Do soil moisture meters really work?
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Yes, they work, but they can be pretty crappy and they're often not that useful.
The cheapest ones have no batteries and a big metal spike. They operate on the same principle as a potato battery, where your soil takes the place of the potato. They measure soil conductivity more than soil moisture -- moist salty soil will show as wetter than dry but low-salt soil. Because they're stabbed into the soil on each use they're also sensitive to soil texture and insertion technique. You can't leave them in place long term because (like potato batteries) the metal corrodes with use and gets less effective, eventually stopping entirely.
With those, you're better off just sticking your finger in the dirt and feeling if it feels moist. Cheaper and more reliable.
Another type is battery powered and left in place. Some have a probe that you bury at a specific depth. Generally they can be read wirelessly, too. These are a lot more useful, because the meter doesn't move or degrade, so you can usefully track (relative) moisture content over time. Some newer automatic irrigation systems use sensors like this to detect when irrigation is needed.
There are fancier types, too, which can give absolute values for moisture content, but these are rarely used outside of research or industrial environments due to their cost. As a home gardener these are extreme overkill.
Ahhh good to know Amazon keeps suggesting one haha