It flows 400 kilometres (249 mi) eastward before ending in the Gavkhouni swamp, a seasonal salt lake, southeast of Isfahan (Esfahan) city.

The Zayandeh used to have significant flow all year long, unlike many of Iran's rivers which are seasonal, but today it runs dry due to water extraction before reaching the city of Esfahan.

Zayandeh River water gave life to the people of central Iran mainly in Isfahan and Yazd provinces.

In the 17th century, Baha al-Din al-Amili, a scholar and adviser to the Safavid dynasty, designed and built a system of canals (maadi), to distribute Zayandeh water to Isfahan's suburbs.

American archaeologists and historians of Persian art, Arthur Upham Pope and his wife Phyllis Ackerman are buried in a small mausoleum on the river bank.

80% of the Zayandeh's extracted water is used for agriculture, 10% for human consumption (drinking and domestic needs of a population of 4.5 million), 7% for industry (like the Zobahan-e-Esfahan and Foolad Mobarekeh steel companies and Isfahan's petrochemical, refinery and power plants) and 3% for other uses.

Poor planning and populist politics have led to years of mismanagement and overuse which resulted in seasonal dry-outs and ultimately caused the river to dry out completely before reaching Isfahan.

[citation needed] Zayandehroud River lost its permanent flow since 2006 and the people and farmers of this city faced a water shortage crisis.

In addition to the lack of water due to the lack of snow and rain, the main reasons for the drying up of Zayandehroud are related to human errors, which can be summarized in the following cases: Converting 180,000 hectares of natural resource pastures into gardens upstream of the Zayandehroud River in Chaharmahal and Bakhtiari province and Faridan region.