Water jet thruster, which is a marine system that creates a jet of water for propulsion, has several advantages such as low noise, good anti-cavitation characteristics and maneuvering characteristics. The reaction thrust characteristics of water jet for conical nozzles directly determine the speed of autonomous underwater vehicles (AUV). Theoretical, numerical and experimental studies have been carried out to investigate the effects of the nozzle geometries as well as inlet conditions on the reaction thrust of water jet in this paper. The experimental results show that: 1) the reaction thrust is proportional to inlet pressure, the square of flow rate and 2/3 power exponent of input power; 2) the diameter of cylinder column for conical nozzle has great influence on the reaction thrust characteristics; 3) the best values of the half cone angle and the cylinder column length exist to make the reaction thrust coefficient to reach the maximum under the same inlet conditions. Those provide a basis for nozzles design and have significant value, especially for developing high performance and efficiency water jet propulsion unit.