Warsaw in July 2026: wages rise while employment falls

Warsaw’s economy sent mixed signals in July 2026. Employment in the enterprise sector was 0.7% lower than a year earlier and the number of registered unemployed rose 4.8%. At the same time, average pay reached PLN 11.4 thousand gross, industrial output increased 8.9% year on year, retail sales rose 5.4%, and the number of REGON-registered entities climbed above 610,000.

Warsaw in July 2026 – key figures

* Industrial output: year-on-year change at constant prices. Other values follow Statistics Poland methodology for the respective indicator.

Labour market: fewer jobs, more unemployed

Average employment in Warsaw’s enterprise sector stood at 1.1076 million people in July. That was 0.1% higher than in June but 0.7% lower than a year earlier. In annual terms, the city lost roughly 7,800 jobs.

The decline was uneven. Employment fell most sharply in accommodation and food service, by 3.5% y/y, real estate activities by 3.0%, trade by 2.2%, and transportation and storage by 1.5%. Professional, scientific and technical activities increased employment by 1.5%, while construction and information and communication each added 0.5%.

At the end of July, 22,179 people were registered as unemployed. That was 0.4% fewer than a month earlier but 4.8% more than in July 2025. The unemployment rate remained at 1.6%, compared with 1.5% a year earlier.

There were 1,687 job vacancies reported in July. Sixteen registered unemployed people were recorded per vacancy, compared with 12 a year earlier. This is one of the clearer signs of softer labour demand, even though unemployment in Warsaw remains very low overall.

Wages: the average exceeded PLN 11.3 thousand

Average monthly gross pay in the enterprise sector reached PLN 11,392.64 in July. It was 1.9% higher than in June and 7.2% higher than a year earlier.

Sector differences are substantial. In information and communication, average pay was 38.7% above the Warsaw average, while professional, scientific and technical activities were 29.7% above average. At the other end of the ranking, administrative and support services were 30.0% below average and accommodation and food service 27.7% below.

Among selected large cities, Warsaw did not have the highest average wage. Kraków was slightly ahead in July. At the same time, Warsaw, together with Poznań, had the lowest unemployment rate among Poland’s regional capitals.

The data cover enterprises employing more than nine people. The city comparison is illustrative and does not represent the entire labour market.

Industry and retail sales are growing

Sold industrial output in Warsaw reached PLN 15.817 billion at current prices in July. At constant prices it was 8.9% higher than a year earlier. From January through July, growth was 5.7%, while manufacturing expanded 5.8%.

Strong increases were recorded in textiles, beverages, furniture and computers, electronic and optical products. Production of clothing, electrical equipment and fabricated metal products declined.

Retail sales were 1.0% higher than in June and 5.4% higher than a year earlier. In the first seven months of the year they rose 4.4% y/y. Wholesale sales were even stronger on an annual basis, up 11.0% at trading enterprises, although they fell 9.5% from June.

Construction: weaker sales, stronger construction and assembly output

Sold construction output reached PLN 6.257 billion in July and was 5.4% lower than a year earlier. From the start of the year, the decline was 7.4%.

At the same time, construction and assembly output reached PLN 1.666 billion, 8.0% higher than in July 2025. It fell 12.0% from June, while over the first seven months it increased by 3.3% y/y.

Housing: a very strong July did not make up for a weaker first half

In July, 1,794 homes were completed, 41.3% more than a year earlier. This was one of the strongest positive signals in the month’s data.

The year-to-date picture is weaker. From January through July, 8,661 homes were completed, 9.5% fewer than in the same period of 2025. Construction started on 7,971 homes, virtually unchanged year on year, while the number covered by permits or project notifications rose 10.1% to 9,271.

Business registrations keep rising: more than 610,000 REGON entities

At the end of July, 610,440 national-economy entities were registered in Warsaw. That was 1,517 more than a month earlier and 20,822, or 3.5%, more than a year earlier. The capital accounted for 55% of all entities registered in the Mazowieckie region.

In July, 3,292 new entities were entered into REGON, 4.6% more than in June, while 1,641 businesses were removed. New commercial-company registrations increased particularly quickly, by 13.2% m/m, and limited liability companies by 13.3%.

At the end of July, 78,783 entities had suspended operations, 2.8% more than a month earlier. The vast majority were sole proprietors.

What do the July figures show?

Warsaw’s economy does not look as if it is in a broad slowdown. Industry, retail sales, wages and the number of businesses are growing, while July also brought a strong increase in housing completions. The labour market, however, is clearly cooler than a year ago: employment is lower, unemployment is higher, and more people are competing for each vacancy.

The most accurate description is an economy operating at a high level of activity with weaker demand for workers. The key question for the coming months is whether the decline in employment stops and whether growth in production and sales begins to translate into more new jobs.

More on nationwide wage data: Wages in July 2026: average pay rose to PLN 9,509 and Half of employees earn no more than PLN 7,530 gross.

Source: Statistical Office in Warsaw, “Statystyka Warszawy 7/2026”. Poland Insight analysis based on Statistics Poland data. Wage, employment, industry, construction and trade data cover enterprises employing more than nine people.