EN
(Title in Hungarian - 'A monocentrikus terszerkezet kialakulasanak okai es a policentrikus teruletfejlesztes jovokepe: kulonbsegek es hasonlosagok Franciaorszag es Magyarorszag teruleti tervezeseben'). Although France and Hungary are completely different regarding their historical evolution with respect to the past 150 years, they share an inherited monocentric spatial structure. Whereas efforts to promote economic and political centralization can be traced back to the 18th and 19th centuries, the recognition of the drawbacks originating from monocentric spatial structures and the designation of growth poles were achieved in the 1950s and 1960s. Moreover, the evaluation of the results of the spatial planning policies took place at the end of the 20th century. Whether or not a change has been achieved is reflected in the fact that the planning policies formulated at the beginning of the 21st century are targeted at eliminating monocentric spatial structures and reducing the dominance of Paris in France and that of Budapest in Hungary. The goal of this paper is to draw a parallel between the spatial planning policies of France and Hungary and analyse their differences and similarities. In what follows the author discusses the following: -The historical background to monocentric spatial structures, -The notion of growth poles, which has been created to enhance a balanced regional development and is now used in practice, - The future perspectives of planning policies. It is unavoidable to discuss the historical background of the monocentric spatial structures, to analyse the growth pole concepts for a balanced regional development and the future perspectives of the planning policies.