The paradox of the Polish middle class. Here's what's wrong with savings

Poland recorded in the third quarter of 2025 savings rate of 10.2 percent.which is the highest result in five years.

It sounds good, but when we look at the broader European context, we quickly bring this optimism down to earth.

The EU average is 14.6%, and the highest values ​​were recorded in Germany (19.6%), Hungary (18.4%), and France and the Czech Republic (18% each). The difference is 4.4 percentage points. between the Polish result and the EU average means that a Polish employee, even earning comparably to a Western colleague, saves a proportionally much smaller part of his income.

But it is much worse than you think, because according to the BIG InfoMonitor study, as many as 33 percent Poles who have savings have so few of them that they would be enough to survive for a month at most.

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To understand why a good salary does not automatically translate into growing wealth, you need to look at several mechanisms.

Lifestyle inflation

The first and probably the most underestimated one is lifestyle inflationcalled in English-language financial literature “lifestyle creep”. The mechanism is simple – when remuneration increases, expenses increase proportionally or even faster. An increase of PLN 2,000. PLN net does not go to a savings account, but is distributed in more expensive telephone and TV subscriptions, a private kindergarten for children, a better leased car and more frequent dinners in restaurants.

After a few months, the new level of expenses becomes the norm, which is difficult to get used to, and the balance at the end of the month looks exactly the same as before the increase.

Psychologists point to two mechanisms that drive this process. The first one is hedonic adaptationThat is the natural tendency of humans to get used to things quickly to new, positive stimuli.

A new car pleases us intensely for a week, moderately for a month, and after a quarter it is simply “our car”.

The second reason is social comparisonespecially intensified in the era of social media.

A friend from the industry posted a photo from the Maldives on Instagram, a neighbor drives up in a new SUV, a friend from high school boasts about renovating his house.

The pressure to keep up with the environment is one of the strongest drivers of consumption in practice works stronger than the rational desire to save.

Middle class money is wasted

The second problem is the structure of what Poles do with the money they manage to save.

The vast majority of Poles' money is in bank accounts, the total value of which a few months ago reached PLN 1,355.4 billion, of which approximately 70 percent accumulated in current and savings accounts.

Cash in circulation amounts to another PLN 400 billion.

In other words, the vast majority of Poles' savings do not workjust lies and waits.

He is waiting for a rainy day, for renovation, for a better moment to invest, but somehow it never comes.

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Meanwhile, tools for effectively multiplying money are available today like never before.

The year 2025 was a record year for the Warsaw Stock Exchange. Trading in ETFs and ETCs increased by 121.5%. year to year and reached PLN 3.32 billion, and at the beginning of 2026 this trend accelerated even further. The number of brokerage accounts in our country has already exceeded a staggering 2.5 million.

New listed funds have debuted on the WSE in recent months, the total offer of ETFs has already increased to 28 instrumentsand PZU TFI announced further products, including a fund reflecting the global MSCI World index.

Investment costs have also dropped significantly recently because the stock exchange abolished commissions on trading in the above-mentioned instruments. Nevertheless, compared to the population, index investors are still a very small group.

In the recent “ETF in the portfolio 2026” study, as many as 42 percent respondents admitted that ETF was their first financial instrument in their liveswhich suggests that the barrier to entry to the stock exchange is only beginning to lower.

Putting aside money without a purpose or plan

The third trap is putting off a lot, but without a goal and without a plan.

A survey by ING Bank Śląski from November 2025 showed that the percentage of people declaring they had savings increased from 68 to 75 percent. compared to 2022

But when you look at the motivations for this saving, you can see a change that is not entirely encouraging.

While in 2022, 34 percent respondents were collecting funds to secure their future, at the end of 2025 this percentage had already dropped to a modest 22%.

At the same time, 93 percent respondents say that postpones the implementation of some plans.

At first glance, this sounds positive, but in practice it means that the money is “painted” for specific consumption purposes, such as a vacation, renovation or a new car.

These are usually savings that will be spent within a year or two. They do not build wealth, they only postpone consumption.

Where is the third pension pillar in all this?

In 2026 the IKE deposit limit increased to PLN 28,260and on IKZE up to PLN 11,304. Participation in PPK has already exceeded 57.9%, and the value of assets in the program has reached over PLN 47.2 billion.

The numbers are growing, but the share of pension products such as PPK, IKE and IKZE in the total savings of Poles is still only about 2%.

This means that the tax benefits of these instruments are used only by a small percentage of all savers.

Someone who earns above the tax threshold and does not contribute the maximum amount to IKZE literally gives the money back to the state because he consciously waives the deduction from the tax base.

At a rate of 32 percent. and full use of the mentioned limit is a return of over PLN 3,600 per year, which over 20 years, taking into account compound interest, gives an amount that is definitely worth reaching for.

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“Pay” yourself first

There is one more aspect that is not talked about much. The psychological cost of having no assets with good earnings.

A person earning above the median but having no financial cushion for six months or any investments feels a specific type of stress.

This is not the stress of a poor person who is worried about whether he will be short of the “first”. It's more like the stress of someone who knows they should be able to do more, but for some reason they can't.

According to recent research, only 26 percent respondents have savings enough to support themselves for more than half a year, and 17 percent adult Poles do not have any savings.

What to do with this knowledge? Economists and financial educators have been repeating for years one rule that sounds trivial, but which, when applied, really changes results: pay yourself first.

What does this mean in practice? Well, on the day the salary is credited to your account, the fixed amount should automatically and absolutely go to your savings or investment account, before you have a chance to “spend it away”.

It could just be part of a raise, a bonus, or a 13th birthday – it doesn't really matter. A given amount should be “frozen” at the beginning, and not at the end of the month, when there is usually little left in the account.

The 50 percent rule from the raise

It is worth taking a closer look in this context 50 percent rule from the raisewhich is popularized by financial bloggers.

It says that half of any salary increase should go to savings and investments, and the other half can actually raise the standard of living. In this way, both needs, current comfort and future security, are met simultaneously.

As you can see, the trap of a good salary, which most often affects the middle class in Poland, is real and applies to a wide range of Poles.

Data for 2025 show that we are saving more than ever, but the structure of these savings and the way they are invested indicate that building real wealth still remains the exception rather than the rule.

We must realize that rising wages are only the first step on the path to financial freedom.

Without conscious management of surpluses, without using available tax and investment tools, and finally without controlling lifestyle inflation, a salary increase will only remain what it already is for millions of Poles – a temporary an impulse to increase spending.