Poland's submission to Sweden was more apparent than real. The scale of the surrender should not be exaggerated: while some leading magnates such as Radziwitt, Opaliński, Koniecpolski and the future king, John Sobieski, went over to Sweden, the majority remained uncommitted. About thirty senators went into exile; others resisted, such as Jakub and Ludwik Weiher in Royal Prussia; many did nothing, waiting to see how the situation would develop. The Leszczyńskis, who blamed John Casimir for what they saw as a needless war and who appeared keen in July and August to secure his abdication, could not obtain satisfactory terms from Sweden. Lubomirski, long an opponent of John Casimir, also failed to reach agreement despite protracted negotiations during the siege of Cracow.

Poland had been easy to conquer; with an army of 36,000 it might not prove easy to hold. The victory was by no means as complete as it seemed: Charles X had sought above all to seize Royal Prussia, but proved unable to take Putzig and Marienburg, which held out until the spring, or Danzig, which he never took. The loyalty of those who had already accepted Swedish overlordship, many of them reluctantly, depended on Charles's behaviour. Faith in Sweden was rapidly disappointed, however.