Considering the influence of stability, accuracy, sediment concentration and temperature variation on the reliability of water measuring equipment, a comprehensive evaluation index system was established .A field test was performed in Tang Laiqu channel of the Yellow River irrigation district of Ningxia, which would be used to evaluate the five types of equipment in summer autumn irrigation and winter irrigation water period. The results showed that: the sediment of the irrigation period had little influence on the precision of the newly installed water measuring equipment, and the temperature change was not big enough to affect the precision of the equipment; the equipment based on ultrasonic principle was not suitable for the channel application with large sediment content; the accuracy of intelligent measurement system in open channel flow measurement system with electromagnetic method and ultrasonic principle was high, but the stability was insufficient; the non-contact open channel radar flow gauge had the best reliability, and the comprehensive uncertainty of the low water level reached 8.87% (affected by the extreme water level), the middle water level reached 2.87%, and the high water level reached 4.68%. The study can provide reference for the equipment comparison and selection in different flow level channels in the yellow irrigation area.