The asymmetric units of the title compounds, trans-di-aqua-(3-benzyl-1,3,5,8,12-penta-aza-cyclo-tetra-decane-κ4 N 1,N 5,N 8,N 12)copper(II) isophthalate monohydrate, [Cu(C16H29N5)(H2O)2](C8H4O4)·H2O, (I), and trans-di-aqua-[3-(pyridin-3-ylmeth-yl)-1,3,5,8,12-penta-aza-cyclo-tetra-decane-κ4 N 1,N 5,N 8,N 12]copper(II) iso-phthalate 0.9-hydrate, [Cu(C15H28N6)(H2O)2](C8H4O4)·0.9H2O, (II) consist of one di-aqua macrocyclic cation, one di-carboxyl-ate anion and uncoordinated water mol-ecule(s). In each compound, the metal ion is coordinated by the four secondary N atoms of the macrocyclic ligand and the mutually trans O atoms of the water mol-ecules in a tetra-gonally distorted octa-hedral geometry. The average equatorial Cu-N bond lengths are significantly shorter than the average axial Cu-O bond lengths [2.020 (9) versus 2.495 (12) Å and 2.015 (4) versus 2.507 (7) Å for (I) and (II), respectively]. The coordinated macrocyclic ligand in the cations of both compounds adopts the most energetically favorable trans-III conformation. In the crystals, the complex cations and counter-anions are connected via hydrogen-bonding inter-actions between the N-H groups of the macrocycles and the O-H groups of coordinated water mol-ecules as the proton donors and the O atoms of the carboxyl-ate as the proton acceptors. Additionally, as a result of O-H⋯O hydrogen bonding with the coordinated and water mol-ecules of crystallization, the isophthalate dianions form layers lying parallel to the (01) and (100) planes in (I) and (II), respectively.