The purpose of this study is to explore the most important findings of the empirical research conducted amongst local governments of settlements in Hungary, in order to perform a comprehensive analysis on their practices and methods regarding planning. The primary research was conducted in the spring of 2013, with respondent local governments answering relevant questions by submitting a selfadministered questionnaire. The main purpose of the questionnaire survey was to find out whether the involved parties perform actual formal strategic and operative planning activities, and what kind of management planning methods – solutions already working and widespread in the business sector – they apply within the process of planning. In this study, we attempt to conduct a comprehensive analysis on modern planning systems and to appoint the fields that need to be improved, through the results of the questionnaire survey and our own experiences.