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The plant macrofossil records from three raised bogs from western and central Ireland and from Cumbria were compared to investigate variations in the character and timing of the fen-bog transition (FBT). Two modes of raised or ombrotrophic peat formation were recognized. In the first mode the transition develops through a sedge-fen stage directly to raised-bog lawn, maintaining a near surface water table throughout the FBT (Abbeyknockmoy Bog). The second mode is characterized by a switch from fen or reedswamp to a dry Eriophorum-dominated mire type, suggestive of low or unstable water tables (Mongan Bog and Bolton Fell Moss). Comparisons with the Holocene effective precipitation record suggest that the type of transition and its timing may be affected by the prevailing climate regime. All that is required for ombrotrophy is a separation of the growing peat surface from the influence of ground and surface waters. This separation may be achieved by rapid peat accumulation in a moist climate, the accumulation of decay-resistant Eriophorum vaginatum hummocks or by a lowering of the water table, leading to a ‘perched peat bed’. In the latter two cases, a ‘pseudo-raised bog’ community often persists, laying down highly humified peat, until increased oceanicity enables Sphagnum to dominate.