26.9 thousand), Lithuania (USD 23 thousand) and Latvia (USD 17.7 thousand). The most capital in financial investments was accumulated by residents of Denmark (USD 279,000), the Netherlands (USD 195,000) and Sweden (USD 197,000).
PLN 2.5 trillion in cash and funds
Of the almost PLN 2.5 trillion in financial savings that Poles have accumulated,
1,348 billion is on deposits and current accounts. In addition, there is also PLN 399 billion held in cash. Retail investment funds reached the value of PLN 207 billion, while retail bonds reached PLN 149.1 billion.
Savings accumulated under PPK grew the fastest – the pension program grew by 39 percent in just a few years and reached the value of PLN 30.3 billion. OFE maintained its value at PLN 213 billion (+2.4%). The smallest changes were recorded by unit-linked funds (PLN 38.7 billion), foreign funds (PLN 7 billion) and listed shares (PLN 100 billion, -3.4%).
However, the greatest wealth of Poles lies in real estate. Approximately PLN 7,455 billion is invested in them – this is over 200% of Polish GDP.
Stable growth and subsiding inflation
In the years 2025 – 2026, the Polish economy will remain on the path of moderate but stable growth, the pace of which should oscillate around 3.5%. year to year. After a period of investment slowdown in the first half of 2025,
the main driver of the recovery will be private consumption, supported by a real increase in household income, improved consumer sentiment and growing demand for durable goods and services. The contribution of consumption to GDP dynamics is expected to be approximately 2.2 percentage points. in 2025 and 2 percentage points in 2026. Investment growth, although delayed, will gain significant momentum next year. In 2026, investments may add approximately 2 percentage points to economic growth, becoming an equal pillar of growth alongside consumption.
Against the background of a stabilizing economy, CPI inflation is gradually approaching the NBP inflation target and, according to forecasts, will amount to an average of 3.8%. in 2025 and 2.7 percent in 2026. A key role in the disinflation process is played by curbing core inflation, which is expected to drop to approximately 2.6% in 2026. year to year. A moderate increase in labor costs will also have an impact.
The cooling of the labor market – with gradually decreasing wage dynamics (from approx. 8-9% in 2025 to 6-7% in 2026) – will limit the cost pressure in the enterprise sector.
Maintaining frozen energy prices until the end of 2025 and favorable contract quotations for 2026 additionally contribute to maintaining low inflation. As a result, real wages in the national economy will increase by approximately 5-6%. in 2025, which will translate into strong support for internal demand.
The NBP will remain cautious about easing too quickly, taking into account the persistently high fiscal deficit and geopolitical risks, but we expect further interest rate cuts, reaching the level of 3.5%. at the end of 2026
based on information from VeloBank
