Firstly, the article endeavors to define the vary concept of capitalism as wellas to catalogue studies of socio-economic systems contained in contemporary literature.Described are the key drivers of a free-market economy that provide thebasis for further classification. Having surveyed diverse models of capitalism, thepositions of individual states have been displayed. States classed within individualmodel groups have been then ranked vis-‡-vis their competitive factors. Theclassification and analyses have subsequently led to a more general recommendationin respect of the desirable direction of economic expansion in Poland.