Th e diversifi ed level of agricultural development and directions of evolution of rural areas in the individual EU countries results in complex and diversifi ed problems for the agricultural policy. Th at was a basic reason of giving a relatively great freedom to the individual member states to choose measures within the individual axes of the Rural Development Programmes. Th e allocation of expenses to the individual measures Member States should ensure that synergies among the economic, environmental and social aspects and, by assumption, it is supposed to refl ect the priorities of rural development. Th e analysis of the allocation of expenses within the national rural development programmes will indicate similarities and diff erences of the use of the CAP support in the regional aspect. Th e main goal of the paper was to determine the priorities of rural development in the individual EU member states. As results from the analysis the specifi c character of the individual programmes corresponded to the level of development of the individual countries and the needs of the agribusiness and rural areas resulting from that level. Th e diversifi cation concerning the directions of use of the assets from the European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development resulted from the diff erent wealth of the societies and rural communities in the individual countries.