Water management is crucial for the economic viability and environmental impact of direct air capture (DAC) technologies. Water plays a significant role in various DAC processes, including absorption, adsorption, and electrochemical techniques, affecting material performance, regeneration processes, and overall capture efficiency. The high energy intensity associated with water management necessitates heat recovery techniques to reduce energy consumption and costs. The authors discuss five DAC technologies—temperature swing absorption, electrochemistry, temperature swing adsorption, moisture swing adsorption, and mineralization—and highlight the impact of water on each. They propose several water-management strategies, including front-end and back-end approaches, that integrate heat recovery to enhance efficiency and reduce energy penalties. Front-end strategies involve dehydrating the feed stream before it reaches the adsorbent bed, using methods like partial and full dehydration. Heat integration can significantly reduce the energy demand for regeneration by leveraging the sorption enthalpy from the adsorption step. Back-end approaches, such as direct-contact steaming and mechanical vapor compression (MVC), use heat integration to recover energy from the CO₂ desorption step, reducing the energy penalty associated with water management. The authors emphasize the importance of considering variable climate conditions and water quality impacts in the development and deployment of water-management strategies. They also highlight the need for further research on the effects of water on electrochemical systems and the potential benefits of heat recovery techniques. In conclusion, effective water management and heat integration are essential for the success of DAC systems, and future research should focus on quantitatively evaluating these strategies in various environmental conditions and assessing water-quality impacts.Water management is crucial for the economic viability and environmental impact of direct air capture (DAC) technologies. Water plays a significant role in various DAC processes, including absorption, adsorption, and electrochemical techniques, affecting material performance, regeneration processes, and overall capture efficiency. The high energy intensity associated with water management necessitates heat recovery techniques to reduce energy consumption and costs. The authors discuss five DAC technologies—temperature swing absorption, electrochemistry, temperature swing adsorption, moisture swing adsorption, and mineralization—and highlight the impact of water on each. They propose several water-management strategies, including front-end and back-end approaches, that integrate heat recovery to enhance efficiency and reduce energy penalties. Front-end strategies involve dehydrating the feed stream before it reaches the adsorbent bed, using methods like partial and full dehydration. Heat integration can significantly reduce the energy demand for regeneration by leveraging the sorption enthalpy from the adsorption step. Back-end approaches, such as direct-contact steaming and mechanical vapor compression (MVC), use heat integration to recover energy from the CO₂ desorption step, reducing the energy penalty associated with water management. The authors emphasize the importance of considering variable climate conditions and water quality impacts in the development and deployment of water-management strategies. They also highlight the need for further research on the effects of water on electrochemical systems and the potential benefits of heat recovery techniques. In conclusion, effective water management and heat integration are essential for the success of DAC systems, and future research should focus on quantitatively evaluating these strategies in various environmental conditions and assessing water-quality impacts.