Social exclusion is a situation posing limitations to a particular individual or a group, or even disabling them to access public goods and social infrastructure and to acquire resources and income in a decent way. Unemployment is the situation when a part ofpeople who are able to work, look for a job and accept existing level of salaries, cannot find any employment. This phenomenon is seen the most clearly in eastern Poland, in the counties situated in the outskirts of Mazowieckie, Lubelskie, Swiqtokrzyskie and Podkarpackie voivodships. In turn, in best positions are the inhabitants of cities and their suburbs. When compared, differences of social exclusion and of development potential of rural areas show significant degree of spatial correlation of both phenomena. The areas of the highest unemployment are those of the lowest economic and infrastructural development indicator. Lower potential of development of these areas is an effect of lack of non-agricultural economic activities, which then translates into higher degree of social exclusion and poverty in theses areas.