Poland | Facts & Information

Updated September 9, 2022 | Infoplease Staff
Infoplease has everything you need to know about Poland. Check out our country profile, full of essential information about Poland's geography, history, government, economy, population, culture, religion and languages. If that's not enough, click over to our collection of world maps and flags.

Facts & Figures

  • President: Andrzej Duda (2015)

    Prime Minister: Beata Szydlo (2015)

    Land area: 117,571 sq mi (304,509 sq km); total area: 120,728 sq mi (312,685 sq km)

    Population (2014 est.): 38,346,279 (growth rate: -0.11%); birth rate: 9.77/1000; infant mortality rate: 6.19/1000; life expectancy: 76.65

    Capital and largest city (2011 est.): Warsaw, 1.723 million

    Other large city: Krakow 756,000 (2011)

    Monetary unit: Zloty

    National name: Rzeczpospolita Polska

    Current government officials

    Language: Polish (official) 96.2%, Polish and non-Polish 2%, non-Polish 0.5%, unspecified 1.3% (2011 est.)

    Ethnicity/race: Polish 96.9%, German 0.2%, Silesian 1.1%, Ukrainian 0.1%, other and unspecified 1.7% (2011)

    Religions: Catholic 87.2% (includes Roman Catholic 86.9% and Greek Catholic, Armenian Catholic, and Byzantine-Slavic Catholic .3%), Orthodox 1.3% (almost all are Polish Autocephalous Orthodox), Protestant 0.4% (mainly Augsburg Evangelical and Pentacostal), other 0.4% (includes Jehovah's Witness, Buddhist, Hare Krishna, Gaudiya Vaishnavism, Muslim, Jewish, Mormon), unspecified 10.8% (2012)

    Literacy rate: 99.7% (2011 est.)

    Economic summary: GDP/PPP $814 billion (2013 est.); per capita $21,100. Real growth rate: 1.3%. Inflation: 1%. Unemployment:10.3%. Arable land: 35.49% (2011). Agriculture: potatoes, fruits, vegetables, wheat; poultry, eggs, pork, dairy. Labor force: 18.22 million (2013); agriculture 12.9%, industry 30.2%, services 57% (2010). Industries: machine building, iron and steel, coal mining, chemicals, shipbuilding, food processing, glass, beverages, textiles. Natural resources: coal, sulfur, copper, natural gas, silver, lead, salt, amber, arable land. Exports: $202.3 billion (2013 est.): machinery and transport equipment 37.8%, intermediate manufactured goods 23.7%, miscellaneous manufactured goods 17.1%, food and live animals 7.6% (2013). Imports: $207.4 billion (2013 est.): machinery and transport equipment 38%, intermediate manufactured goods 21%, chemicals 15%, minerals, fuels, lubricants, and related materials 9% (2011). Major trading partners: Germany, France, UK, Italy, Czech Republic, Netherlands, Russia, China (2012).

    Communications: Telephones: 6.125 million (2012); mobile cellular: 50.84 million (2012). Broadcast media: state-run public television operates 2 national channels supplemented by 16 regional channels and several niche channels; privately-owned entities operate several national TV broadcast networks and a number of special interest channels; large number of privately-owned channels broadcasting locally; roughly half of all households are linked to either satellite or cable TV systems providing access to foreign television networks; state-run public radio operates 5 national networks and 17 regional radio stations; 2 privately-owned national radio networks, several commercial stations broadcasting to multiple cities, and a large number of privately-owned local radio stations (2007). Internet Service Providers (ISPs):13.265 million (2012). Internet users:22.452 million (2009).

    Transportation: Railways: total: 19,428 km (2007). Highways: total: 412,035 km; paved: 280,719 km (includes 2,418 km of expressways); unpaved: 131,316 km (2012). Waterways: 3,997 km navigable rivers and canals (2009). Ports and terminals: Gdansk, Gdynia, Swinoujscie, Szczecin. Airports:126 (2013).

    International disputes: As a member state that forms part of the EU's external border, Poland has implemented the strict Schengen border rules to restrict illegal immigration and trade along its eastern borders with Belarus and Ukraine.

    Major sources and definitions

See also: