The asymmetric unit of the title compound, C44H38N8 2+·4I−·4H2O, comprises two halves of non-equivalent cations of 5,10,15,20-tetra­kis­(1-methyl­pyridinium)porphyrin (with the full mol­ecule of each completed by the application of inversion symmetry), four charge balancing iodide anions and four water mol­ecules of crystallization (two water mol­ecules are fully occupied and four mol­ecules have a site occupancy of 50%). The porphyrin cations are arranged into supramolecular columns parallel to the b axis, mediated by π–π [centroid–centroid distance = 3.762 (4) Å] and C—H⋯π supra­molecular inter­actions [C⋯centroid distance = 3.522 (7) Å, C—H⋯centroid = 128°], leading to the formation of columns parallel to the b axis. The close packing leads to the presence of a one-dimensional channel filled with partially occupied water mol­ecules engaged in O—H⋯O and O—H⋯I hydrogen bonds