Largest lakes & reservoirs in New York by acres
There is no widely-accepted minimum surface area that defines a lake. What LakeLubbers describes as a lake, you might call a pond. Acreage of a lake (or sometimes square kilometers) is most often measured at the top surface area when the lake is at normal elevation. The surface area can be considerably smaller or larger when lake levels are lower or higher than normal. North America’s Lake Superior is the world’s largest freshwater lake by this measure.The other measure of a lake’s size is the lake’s water volume. By that measure, the world’s largest freshwater lake is Lake Baikal in Siberia.
You can find many of the world’s largest lakes (acres) on LakeLubbers in the comparison table below. Note: For some lakes, "Largest Lakes - Acres" data is unknown or does not apply, so you may see fewer lakes than the total 72 articles we have published for New York lakes.
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Below are lakes within USA > US Mid-Atlantic Region > New York > Compared by surface area in acres. This list does not represent all lakes in New York, only the 72 New York lake articles we have published on the LakeLubbers website.
Lake name  |
Surface area in acres |
Lake description |
|---|---|---|
| Lake Erie (Canada, Chautauqua-Allegheny Region, NY, Great Lakes Region, PA, Great Lakes of North America, Greater Niagara Region, NY, Michigan, New York, Northeast Ohio, Northwest Ohio, Ohio, Ontario, Canada, Pennsylvania, Southeast Michigan, US Mid-Atlantic Region, US Midwest Region, USA) |
6,261,500 ac | Lake Erie, one of the Great Lakes of North America, straddles the borders of Ohio, Pennsylvania, New York, Michigan, and the Canadian province of Onta… |
| Lake Ontario (Canada, Finger Lakes Region, NY, Great Lakes of North America, Greater Niagara Region, NY, New York, Ontario, Canada, Thousand Islands Region, NY, US Mid-Atlantic Region, USA) |
4,697,600 ac | Lake Ontario, one of the world’s five Great Lakes, weaves over state and country borders, delighting Americans, Canadians, and visiting tourists with… |
| Lake Champlain (Adirondacks Region, NY, Canada, Lake Champlain Valley Region, VT, New York, Quebec, Canada, US Mid-Atlantic Region, US New England Region, USA, Vermont) |
271,000 ac | Lake Champlain, straddling New York and Vermont in the USA, and Quebec in Canada, is a natural freshwater lake seated 96 feet above sea level. Briefly… |
| Finger Lakes (Finger Lakes Region, NY, New York, US Mid-Atlantic Region, USA) |
133,480 ac | The Finger Lakes Region of New York is one of the nation’s favorite recreation and vacation destinations. The series of eleven long, narrow lakes are… |
| Lake St. Francis, NY / Canada (Canada, New York, Ontario, Canada, Quebec, Canada, Thousand Islands Region, NY, US Mid-Atlantic Region, USA) |
67,213 ac | Also known as Lac Saint-Francois Lake St. Francis is part of the 2,340 mile system of locks, canals, and channels that link the Atlantic Ocean to the Great Lakes and the St. Lawrence… |
| Oneida Lake, NY (Central-Leatherstocking Region, NY, Finger Lakes Region, NY, New York, Thousand Islands Region, NY, US Mid-Atlantic Region, USA) |
51,072 ac | Covering more than 51,000 acres, Oneida Lake is the largest lake located entirely within the state of New York. Named after the Iroquois Nation Oneida… |
| Seneca Lake, NY (Finger Lakes Region, NY, New York, US Mid-Atlantic Region, USA) |
43,243 ac | Seneca Lake, one of western New York’s famous Finger Lakes, is the largest lake to be entirely contained within the borders of the state. Seneca Lake… |
| Cayuga Lake, NY (Finger Lakes Region, NY, New York, US Mid-Atlantic Region, USA) |
42,956 ac | Cayuga Lake, located in western New York, is the second largest Finger Lake in both surface area and volume. Boasting 38.2 miles in length, 1.7 miles… |
| Lake George, NY (Adirondacks Region, NY, New York, US Mid-Atlantic Region, USA) |
28,160 ac | Sitting pretty at the base of New York’s majestic Adirondack Mountains, Lake George’s nickname is “Queen of American Lakes.” The 28,000-acre glacial l… |
| Great Sacandaga Lake, NY (Adirondacks Region, NY, Capital-Saratoga Region, NY, New York, US Mid-Atlantic Region, USA) |
26,880 ac | Also known as Great Sacanadaga Reservoir Great Sacandaga Lake, located in the Adirondack Mountains of New York, is a reservoir built to control flooding on the Hudson River and the Sacandaga… |
| Chautauqua Lake, NY (Chautauqua-Allegheny Region, NY, New York, US Mid-Atlantic Region, USA) |
13,156 ac | Also known as Lake Chautauqua Chautauqua Lake, located in idyllic Western New York state, has been a destination for vacationers for more than a century. At 1,308 feet above sea le… |
| Allegheny Reservoir, NY/PA (Chautauqua-Allegheny Region, NY, New York, Pennsylvania, Pennsylvania Wilds Region, US Mid-Atlantic Region, USA) |
12,080 ac | Also known as Kinzua Dam Lake, Kinzua Lake, Lake Kinzua Flowing across tree-covered hills in northwestern Pennsylvania and southwestern New York, the Allegheny Reservoir’s 12,080 acres provide an open invit… |