Warsaw's kerb only charges on weekdays, 08:00–20:00, so a Saturday or Sunday visit parks free on the street. On a weekday, skip paying and the 300 zł additional charge usually arrives by camera car.
My plan: pay by app on the kerb for a few hours, or use an underground car park by the Old Town for longer. For a whole day, I'd leave the car at a metro P+R with a 24-hour ticket.
Parking in Warsaw: Weekdays pay, weekends don't, and the Old Town is walking only
Low-emission zones in Europe: Strefa Czystego Transportu Warszawa
- Foreign plates
- Nothing to do. There is no registration, no portal and no account — Warsaw has no equivalent of the Kraków procedure, and the city states that the rules are the same for residents, commuters and tourists alike. Because enforcement reads the Polish vehicle register, a foreign plate cannot be checked automatically at all: the system flags it for a manual document check by the municipal guard. Carry the registration document showing the year of first registration or the Euro class, because that is the only thing an officer can check against.
- When
- 24 hours a day, 7 days a week
- Fine
- Up to 500 zł under art. 96c of the offences code — złoty, not euro, which several aggregator sites get wrong. Any vehicle may also enter on four days per calendar year without meeting the standard, with no notification required; a fine is due from the fifth time.
- EV
- Battery electric and hydrogen: allowed, and unlike Kraków there is nothing to register first.
The windscreen sticker is optional — the city's own headline is "you may, but you need not" — and a Kraków sticker does not authorise entry here. Enforcement has been close to nominal so far: no fines were issued in the zone's first full year, and as of March 2026 the road authority said camera data was being collected for statistics rather than penalties. The rule is binding all the same; the leniency is operational, not legal.
1. Pay weekdays 08:00–20:00, nothing else
The paid zone (SPPN, strefa płatnego parkowania niestrzeżonego) charges Monday to Friday, 08:00–20:00. Saturday and Sunday are free, and so are 2 May, 24 December and 31 December. The zone covers Śródmieście and parts of six neighbouring districts, and it grew again on 7 September 2026.
2. Do the sum before you pick the kerb
The kerb is 4.50 zł for the first hour, 5.40 zł for the second, 6.40 zł for the third, then 4.50 zł an hour. Three hours is 16.30 zł. A full 12-hour weekday is 56.80 zł, which is less than the 70 zł day cap at Złote Tarasy. The minimum is 0.50 zł, about ten minutes.
3. Pay in an app, not at the meter
ZDM lists five apps: AnyPark, CityParkApp, Flowbird, moBILET and SkyCash. With an app you don't display anything. The meters take cards and coins but give no change. Don't skip it: nine camera cars read plates, and the additional charge is 300 zł, or 200 zł if paid within 14 days.
4. Park under the Old Town, then walk
The Old Town, New Town and Castle Square are closed to traffic, so you can't drive to the door. The city's Plac Krasińskich car park is a ten-minute walk away: 8 zł an hour, 80 zł a day, open 24 hours, 2.2 m roof. Parking Plac Powstańców reads your plate at the gate: 7.50 zł an hour, at most 65 zł between 08:00 and 19:00, 90 zł for 24 hours.
5. Check the clean transport zone
The city centre has been a clean transport zone (SCT) since 1 July 2024. Since 1 January 2026 a petrol car passes if it's Euro 3 or built in 2000 or later. A diesel passes at Euro 5 or 2009. A foreign plate registers nothing. Any car gets four days a year in the zone even if it fails, and the fine after that is up to 500 zł. Carry the registration document; it's the only thing a guard can check.
On a weekday for more than three hours, I'd pick a car park, not the kerb.
Car parks worth knowing
| Car park | Price | EV |
|---|---|---|
| Plac Krasińskich (city-owned)Under plac Krasińskich by the Supreme Court, a ten-minute walk to the Old Town; open 24 hours; run by City Parking Group | 8 zł an hour, 80 zł a day, month 840 zł. 407 spaces on two levels, height 2.2 m. | Not published. |
| Plac Powstańców WarszawyPlac Powstańców Warszawy, Śródmieście; opened March 2025; plate recognition at the gate, no ticket; open 24 hours | 7.50 zł an hour; at most 65 zł between 08:00 and 19:00, 90 zł for 24 hours. 420 spaces; height not published. | 8 chargers; price not published. |
| Złote Tarasy (Interparking)ul. Złota 59, next to Warszawa Centralna station; entrances from Złota, Emilii Plater and al. Jana Pawła II; open 24 hours | 6 zł an hour, 70 zł for 24 hours; the charge restarts after 24 hours. Height: the mall says 2.0 m, Interparking 2.1 m, so I'd count on 2.0 m. | Two GARO chargers on level −3, DC up to 50 kW and AC up to 22 kW; price not published. |
| Waryńskiego (city-owned)Under ul. Waryńskiego near Politechnika metro, entry from ul. Polna side; open 24 hours; City Parking Group | 8 zł an hour, 80 zł a day. 130 spaces, height 2.2 m. | Not published. |
The cheapest way to park, by how long you stay
| If you stay | Cheapest | Cost | Watch out |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2 hours in the centre | P+R Metro Młociny (and 14 others) | Free | Free only with a valid 24-hour, 3-day or weekend ZTM ticket (or a 30/90-day pass); without one it's 150 zł, 250 zł if paid later. Open 04:30–02:30; overnight only from Saturday 02:31 to Monday 04:29. |
| …and the cheapest central garage | Złote Tarasy (Interparking) | 12 zł ≈ €2.7 | height 2.00 m |
| …and the kerb, for comparison | Kerb, SPPN paid zone | 9.90 zł ≈ €2.3 | One rate across the zone. Weekends, 2 May, 24 and 31 December are free. Not paying is 300 zł, 200 zł within 14 days; ZDM's FAQ says 14 days, the city's 19115 service has said 7, so pay fast. |
| A full day (10 h) | P+R Metro Młociny (and 14 others) | Free | Free only with a valid 24-hour, 3-day or weekend ZTM ticket (or a 30/90-day pass); without one it's 150 zł, 250 zł if paid later. Open 04:30–02:30; overnight only from Saturday 02:31 to Monday 04:29. |
| …and the cheapest central garage | Złote Tarasy (Interparking) | 60 zł ≈ €13.7 | height 2.00 m |
| …and the kerb, for comparison | Kerb, SPPN paid zone | 47.80 zł ≈ €11.0 | One rate across the zone. Weekends, 2 May, 24 and 31 December are free. Not paying is 300 zł, 200 zł within 14 days; ZDM's FAQ says 14 days, the city's 19115 service has said 7, so pay fast. |
| 24 hours | Złote Tarasy (Interparking) | 70 zł ≈ €16.0 | height 2.00 m |
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Towed in Warsaw: Ring 986, get the paper, then find the car
1. Ring the municipal guard first
Call 986, the Straż Miejska (municipal guard) line, 24 hours. Give the plate, the make and where you left the car. ZDM's parking office is on 22 55 89 261, weekdays 08:00–14:00.
2. Get the release paper before the car
The guard or police officer who ordered the tow issues the release permit (zezwolenie). Bring your ID and the registration document or rental contract. The city doesn't publish the pound addresses; the guard tells you where the car is.
3. Budget 814 zł for one day
In 2026 a tow is 749 zł and storage 65 zł a day for a car up to 3.5 tonnes. One day and you're at 814 zł, before any fine. You pay ZDM by transfer or at its machines at ul. Chmielna 120.
The city doesn't hide the price. I'd take that as a warning.
If your car has disappeared
- Who took it
- The Straż Miejska (municipal guard) or the police order the tow; ZDM, the city roads authority, carries it out and collects the fees. The release permit comes from whoever ordered it
- Phone
- Straż Miejska, 24 hours: was the car towed, and where?: 986
ZDM parking department, weekdays 08:00–14:00: 22 55 89 261
ZDM collections (fees), weekdays 08:00–15:00: 22 55 89 545 - Collect it at
- The city does not publish the pound addresses; the guard or police tells you which car park holds the car. The permit comes from the guard's district office (Śródmieście is division I); headquarters Straż Miejska, ul. Młynarska 43/45. Fees can be paid at ZDM, ul. Chmielna 120.
- Hours
- The 986 line runs 24 hours. ZDM's payment machines at ul. Chmielna 120 are open weekdays 07:30–15:30; pound hours are not published.
- What it costs
- 2026, cars up to 3.5 t: tow 749 zł, storage 65 zł a day (2025: 716 and 62). One day comes to 814 zł before any fine.
- Bring
- An identity document and the document that entitles you to use the car (registration certificate; for a hire car, the rental contract). The guard says the mObywatel app's vehicle data is not accepted.
EV charging in Warsaw: Free kerb only for Polish green plates
1. Don't count on free street parking
A fully electric car parks free in the SPPN. But the check runs through the Polish vehicle register, and a Polish EV shows a green plate. Warsaw says nothing about foreign EVs. I'd pay, because the inspector can't see your car is electric.
2. Charge at Złote Tarasy
Złote Tarasy car park has two GARO chargers on level −3, each with DC up to 50 kW and AC up to 22 kW. Parking is 6 zł an hour. The kWh price isn't published.
3. Or plug in at Plac Powstańców
The underground car park on Plac Powstańców Warszawy lists 8 chargers. Price not published either, so read the screen first.
Where to charge
- Złote Tarasy — two fast chargers — Złote Tarasy car park, level −3. Two GARO QC45 posts, each DC up to 50 kW and AC up to 22 kW. Parking 6 zł an hour, 70 zł for 24 hours; the kWh price is not published
- Plac Powstańców car park — 8 chargers — Parking Plac Powstańców. The operator lists 8 charging stations; power and price not published
- Free kerb parking for EVs — Polish plates — The whole SPPN paid zone. Battery-electric cars park free; hybrids and hydrogen don't. The check is by the Polish green plate and the national register; ZDM says nothing about foreign-registered EVs, so I'd pay
Free parking in Warsaw: Weekends, and a P+R with a transport ticket
1. Park on a Saturday or Sunday
The whole paid zone is free at weekends and after 20:00 on weekdays. A Saturday in the centre costs nothing on the street.
2. Use P+R with a 24-hour ticket
The city's 15 P+R car parks are free with a valid 24-hour, 3-day or weekend ZTM ticket. Without one it's 150 zł, or 250 zł if paid later. P+R Młociny at the north end of metro line M1 is the one I'd use; P+R Wilanowska is the southern twin.
3. Leave before 02:30 on weekdays
P+R is open 04:30–02:30. From Saturday 02:31 to Monday 04:29 you may stay overnight. One hotel I found says on its own site that it has free spaces: Warsaw Plaza Hotel in Mokotów, with 101 free spaces around the building.
Every price on this page was checked on 5 October 2026.
Free or nearly-free spots
Weekends and evenings on the Warsaw kerb
The paid zone charges only Monday to Friday 08:00–20:00. Saturday, Sunday, weekday evenings, 2 May, 24 and 31 December are free.
P+R with a 24-hour ticket
Fifteen P+R car parks are free with a valid 24-hour, 3-day or weekend ZTM ticket. P+R Młociny is at the north end of metro M1, P+R Wilanowska near the south end.
Hotels with free parking
- Warsaw Plaza Hotel — Łączyny 5, 02-820 Warszawa Map. Its own parking page says "101 free parking spaces around the building". The 65 garage spaces cost 8 zł an hour or 65 zł a day. Mokotów, south of the centre; no charging mentioned
⚠ The small print on 'free' parking
- The Old Town, New Town and Castle Square are closed to traffic (sign B-1, no entry in either direction), according to Parking.pl. Park outside and walk.
- Nowy Świat and Krakowskie Przedmieście have closed to cars on weekends in the warm season (in 2024: to the end of October). The 2026 timetable was not on the city's pages I could reach.
- Nine ZDM camera cars check the paid zone by number plate. A foreign plate gets the 300 zł notice like any other; ZDM does not publish how it pursues foreign cars.
- Clean transport zone (SCT) since 1 July 2024, about 7% of the city. A foreign plate needs no registration, and stickers from Kraków or elsewhere are not valid. Fines have been rare so far, but the 500 zł fine is law.
- Coming from Germany on the A2, the concession stretch to Konin has toll plazas: from 11 March 2026 a car pays 40 zł per section on Nowy Tomyśl–Konin, 120 zł for the three, according to Interia. The state-run motorways, including Konin–Stryków, have been free for cars since 1 July 2023.
Take these places with you
Every place on this page as a file you can keep — car parks with their prices, the free and park-and-ride spots, the chargers and the pound.