Nowadays, France must deal at the same time with market’s globalization and European integration. The new context increases competition at every territorial scale, but concerns especially small and medium sized cities located away from mainstream exchanges. The creation of urban networks is one of the spatial strategies chosen by French cities, particularly in the Poitou-Charentes region where two of these networks have recently emerged: one of medium sized cities followed by one of small sized cities. The goal we pursue here is to describe these experiences in regional development, to discuss their theoretical basis and to assess their relevance in the French and European contexts. Among other things, we believe that urban networking will survive through jobs creation, not only spatial planning.