Calculators / Sprinklers
How much will a smart sprinkler controller save?
Put in how you water now and what water costs you. You get your yearly use, what a smart controller saves, and how fast it pays back.
Updated · How we check our numbers
What a smart controller saves
About 7,600 gallons a year
You water about 93,600 gallons a year. EPA's average saving for a weather-based controller would be 8% of that, about $46 a year at $6 per 1,000 gallons, paying back a $200 controller in 4.4 years.
- You water
- 93,600 gala year
- Saved
- 7,600 galEPA average
- Money
- $46a year
- Payback
- 4.4 years
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Estimate for planning only, not professional advice. Check the manufacturer’s instructions, your local code and a licensed professional before you buy, build or install. Use at your own risk. Terms.
Find each zone's flowA bucket test at the hose bib
a week = 6 zones × 20 min × 3 days × 10 gpm = 3,600 gal
a year = 3,600 × 26 weeks = 93,600 gal
saved = EPA's 7,600 gal
money = 7,600 ÷ 1,000 × $6 = $45.60
payback = $200 ÷ $45.60 = 4.4 years
Controllers
From the makers- Rachio 34, 6, 8, 12 or 16 zones · 2.4 or 5 GHzLabel not stated
Not stated on Rachio's pages
- Rain Bird ARC88 zones · 2.4 GHzWaterSense
“Meets EPA WaterSense Criteria, as certified by ICC-ES”
- Rain Bird ESP-ME34 to 22 (modules) zones · Add-on Wi-Fi moduleWaterSense
“WaterSense© certified when installed with Rain Bird WiFi Module”
- Orbit B-hyve XR8 or 16 zones · 2.4 or 5 GHz, BluetoothWaterSense
“EPA WaterSense label”
EPA doesn't give rebates, but many water utilities do for WaterSense labeled controllers. Check your water provider before you buy.
The savings come from the weather adjustment. Enter each zone's heads, soil, sun and slope in the app so it can work out run times; left on defaults it can water as much as your old timer.
Get a controller with at least 6 zones; a couple spare costs little.
How we work it out
yearly use = zones × minutes × days a week × weeks × gpm
EPA WaterSense says a labeled weather-based controller "can save an average home nearly 7,600 gallons of water annually", and that as much as half of landscape water is wasted to overwatering. EPA doesn't give a percentage, so we use its 7,600 gallons, and no more than half of what you water now.
EPA's bigger figure, up to 15,000 gallons, is for all WaterSense controllers, not just weather-based ones. A controller saves only if it's set up: tell it each zone's heads, soil, sun and slope.
Where the numbers come from
Guides
Sprinklers
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