Up to the World War II the main occupation of the inhabitants was agriculture which was conducted in accordance with local sharecroppers or tenants who worked the land of large landowners from Venice or Padua.

Nowadays, the industries present within the municipal area of Pianiga are mostly engaged in building, metalworking and woodworking and in the production of shoes and relevant accessories.

Economic development has generated a clear environmental transformation: the reduction of large tracts of cultivated fields corresponded to an increase in built-up areas; Pianiga got the appearance of a residential centre while productive activities have been located in the closer precincts for example at Cazzago owing to the proximity of the rail station and highway exit and Mellaredo which is crossed by the state road connecting Padua to Treviso.

Rivale is the least densely populated locality of the entire municipality, though, thanks to the establishment of a number of medium and large businesses, a high level of employment is available.

The territory, which until a few years ago was used exclusively for farming, still enough recently was showing several examples of different types of country cottages, from mansions to noble villas.