This paper analyzes the effectiveness of urban water conservation strategies. In many parts of the country water agencies are facing growingly stressed water supply. Population growth, the increasing demand of water for environmental purposes and water quality impinge on the reliability of urban water supply. In the future, climate change will reduce snow precipitations and render rain patterns more erratic and difficult to capture, increasing the uncertainty about the consistency of water supply. Water efficiency has been the mantra for many water agencies, especially in the South West. Water conservation is the cheapest strategy to reduce per capita water usage and to delay investments in more complex and costly water management infrastructure. Water conservation strategies include subsidies for water saving devices, information campaigns, pricing schemes, and outdoor watering restrictions. Very often these strategies are implemented as a portfolio of measures. The commitment of the water agencies to conservation, however, is spotty, inconsistent, underfunded and fraught with institutional issues. Data is also scarce and the effectiveness of these measures is not well studied. The existing literature claims that price based strategies are more efficient than mandates, but does not measure their effectiveness in real settings. Southern California has been the test bed of many conservation measures and its water agencies have been working on improving urban water efficiency since the 80s. This research tests the effectiveness of market based conservation measures, subsidies and mandates directed to residential customers by water retailers and water wholesalers in Southern California. It concludes that the Southern California water conservation effort is small in terms of resources and effective only in case of an emergency. The per capita amount of rebates for water saving devices is too small to be significant and pricing strategies have been put in place only after an emergency for drought has been declared, in response of the decline of agencies’ revenues rather than as a water conservation strategy. Only water conservation mandates, changes in precipitations, changes of local economic indicators and the size of the water agency implementing the strategies affect residential per capita water usage significantly.