✦ Compare
Madrid vs
Warsaw
Cost-of-living comparison and salary equivalence. Enter your current salary to see what you'd need to earn to live equally well.
Madrid, ES vs Warsaw, PL at a glance — Warsaw, PL is 30% cheaper than Madrid, ES overall. Median 1-bed rent runs about $900/mo versus $1,300/mo. Top income tax: 32% vs 47%.
To keep the same standard of living in Warsaw, PL, you'd need
$52,464 / year
Warsaw, PL is 30% cheaper overall
Category breakdown (Warsaw, PL vs Madrid, ES)
- Housing-40%
- Food & groceries-30%
- Transport-31%
- Utilities-9%
- Healthcare-19%
- Goods & services-26%
◎ How Madrid, ES and Warsaw, PL compare
Index vs the US average — the line marks 100. Lower is cheaper.
▤ Full comparison
| Madrid, ES | Warsaw, PL | |
|---|---|---|
| Cost of living | ||
| Overall cost index | 103 | 72 |
| Housing | 120 | 72 |
| Food | 100 | 70 |
| Transport | 80 | 55 |
| Utilities | 110 | 100 |
| Healthcare | 80 | 65 |
| Goods & services | 100 | 74 |
| Housing | ||
| Rent, 1-bed centre | $1,300/mo | $900/mo |
| Rent, 1-bed outside | $950/mo | $650/mo |
| Rent, 3-bed centre | $2,600/mo | $1,700/mo |
| Buy price / m² centre | $6,000 | $4,000 |
| Money & purchasing power | ||
| $1,000 goes as far as | $971 | $1,388 |
| Inexpensive meal | $14 | $8 |
| Monthly transit pass | $60 | $30 |
| Taxes | ||
| Income tax (top rate) | 47% | 32% |
| VAT / sales tax | 21% | 23% |
| Social security (employee) | 6.4% | — |
| Corporate tax | 25% | 19% |
| Capital gains | 28% | 19% |
| Economy & salaries | ||
| Avg net salary | $1,900/mo | $1,200/mo |
| Minimum wage | $1,652/mo✓ | $1,297/mo✓ |
| GDP per capita | $38,627✓ | $28,420✓ |
| Inflation (annual) | 2.7%✓ | 3.8%✓ |
| Work & digital nomad | ||
| Digital-nomad visa | Yes | No |
| English proficiency | Low | Moderate |
| Coworking spaces | 70 | 50 |
| Time zone | UTC+1 | UTC+1 |
| Quality of life | ||
| Quality of life (overall) | 74 | 67 |
| Safety index | 62 | 68 |
| Healthcare index | 80 | 72 |
| Pollution index | 45 | 55 |
| Internet speed | 200 Mbps | 150 Mbps |
| Walkability | 88 | 80 |
| Public transport | 90 | 82 |
| Family-friendly | 68 | 68 |
| Tap water | Safe to drink | Safe to drink |
| Life expectancy | 84 yr✓ | 78 yr✓ |
| LGBTQ+ acceptance | High | Low |
| Climate | ||
| January avg | +6 °C | -2 °C |
| July avg | +25 °C | +19 °C |
| Sunny days / year | 250 | 90 |
| Rainfall / year | 420 mm | 550 mm |
| Connectivity | ||
| Flight to nearest hub | 1 h | 1.5 h |
Taxes & Economy & salaries: Spain vs Poland. Estimates use approximate cost-of-living indices (US average = 100) and are for general guidance only.
✓ = official statistics (Eurostat 2026, World Bank 2025, World Bank 2024). Unmarked figures are CostTrek estimates. How we calculate these figures →
Cost of living: Madrid vs Warsaw — in your currency
Converted from USD at approximate rates (2026-09).
Good to know before you move to Madrid
Spain's sunny, sociable capital — great transit and food, affordable by Western-European standards.
- Currency
- Euro (€ EUR)
- Languages
- Spanish
- Time zone
- UTC+1
- Internet
- 200 Mbps
- English
- Rarely spoken
- Safety
- 62/100
- Climate
- ❄ 6°C · ☀ 25°C · 250 sunny days/yr
- Tap water
- Safe to drink
- Power
- F · 230V
- Driving
- Right-hand side
- Popular areas
- Malasaña · Chamberí · La Latina
Good to know before you move to Warsaw
Central Europe's fastest-rising business hub — modern, safe and affordable, with cold winters.
- Currency
- Polish złoty (zł PLN)
- Languages
- Polish
- Time zone
- UTC+1
- Internet
- 150 Mbps
- English
- Fairly common
- Safety
- 68/100
- Climate
- ❄ -2°C · ☀ 19°C · 90 sunny days/yr
- Tap water
- Safe to drink
- Power
- E · 230V
- Driving
- Right-hand side
- Popular areas
- Śródmieście · Praga · Mokotów
Plan your move to Madrid
Everything you will book for the move — sorted, and updated as we add partners.
- FlightsCheapvuelos
- FlightsAviasales
- HotelsPlanetofhotels
- Car rentalLocalrent
- Airport transferWelcome Pickups
- Tours & ticketsKlook
- Tours & ticketsTiqets
- InsuranceSafetyWing
- eSIM / dataAiralo
- Luggage storageRadical Storage
- Flight compensationAirHelp
Sponsored
Plan your move to Warsaw
Everything you will book for the move — sorted, and updated as we add partners.
- FlightsCheapvuelos
- FlightsAviasales
- HotelsPlanetofhotels
- Car rentalEconomybookings
- Airport transferKiwitaxi
- Tours & ticketsKlook
- Tours & ticketsTiqets
- InsuranceSafetyWing
- eSIM / dataAiralo
- Luggage storageRadical Storage
- Flight compensationAirHelp
Sponsored
? Frequently asked questions
Moving from Madrid to Warsaw: cheaper or more expensive?
Moving from Madrid to Warsaw, your cost of living will be roughly 30% cheaper. Warsaw’s cost-of-living index is 72 versus 103 for Madrid (US = 100). Use the salary tool above to see the income you’d need to keep the same lifestyle.
Is Madrid cheaper than Warsaw?
Warsaw is about 30% cheaper than Madrid overall — its cost-of-living index is 72 versus 103 for Madrid.
Which is more expensive, Madrid or Warsaw?
Madrid is more expensive than Warsaw. Its cost-of-living index is 103 vs 72 (US = 100) — about 43% higher.
Is rent cheaper in Madrid or Warsaw?
Rent is cheaper in Warsaw — about $900/month for a one-bedroom in the city centre, vs $1,300 in Madrid.
How much do you need to earn in Warsaw to live like in Madrid?
To keep the same standard of living, a $75,000 salary in Madrid is worth about $52,464 in Warsaw. Enter your own figure in the calculator above.
Which has lower taxes, Madrid or Warsaw?
Poland has the lower top income-tax rate — 32% versus 47% in Spain.
◷ More comparisons from Madrid
How we calculate these figures →
Estimates use approximate cost-of-living indices (US average = 100) and are for general guidance only.