The study examines the nature and performance of watershed development institutions in India. Improving productivity and incomes in rainfed areas, which have much poverty, is a major challenge in India, and a huge initiative through which this is pursued is Watershed Development (WSD) programs which are massively funded by the Government of India, state governments and external donors. In watershed development, combining scientific approaches with community participation and knowledge is a major problem and requires effective institutions, which is a major weakness. The study examines the design and performance of watershed development institutions using new institutional economics, and management theory of governance. It analyzes data collected in a primary survey of 18 watershed institutions and 542 beneficiary households in Andhra Pradesh. The results identify a number of features including rationalities and institutional characteristics closely related to performance, and this could add to new institutional economics theory as well as the better design of institutions.