A simplified fractal method was proposed in the present study to indirectly estimate soil water retention characteristics based on soil clay content. Measured particle-size distribution and water retention characteristics of 578 samples were used to evaluate the predictive capability of this method. Results indicated that root mean squared errors of volumetric water content range from 0.027 to 0.076 cm³/cm³, which is slightly better than the prediction based on full particle-size distribution data.