Electromagnetic flowmeters can be used to measure all electrically conductive liquids (> 5 µS/cm) with or without solids, e.g. water, wastewater, sludge, slurries, pastes, acids, alkalis, juices, fruit pulp, etc.

In the industrial environment, sectors that utilize this measuring principle include: water/wastewater, chemicals, pharmaceuticals, pulp and paper, foodstuffs, etc. Electromagnetic flowmeters are even robust enough to be used in mining.

The third most common flowmeter behind differential pressure and positive displacement flow meters, is the magnetic flow meter, also technically an electromagnetic flow meter or more commonly just called a mag meter. A magnetic field is applied to the metering tube, which results in a potential difference proportional to the flow velocity perpendicular to the flux lines. The physical principle at work is electromagnetic induction. The magnetic flow meter requires a conducting fluid, for example, water that contains ions, and an electrical insulating pipe surface, for example, a rubber-lined steel tube.

Usually electrochemical and other effects at the electrodes make the potential difference drift up and down, making it hard to determine the fluid flow induced potential difference. To mitigate this, the magnetic field is constantly reversed, cancelling out the static potential difference. This however impedes the use of permanent magnets for magnetic flowmeters.