Abstract: Sprinkler irrigation is a water-saving irrigation mode with mature technology and wide application, which will have a broad prospect in popularization and application in the northern region. On the basis of the status and restrictive factors of irrigation development in water-short areas of northern China, comparative analyses of border irrigation, sprinkler irrigation, optimized permanent and semi-permanent sprinkler system were conducted by case studies. And the comparative indexes included investment, benefit, labor intensity etc. The results showed that compared with the investment of border irrigation, sprinkler irrigation reduced the investment by 77.85%, saved water by 56%, and saved water fee by 468.75 yuan per hectare. Compared with permanent sprinkler system and optimized permanent sprinkler system, semi-permanent sprinkler system decreased the cost by 70.62% and 48.86%, respectively, and the labor intensity of which was higher. Finally, the strategic countermeasures of future development of sprinkler irrigation were proposed in the view of increasing government investment, strengthening the unified management of sprinkler irrigation projects, reducing costs, strengthening technology research of sprinkler irrigation and the development and extension of large-scale sprinkler machine etc. This research can provide theoretical guidance for relieving water shortages in northern China, developing and expanding the sprinkler irrigation technology.