Largest lakes & reservoirs in 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 2151 articles we have published for lakes.
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Below are lakes within Compared by surface area in acres. This list does not represent all lakes in , only the 2151 lake articles we have published on the LakeLubbers website.
Lake name  |
Surface area in acres |
Lake description |
|---|---|---|
| Shoal Lake (Canada, Manitoba, Canada, Ontario, Canada) |
80,000 ac | Remote, inviting and beautiful describes Shoal Lake. Sprawling across about 80,000 acres in southwestern Ontario at the border with Manitoba, Shoal La… |
| Lake Clark, AK (Alaska, Southwest Region, AK, US West Region, USA) |
76,892 ac | Lake Clark is located about 150 miles southwest of Anchorage in southern Alaska. The lake spans 128 square miles, making it the seventh* largest fresh… |
| Shuswap Lake, BC (British Columbia, Canada, Canada) |
76,502 ac | With 889 miles of shoreline and a multitude of provincial parks, 76,602-acre Shuswap Lake in the Southern Interior of British Columbia offers unlimite… |
| Moosehead Lake, ME (Maine, Maine Highlands Region, ME, US New England Region, USA) |
75,471 ac | Moosehead Lake, nestled in the Longfellow Mountains in the Maine Highlands Region, is the largest lake in Maine. It has an elevation of 1,023 feet, bo… |
| Lake Kipawa (Canada, Quebec, Canada) |
74,132 ac | Also known as Lake Kippewa Sprawled across one of western Quebec’s most beautiful environments, Lake Kipawa offers nearly 75,000 acres of pristine water stretching into countles… |
| Tustumena Lake, AK (Alaska, Southcentral Region, AK, US West Region, USA) |
73,437 ac | Alaska has 17,243 square miles of inland water including both lakes and rivers. The area of inland water is greater than the land mass of Massachusett… |
| Lake Timiskaming (Canada, Ontario, Canada, Quebec, Canada) |
72,960 ac | Also known as Lake Temiskaming, Lac Temiscamingue Large, scenic and inviting, Lake Timiskaming forms part of the border between Ontario and Quebec. A full 68 miles long, Lake Timiskaming is about 5 mi… |
| Lake Hoytiainen, Finland (Finland, Lakeland Region, Finland) |
72,402 ac | Also known as Sea of Karelia Lake Hoytiainen, also known as the Sea of Karelia, is a 72,402-acre freshwater lake located in the North Karelia region of eastern Finland. Whether vi… |
| Lake Wakatipu, New Zealand (Central Otago Region, South Island, NZ, New Zealand, South Island, NZ) |
71,908 ac | Lake Wakatipu on the South Island of New Zealand is fuel for myths, a backdrop for Hollywood movies and a destination for adventure seekers. The depth… |
| J. Strom Thurmond Lake, GA/SC (Classic South Region, GA, Georgia, Old 96 District, SC, South Carolina, US South Region, USA) |
71,000 ac | Also known as Lake Strom Thurmond, J. Strom Thurmond Reservoir, Clarks Hill Lake, Thurmond Lake J. Strom Thurmond Lake, aka Clarks Hill Lake, holds the title of second largest artificial lake east of the Mississippi River. Straddling the Georgia-… |
| Bear Lake, ID/UT (Cache Valley Region, UT, Idaho, Southeastern Idaho, US West Region, USA, Utah) |
69,760 ac | A natural freshwater lake straddling the borders of Utah and Idaho, Bear Lake is a 70,000-acre turquoise jewel that lives up to its moniker of “Caribb… |
| Lake Guntersville, AL (Alabama, East Tennessee, Mountains Region, AL, Tennessee, US South Region, USA) |
69,100 ac | Also known as Guntersville Lake, Guntersville Reservoir Alabama’s Mountain Region contains the state’s largest lake: Lake Guntersville. Cradled in the Appalachian foothills of northern Alabama, it’s located… |