Background. An increasing diversity of public, voluntary sector and private providers offer services for the mentally ill in the ongoing process of psychiatric reform. Good service description is one important prerequisite for mental health service research. Aims 1) To describe service provision for the mentally ill in five European centres using the European Service Mapping Schedule (ESMS); and 2) to discuss the use of the instrument in describing service provision. Methods. All services providing care for people with severe mental illness in five European catchment areas (in Amsterdam, the Netherlands; Copenhagen, Denmark; London, UK; Santander, Spain; Verona, Italy) were identified through various sources. The identified services were classified, and service provision was quantified in accordance with the ESMS manual. Descriptive information was obtained. Results. We identified from 10 to 45 different services for catchment areas of between 50,000 (Copenhagen) and 560,000 (Santander) population run by three to 16 providers. They varied in aims, staffing and functioning. Hospital and non-hospital residential services, community-based services, and social support agencies were available in all sites. There was substantial variation across centres in the range, number and activities of services. Collecting comparable data sets on all service types, particularly for day and structured activity services and outpatient and community services required substantial effort. Conclusion. Operationalised description of mental health services across Europe is possible but requires further refinement.