Largest lakes & reservoirs in Canada by water volume
The estimated volume of water that a lake contains is measured at the lake’s normal elevation. By this measure, the world’s largest freshwater lake is Siberia’s Lake Baikal.Water Volume can be measured in acre-feet, in cubic miles, or in cubic kilometers. One acre-foot is the amount of water needed to cover one acre (43,560 square feet) to a depth of one foot. One cubic mile equals 3,379,200 acre-feet. One cubic kilometer equals 810,713 acre-feet. 1 acre-foot is equal to 325,851 US gallons. Siberia’s Lake Baikal contains about 6,276,367,740,000,000 gallons of freshwater – nearly 1 million gallons for every living person on earth.
The other – and more widely used – measure of a lake’s size is the lake’s surface acreage. By that measure, the world’s largest freshwater lake is North America’s Lake Superior.
Note: In the United States, an acre foot is a unit of volume used to refer to large-scale bodies of water. It is defined by the volume of water needed to cover 1 acre of surface area to a depth of 1 foot.
You can find many of the the world’s largest lakes (by water volume) on LakeLubbers. Note: For some lakes, the water volume data is unknown or does not apply, so you may see fewer lakes than the total 164 articles we have published for Canada lakes.
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Below are lakes within Canada > Compared by water volume. This list does not represent all lakes in Canada, only the 164 Canada lake articles we have published on the LakeLubbers website.
Lake name  |
Water vol. in ac-ft |
Lake description |
|---|---|---|
| Lake Superior (Canada, Great Lakes of North America, Lake Superior Northwoods Region, WI, Michigan, Minnesota, Northeast Minnesota, Ontario, Canada, US Midwest Region, USA, Upper Peninsula Region, MI, Wisconsin) |
9,799,680,000 ac-ft | Skipping over state and country borders, Lake Superior, the largest, deepest, coldest, cleanest, least developed, and most pristine of the Great Lakes … |
| Lake Michigan-Huron (Canada, Chicagoland Region, IL, Great Lakes of North America, Illinois, Indiana, Lake Michigan Region, WI, Michigan, North Indiana, Northeast Michigan, Northwest Michigan, Ontario, Canada, Southwest Michigan, US Midwest Region, USA, Upper Peninsula Region, MI, West Central Michigan, Wisconsin) |
6,858,776,000 ac-ft | Lake Michigan and Lake Huron – two of North America’s Great Lakes – are contiguous and they share the same elevation of 577 feet above sea level. They … |
| Lake Huron (Canada, East Central Michigan, Great Lakes of North America, Michigan, Northeast Michigan, Ontario, Canada, US Midwest Region, USA, Upper Peninsula Region, MI) |
2,872,320,000 ac-ft | A glacial lake of epic proportions, Lake Huron is the second largest of the five Great Lakes by surface area, boasting 23,010 square miles and an incr … |
| Great Bear Lake, NT (Canada, Northwest Territories, Canada) |
1,812,754,700 ac-ft | Great Bear Lake is located in the Northwest Territories of Canada. It is a natural lake, encircled by wilderness, and the largest lake completely in C … |
| 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) |
1,328,025,600 ac-ft | Lake Ontario, one of the world’s five Great Lakes, weaves over state and country borders, delighting Americans, Canadians, and visiting tourists with … |
| Great Slave Lake, NT (Canada, Northwest Territories, Canada) |
1,284,095,982 ac-ft | Great Slave Lake is the fifth-largest lake (by acreage) in North America and, following Great Bear Lake, is the second-largest in Canada. A natural la … |
| 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) |
391,987,200 ac-ft | 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 … |
| Gull Lake, AB (Alberta, Canada, Canada) |
354,221,666 ac-ft | Surrounded by Alberta’s wide-open spaces and endless Canadian skies, Gull Lake is located in Alberta’s Central tourism region. Well situated between E … |
| Lake Winnipeg, MB (Canada, Manitoba, Canada) |
228,833,000 ac-ft | Lake Winnipeg is a long (271 miles) somewhat shallow outdoor enthusiast’s dream. It’s located some 35 miles north of Winnipeg, Manitoba and is a natur … |
| Lake Athabasca, AB (Alberta, Canada, Canada, Saskatchewan, Canada) |
165,242,878 ac-ft | Lake Athabasca is a 1,939,776-acre lake with a maximum depth of 410 feet making it the largest and deepest lake in both Alberta and Saskatchewan. Appr … |
| Lake Mistassini (Canada, Quebec, Canada) |
121,606,979 ac-ft | (Also known as Lac Mistassini) Lake Mistassini in Quebec’s James Bay region is the stuff fishing legends are made of. Located 220 miles east of James Bay and over 400 miles north of … |
| Manicouagan Reservoir (Canada, Quebec, Canada) |
115,121,274 ac-ft | (Also known as Lake Manicouagan, Lac Manicouagan, Lac Mouchalagane) Manicouagan Reservoir is one of the world’s most interesting geological features. This huge annular (circular) lake was shaped by a number of factors, … |