Largest lakes & reservoirs in Texas 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 68 articles we have published for Texas lakes.
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Below are lakes within USA > US Southwest Region > Texas > Compared by water volume. This list does not represent all lakes in Texas, only the 68 Texas lake articles we have published on the LakeLubbers website.
Lake name | Water vol. in ac-ft | Lake description |
---|---|---|
Belton Lake, TX (Prairies and Lakes Region, TX, Texas, US Southwest Region, USA) |
372,700 ac-ft | Imposing bluffs stand tall in the Texas wind, as if serenely surveying Belton Lake’s calm, clear waters. An osprey spreads its wings from atop the blu … |
Medina Lake, TX (Hill Country Region, TX, Texas, US Southwest Region, USA) |
254,000 ac-ft | (Also known as Lake Medina) Located in Texas Hill Country, Medina Lake is 40 miles northwest of San Antonio in Bandera and Medina Counties. Controlled by the Bexar-Medina-Atascos … |
Lake O’ the Pines (Piney Woods Region, TX, Texas, US Southwest Region, USA) |
250,000 ac-ft | (Also known as Ferrell's Bridge Reservoir-historic) For many people in the Texas Piney Woods region, ‘let’s go to the lake!’ means Lake O’ The Pines. This extraordinary reservoir was built primarily for … |
Stillhouse Hollow Lake, TX (Prairies and Lakes Region, TX, Texas, US Southwest Region, USA) |
235,700 ac-ft | As the sun dips below the horizon, a great blue heron surveys the waters at Stillhouse Hollow Lake. Crickets begin their twilight melody as the heron … |
Lake Arrowhead, TX (Panhandle Plains Region, TX, Texas, US Southwest Region, USA) |
228,000 ac-ft | Lake Arrowhead boasts nearly 15,000 acres and 106 miles of shoreline in the North Central Plains of Texas, just 14 miles southeast of Wichita Falls ne … |
Lake Bob Sandlin (Piney Woods Region, TX, Texas, US Southwest Region, USA) |
213,350 ac-ft | (Also known as Bob Sandlin Reservoir) How does a state like Texas, with few natural lakes, become a well-respected bass fishing destination? A look at Lake Bob Sandlin explains the paradox … |
Lake Limestone (Prairies and Lakes Region, TX, Texas, US Southwest Region, USA) |
208,017 ac-ft | One of the best-kept secret destinations in the Prairies and Lakes Region of Texas is Lake Limestone. The reservoir was created in 1978 when the Brazo … |
Lake Waco, TX (Prairies and Lakes Region, TX, Texas, US Southwest Region, USA) |
208,000 ac-ft | (Also known as Waco Lake) Lake Waco, also known as Waco Lake, is located in the Prairies and Lakes region of Central Texas. Its boundary lies within the city limits of Waco in … |
Grapevine Lake, TX (Prairies and Lakes Region, TX, Texas, US Southwest Region, USA) |
181,100 ac-ft | Located in Texas’ Prairies and Lakes tourism region lies Grapevine Lake, one of the most picturesque and welcoming reservoirs in the state. Although c … |
Eagle Mountain Lake (Prairies and Lakes Region, TX, Texas, US Southwest Region, USA) |
179,880 ac-ft | (Also known as Eagle Mountain Reservoir) Eagle Mountain Lake was created to alleviate two contradictory problems: periodic flooding along the Trinity River and a looming water shortage in For … |
Joe Pool Lake (Prairies and Lakes Region, TX, Texas, US Southwest Region, USA) |
176,900 ac-ft | (Also known as Joe Pool Reservoir) When summer heat leaves residents of the Dallas-Fort Worth area longing for cool breezes, many of them head for Joe Pool Lake. This reservoir was crea … |
Somerville Lake, TX (Prairies and Lakes Region, TX, Texas, US Southwest Region, USA) |
158,900 ac-ft | (Also known as Lake Somerville) Somerville Lake, nestled in the Prairies and Lakes tourism region, is located in south-central Texas, about 2 hours outside of Houston and Austin, mak … |