Hungary vs Poland

Compare PPP-adjusted average wages, long-term wage trends and consumer price levels using consistent OECD data.

Country A

Country B

Wage data: 2025 · Price data: 2024

Comparison Overview

Hungary

Average wage (2025)

$39,145

1-year change: +3.4%
5-year change: +18.8%

Overall price level (2024)

45.1 (United States = 100)

Poland's latest PPP-adjusted average wage is approximately 25.4% higher than Hungary's.

Poland

Average wage (2025)

$49,074

1-year change: +4.6%
5-year change: +16.4%

Overall price level (2024)

45.7 (United States = 100)

Poland has the higher latest average wage of the two, by 25.4% on a PPP-adjusted basis. Over five years Hungary shows the stronger change (+18.8% against +16.4%). Their overall price levels sit close together at 45.1 and 45.7 against the United States benchmark of 100, so consumer prices are broadly comparable between them. Both wage figures are for 2025 and the price levels for 2024, so the two economies are read at the same point in each series.

Wage History

See how PPP-adjusted average annual wages have changed in both economies.

PPP-adjusted annual wage (USD)

HungaryPoland

USD PPP, constant 2025 prices

Wage Key Facts

Metric	Hungary	Poland
Latest wage	$39,145	$49,074
Latest year	2025	2025
1-year change	+3.4%	+4.6%
5-year change	+18.8%	+16.4%
10-year change	+48.3%	+42.0%
Historical peak	$39,145	$49,074
Peak year	2025	2025
Change from peak	0.0%	0.0%

How the Wage Trends Compare

Current Position

Poland records the higher figure: $49,074 against $39,145, a gap of 25.4%. A difference of that size is one of the wider ones in this dataset, and it holds after the PPP adjustment has already removed price level differences between the two.

Both figures are for 2025, so this is a like-for-like comparison of the same year rather than of two different latest points.

Both use the same basis: PPP-adjusted US dollars at constant prices. That conversion strips out the price level differences between the two economies, which is what makes the two figures comparable at all — neither is a local-currency salary, and neither is what an employer in that country would write on a contract.

Recent Momentum

Poland had the stronger latest year (+4.6% against +3.4%).

Both moved up in the latest year, which leaves the ordering between them unchanged.

Widening the window to five years, the stronger of the two is Hungary: +18.8% against +16.4%.

For both economies the latest year points the same way as the five-year change, so the recent movement reads as continuation rather than a turn.

Long-Term Direction

Across ten years both series are up — +48.3% for Hungary and +42.0% for Poland. Over this horizon the two share a direction, and the difference between them is one of pace.

Both are at their historical peaks in the latest year, so neither series is currently below a previous high.

The long view and the recent one point differently here — the lower-paid of the two has been closing ground over the five-year window, so the current gap understates how the two have been moving relative to each other.

Consumer Price Level Comparison

Compare eight consumer price categories with the United States benchmark of 100.

United States = 100
Missing values are shown as -

All differences are shown in index points. United States = 100.

Category	Hungary	Poland	Difference (HUN − POL)	HUN vs U.S.	POL vs U.S.
Overall	45.1	45.7	−0.6	−54.9	−54.3
Food	81.6	74.5	+7.1	−18.4	−25.5
Clothing	76.4	91.2	−14.8	−23.6	−8.8
Housing	35.6	27.7	+7.9	−64.4	−72.3
Health	19.2	29.3	−10.1	−80.8	−70.7
Transport	84.4	81.9	+2.5	−15.6	−18.1
Recreation	55.7	58.1	−2.4	−44.3	−41.9
Restaurants & Accommodation	56.7	77.2	−20.5	−43.3	−22.8

Overall
Hungary45.1
Poland45.7
Difference−0.6
HUN vs U.S.−54.9
POL vs U.S.−54.3
Food
Hungary81.6
Poland74.5
Difference+7.1
HUN vs U.S.−18.4
POL vs U.S.−25.5
Clothing
Hungary76.4
Poland91.2
Difference−14.8
HUN vs U.S.−23.6
POL vs U.S.−8.8
Housing
Hungary35.6
Poland27.7
Difference+7.9
HUN vs U.S.−64.4
POL vs U.S.−72.3
Health
Hungary19.2
Poland29.3
Difference−10.1
HUN vs U.S.−80.8
POL vs U.S.−70.7
Transport
Hungary84.4
Poland81.9
Difference+2.5
HUN vs U.S.−15.6
POL vs U.S.−18.1
Recreation
Hungary55.7
Poland58.1
Difference−2.4
HUN vs U.S.−44.3
POL vs U.S.−41.9
Restaurants & Accommodation
Hungary56.7
Poland77.2
Difference−20.5
HUN vs U.S.−43.3
POL vs U.S.−22.8

Hungary and Poland in Detail

Current Wage Position

Hungary reports a PPP-adjusted average annual wage of $39,145 for 2025, and Poland $49,074 for 2025. That puts Poland ahead by 25.4%.

Both figures are PPP-adjusted: converted using purchasing power parities rather than market exchange rates, and expressed in constant prices so different years stay comparable.

This matters for reading the gap. A market-rate conversion would move with currency markets and would not reflect what the money buys in each economy. These figures are built to compare purchasing power, not to tell you what a currency transfer would be worth.

Recent Wage Momentum

In the latest reported year Hungary changed by +3.4% and Poland by +4.6%. A single year is a narrow window, so it is worth reading alongside the five-year figure rather than on its own.

Over five years, Hungary records the larger change at +18.8%, against +16.4% for Poland. That is the difference in how far each series has travelled over the medium term, in real PPP-adjusted terms.

Short-term and five-year movement point the same way for both economies, so neither is currently being pulled against its own medium-term direction.

Long-Term Wage Direction

Across ten years the changes are +48.3% for Hungary and +42.0% for Poland. This is the longest horizon the data covers, and it is the one least affected by any single year's movement.

Hungary reached its highest recorded value of $39,145 in 2025, and the latest figure sits 0.0% from that high.

Poland peaked at $49,074 in 2025, leaving its latest value 0.0% away from that point.

Both long-term series move the same way, so the difference between these two economies is one of degree over ten years rather than of direction.

Consumer Price Profile

Against the United States benchmark of 100, overall consumption sits at 45.1 in Hungary and 45.7 in Poland — effectively level.

The categories that separate them most are Restaurants & Accommodation (−20.5) and Clothing (−14.8).

Recreation is where they are nearest, at 55.7 and 58.1.

Across the categories with data, Poland is the more expensive of the two more often than not.

How to Interpret the Comparison

These are average wages, not median wages, and not take-home pay. An average is pulled by the whole distribution, so it does not describe a typical individual, occupation, city or employer in either economy.

The wage figures are already PPP-adjusted and in constant prices. They are not local-currency salaries and not amounts convertible at a market exchange rate.

The price levels are relative indices against United States = 100. They describe how price levels compare, not what a household actually spends.

Wages and price levels should not be combined into a verdict on which country is better. This page is for understanding how the two wage trends and price structures differ — nothing further follows from it.