This working paper analyses the extent and gravity of the social exclusion phenomenon in Spain’s Autonomous Communities, and the public policies deployed to combat its effects between 1995 and 2001. The pages that follow present the results of a study pursuing this objective, which looks at the presence on the ground of the various factors generating exclusion, identifying the high-risk situations and potential exclusion processes in each Autonomous Community. The closing section presents an analysis of these findings in comparative terms.