Distribution of wages and salaries in the national economy in January 2026
In January 2026, the median monthly gross wage and salary decreased by 5.8% in nominal terms compared with December 2025, whilst it increased by 8.2% compared with January 2025. During the same period, the average monthly gross wage and salary decreased by 4.7% in nominal terms compared with December 2025, whilst it increased by 7.3% compared with January 2025.
The median gross wage and salary in the national economy in January 2026 was PLN 7 447.16. It means that half of the employees received a wage or salary not higher than this amount, and the other half received a wage or salary not lower than this amount. The median wage and salary varied depending on sex – among men it was PLN 7 590.00 (101.9% of the total value), while among women it was PLN 7 289.17 (97.9% of the total value). In the public sector, the median wage and salary was PLN 8 790.54 (representing 118.0% of the total value), while in the private sector it was PLN 6 744.14 – 90.6% of the total value. Taking the employees’ age into account, the highest median wage and salary was in the 45-54 age group – PLN 7 743.00 (104.0% of the total value), while the lowest was in the 24-or-under age group – PLN 5 914.29 (79.4% of the total value). In turn, in terms of entity size, the highest median wage and salary was recorded in entities with 1 000 or more employed persons – PLN 8 687.15 (116.7% of the total value), while the lowest in entities with 9 or fewer employed persons – PLN 4 806.00 (64.5% of the total value).