What Irrometer Company does

Irrometer Company is a privately held manufacturer founded in 1951 in Riverside, California, that designs, produces, and sells soil water measurement, control, and sampling instruments used to schedule irrigation. The company's core product line rests on two sensor technologies: IRROMETER tensiometers, which directly measure soil water tension via a ceramic tip and mechanical gauge or transducer, and the patented WATERMARK granular matrix sensor (developed by Glen Larson in 1978), which electronically reads electrical resistance in a granular matrix calibrated to tensiometer-equivalent values. These sensors are characterized by permanent in-ground installation, no site-specific calibration, and 5+ year maintenance-free lifespans.

The company's portfolio extends beyond sensors into data collection and control. The IRROcloud IC-10 is a cloud-based monitor using LTE-M cellular connectivity with 4+ year battery life, frost alerting via SMS, and API access; the WATERMARK Monitor (900M) is a handheld/field data logger; the IRROmesh 975 is a wireless mesh sensor network; the SSAT is a soil solution access tube for nutrient sampling; and the WATERswitch is an EPA WaterSense-certified automated irrigation controller. Manufacturing is conducted at an ISO 9001:2015-certified facility in Riverside. The company sells exclusively through a global channel — regional distributors, local dealers, online resellers, OEM partners, and agricultural consultants — reaching customers in 100+ countries across six continents.

Commercially, Irrometer operates as a hardware-led business with no publicly disclosed pricing or revenue figures. Primary customers are commercial and family agricultural growers (almonds, grapes, citrus, vegetables, field and specialty crops); secondary customers include university researchers and cooperative extension programs, plus landscape contractors, golf courses, parks, and residential property managers. The company maintains a network of long-standing research collaborations with university extension programs (University of Arkansas, Mississippi State, University of Nebraska, Alabama Cooperative Extension, University of Florida IFAS, and University of New Hampshire), whose published irrigation-scheduling resources effectively serve as reference content anchored to Irrometer hardware. The company is led by CEO Jeremy Sullivan and President Tom Penning, with no disclosed external funding, parent company, subsidiaries, or M&A activity.

Name

Irrometer Company

Legal name

Irrometer Company, Inc.

Website

https://irrometer.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1951

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Irrometer Company, founded in 1951 in Riverside, California, manufactures soil moisture sensors, data loggers, and cloud-based irrigation monitoring systems (IRROMETER, WATERMARK, IRROcloud) for commercial growers, university researchers, and landscape managers worldwide, sold through a global distributor and OEM network.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Agricultural Sensors

NAICS

Navigational, Measuring, Electromedical, and Control Instruments Manufacturing (3345)

SIC

Industrial Instruments For Measurement, Display, And Control (3823)

akta.pro primary industry

Irrigation Monitoring & Sensors (Flow/Pressure Meters, Soil Moisture, Water Quality Sensors) (AFABAHAJ)

akta.pro secondary industries

Irrigation Control & Automation (Controllers, Valves, Sensors, IoT) (AFAAACAF), Irrigation Automation & Controllers (Timers, Solenoids, Control Panels) (AFABAHAI), Controller/Timer & Smart Irrigation Setup (Wi‑Fi, Sensors) (HSAIAEAD)

Keywords

• Soil moisture sensors
• Irrigation scheduling
• Tensiometer instruments
• Precision agriculture
• Soil water monitoring

Headquarters

HQ city

Riverside

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Supply Chain, Operations, Personnel, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Soil Water Measurement Sensors: Sale of physical sensors including IRROMETER tensiometers and WATERMARK soil moisture sensors. Sensors have 5+ year expected lifespan and can be left permanently installed in soil.
2. Data Collection and Monitoring Systems: Sale of data loggers (900M Monitor), cellular monitors (IC-10), and handheld meters for reading and storing sensor data. Includes IRROcloud subscription for cloud data access.
3. SSAT Soil Solution Access Tubes: Soil water sampling tools for precise nutrient management, allowing extraction of soil water samples for laboratory analysis.
4. Landscape Control Products: WATERswitch control modules for automated irrigation control in landscape and garden applications, with EPA WaterSense certified controllers.

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Irrometer Company manufactures and sells soil water measurement instruments used worldwide for irrigation scheduling. Its portfolio centers on IRROMETER Tensiometers (direct-measurement mechanical soil water tension instruments) and WATERMARK Granular Matrix Sensors (electronic soil moisture sensors), complemented by data collection systems including the IRROcloud IC-10 cellular monitor, WATERMARK Monitor 900M handheld data logger, SSAT soil solution access tubes, WATERswitch irrigation control modules, and IRROmesh wireless sensor networks. Products serve commercial growers, university researchers, and landscape managers through a global dealer and distributor network.

Product overview

Irrometer Company offers a complete soil water measurement portfolio built around two core sensor technologies: IRROMETER Tensiometers (direct-measurement mechanical instruments) and WATERMARK Sensors (electronic granular matrix sensors). These are complemented by data collection solutions including the IRROcloud IC-10 (cloud-based LTE-M monitoring), WATERMARK Monitor 900M (data logger), and Handheld Watermark Meter (portable reader). Supporting products include the SSAT Soil Solution Access Tube for nutrient sampling, WATERswitch Control Module for automated irrigation control, and IRROmesh 975 wireless network system. Various adapter modules (voltage adapters, SDI-12 adapters) enable integration with third-party systems and data platforms.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• WATERMARK: Industry-standard soil moisture sensors using granular matrix sensor technology for measuring soil water tension.
• IRROcloud
• WATERswitch
• SSAT

Products and services

• IRROMETER Tensiometers Direct-measurement soil water tension instruments that act as artificial roots, using a ceramic tip to interact with soil and a mechanical gauge or transducer to read water tension in centibars. Designed for agricultural growers and researchers needing accurate, no-calibration soil moisture measurement for irrigation scheduling.
• WATERMARK Sensors (200SS) Granular matrix soil moisture sensors that read electronically by measuring electrical resistance within a precision-composed granular matrix, calibrated to tensiometer-equivalent centibar values. No maintenance required with 5+ year expected lifespan; permanently installed in soil. Used by agricultural growers and researchers.
• IRROcloud IC-10 Cloud-based monitoring system with LTE-M cellular connectivity for automated data collection from WATERMARK sensors. Features 4+ year battery life, easy setup with no configuration or calibration, frost alerting via SMS, and API access for system integration. Designed for growers of any size needing real-time field data access.
• WATERMARK Monitor (900M) Handheld or field data logger for reading WATERMARK sensors with on-board storage (8,192 records), 9V battery power with 9-12 month life, and data export via WaterGraph software. Used by agricultural growers, researchers, and consultants for portable data collection.
• Handheld Watermark Meter Portable meter for manual reading of WATERMARK sensors in the field. Designed for growers and researchers who need occasional spot readings without installing a permanent logger.
• SSAT Soil Solution Access Tube Soil water sampling tool for precise nutrient management, allowing extraction of soil water samples for laboratory analysis. Used by agricultural growers and crop advisors for nutrient management decisions.
• WATERswitch Control Module Irrigation control module for landscape management that automates irrigation based on soil moisture sensor readings. Available in AC (WS-AC) and DC (WS-DC) versions; EPA WaterSense certified. Designed for landscape contractors, golf courses, parks, and residential property managers.
• IRROmesh 975 Wireless mesh sensor network system for remote data collection from multiple sensors across a field. Designed for larger agricultural operations and research sites needing networked multi-point soil moisture monitoring.

Quantifiable outcome

• Research shows sensor-based irrigation scheduling reduced water use by 50% (Mississippi State University & University of Arkansas)
• +1 more outcomes

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

Yes

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration3 records

Feature5 records

Partnerships

Six partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• University of Arkansas Cooperative ExtensioncoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerLong-standing research partnership providing published resources on Watermark sensor preparation, testing, installation, and irrigation scheduling guidelines. Multiple extension publications (FSA57, FSA58, FSA59) developed for grower education.
• Mississippi State University ExtensioncoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerExtension partnership providing Watermark irrigation triggers, location selection guides, construction guides, and installation procedures. Research collaboration demonstrating 50% water use reduction and 51.3% improved water use efficiency.
• University of Nebraska ExtensioncoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerExtension partnership providing principles and operational characteristics documentation for Watermark sensors, soil water content and soil matric potential research, and participation in Nebraska Agricultural Water Management Network.
• Alabama Cooperative ExtensionminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerExtension partnership providing irrigation scheduling resources using soil water tension sensors for agricultural producers.
• University of Florida IFAS ExtensionminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerExtension partnership providing resources for using tensiometers for vegetable irrigation scheduling, particularly in Miami-Dade County production.
• University of New Hampshire Cooperative ExtensionminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerExtension partnership providing soil moisture sensor resources for smart irrigation decisions in regional agricultural applications.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Emerging players

• CropX Technologies: Provides soil-sensor-based irrigation management with a cloud analytics platform. Overlaps with IRROcloud on software-defined irrigation recommendations while differentiating through venture-backed product velocity and analytics depth; competes for the same smart-irrigation budgets.

Broad incumbents

• Rain Bird Corporation: Large irrigation equipment manufacturer whose smart controllers and soil moisture sensor integrations compete for landscape and turf irrigation budgets. A broader incumbent than Irrometer but addresses the same EPA WaterSense-style smart irrigation use case at greater scale.
• Toro Company: Major irrigation and turf equipment manufacturer offering moisture-sensor-based smart controllers (Toro Turf Guard, Lynx). Overlaps with Irrometer's landscape/turf management segment (WATERswitch) as a broader incumbent with stronger commercial sales motion.
• John Deere (Field & Irrigation Solutions): Through its precision agriculture stack (John Deere Operations Center, Field Connect) Deere integrates soil moisture sensing into broader farm management platforms. Represents the platform-level incumbent that could absorb or pressure standalone sensor specialists like Irrometer.

Direct peers

• Campbell Scientific: Designs and manufactures environmental measurement data loggers and sensors for research, agriculture, and water resources. Comparable to Irrometer's data acquisition hardware (900M, IC-10) and overlapping with the researcher/university extension customer segment.
• Sentek Technologies: Manufactures soil moisture and salinity sensors (e.g., Drill & Drop, EnviroSCAN) widely used in research and agriculture. Directly comparable to Irrometer's WATERMARK and IRROMETER product lines in measurement physics, customer base (growers and researchers), and global distribution model.
• Acclima: Produces soil moisture, temperature, and EC sensors for irrigation control and turf management. Comparable to Irrometer's residential/landscape and turf/golf course segments (WATERswitch line) and pursues EPA WaterSense-aligned markets.
• AquaSpy: Manufacturer of soil moisture probes (CROP, Profile probes) used for irrigation scheduling in row crops and horticulture. Competes with Irrometer on sensor-based irrigation in commercial agriculture, with overlapping distribution through ag-dealer networks.
• Davis Instruments: Makes weather stations and add-on soil moisture/temperature stations used by growers and researchers. Comparable to Irrometer on field-deployed measurement hardware, data logging, and use by extension-style customers for irrigation scheduling.
• Meter Group: Direct competitor manufacturing soil moisture sensors (TEROS, EC-5, etc.) and environmental measurement instruments for research and precision agriculture. Both companies serve agricultural researchers and growers with similar dielectric and matric potential sensing technologies, overlapping on customer segments and irrigation-scheduling use cases.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/user/irrometer
• Xx.com/Irrometer

Compliance2 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Irrometer Company