Earnings of freelancers in Poland. There's only so much you can get out of being a freelancer

Freelancing has become a mature form of economic activity in Poland, which stabilizes the labor market – Useme experts indicated in the report. 43 percent of surveyed “freelancers” indicated that in 2025 they had more orders than a year earlier, and 47 percent recorded an increase in income.

Which industry has the most freelancers?

As indicated in the report, freelancers are dominated by people who create and operate websites and online stores – 26 percent, as well as those specializing in multimedia content such as photography, video or animation – 26 percent. Programming and IT are the main domain of 16%. study participants; a similar percentage deals with copywriting – 15 percent. and translations – 14 percent

Last year, entities from the marketing and advertising industries dominated among clients – 25%. indications, media and entertainment – 19 percent and e-commerce – 19 percent. The freelancers' clients operated primarily on the Polish market – almost half of the respondents did not carry out any orders for foreign entities last year.

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43 percent freelancers declared an increase in interest in their services

Over 45 percent respondents have been working in their current specialization for two years or less, and almost 29 percent has 3-5 years of experience in this field. At the same time, 34 percent has been employed for over 5 years.

38 percent respondents completed a similar number of orders in 2025 as in 2024, while 43 percent freelancers declared an increase in interest in their services. Respondents most often completed 1-2 orders per month – 40%. indications, and every fourth freelancer had on average from 3 to 5 orders.

This is how much you can earn

The largest group of respondents earned income in 2025 from freelancing alone income in the range of PLN 2,001–5,000 per month – 25 percent indications. A slightly smaller percentage – 22 percent. – declared earnings up to PLN 1,000 and between PLN 1,001 and 2,000 – 20%. The authors of the report pointed out that a large proportion of respondents combine full-time work with freelance work carried out after hoursso it is an additional source of income for them.

Income between PLN 5,001 and PLN 10,000 PLN received 16 percent. respondents, and 6% earned above this range on a monthly basis. subjects. An increase in income was indicated by approximately 47 percent. subjects; 34 percent stated that their income in 2025 remained at a similar level to the previous year. However, approximately 19 percent declared a decrease in income.

The highest income was achieved by freelancers in the areas of IT/programming and analytics and performance marketing. These are also specializations in which permanent cooperation and a higher value of a single project were more common. Translation was the industry with the largest number of orders (43 percent of specialists carry out more than 6 orders per month), but with lower unit income.

The type of clients served also influenced the amount of income. The greatest increase in income was declared by freelancers working with large companies and corporations – 67%.which also generated the highest work volumes. Small and medium-sized companies offered the best balance between stability and scale of cooperation – 53% of them experienced an improvement in their financial situation. subjects.

At the same time, freelancers occasionally faced price pressure – 35%. respondents noted more frequent attempts to negotiate rates, but they rarely resulted in an actual reduction. 85% of people received their remuneration on time in 2025. freelancers.

12 percent is thinking about returning to work

The report shows that 73 percent respondents plan to continue working as a freelancer this year, although 17 percent wants to change the current method of settlement. 12% of people are considering returning to work. respondents. The possibility of changing the work model from freelancing to permanent employment was declared mainly by beginners: with less than a year of experience – 42%. and less than two years – 26 percent The level of job satisfaction among freelancers remains high – nearly 37%. rated it 4 on a five-point scale last year.

“Data from 2025 show that freelancing in Poland is no longer a transitional market – it is a mature and stabilizing segment of the labor market. It gives companies flexibility and cost control in conditions of economic uncertainty and shortage of specialists, and gives freelancers increasingly greater predictability. (…) Freelancers not only adapt to changes – they are increasingly actively shaping a new work model, based on flexibility, predictability and partnership business relations. It is no longer an alternative to full-time employment, but a full-fledged pillar of the modern labor market” – rated by Marta Polowczyk from Useme.

The study “Freelancing in Poland. Between stability and adaptation” was conducted by Useme and the research agency ABR Sesta on a sample of 1,262 respondents: people running a sole proprietorship, as well as those not running a business, earning extra money on the basis of a contract for specific work or mandate, and running unregistered activities.

Useme is a platform for freelancers and contractors in such fields as IT, graphics, copywriting, marketing, translations and others, existing since 2014. (PAP)

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