Municipal Planning in a mixed economy is subjected to two sets of restrictions: Those caused by the character of the politicoeconomic system and those arising from the relationship between the central and the municipal government. Planning methods need to take these restrictions into explicit consideration if they are to be useful. This paper discusses the first set of restrictions in connection with the analysis of economic planning in France and Sweden. The ‘degree of plannedness' (manner and extent of planning) is related to the extent of governmental control with regard to the plan itself, its construction, and its implementation. The second set of restrictions is either of legal and ‘regulatory’ nature or defined by the economic relationship between the central and the local government. Thus municipal plans in a mixed economy become a flexible guide to municipal policymaking rather than a control instrument over municipal development.