This paper investigated farmers’ self-stated adoption motives and the perceived effectiveness of agri-environmental measures in Finland. The measures were classified into ten distinct categories according to their prescriptions. The adoption motives were related to contextual factors, production factors and perceived effectiveness of the measures, while effectiveness was further related to land use, input use and the final impacts. The results indicate that the adoption motivations and the perceived effectiveness of the measures are related to their prescriptions: measures targeting the same problem with different prescriptions fit the aims and farming strategies of different farmers.