Largest lakes & reservoirs in 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 2151 articles we have published for lakes.
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Below are lakes within Compared by water volume. This list does not represent all lakes in , only the 2151 lake articles we have published on the LakeLubbers website.
Lake name  |
Water vol. in ac-ft |
Lake description |
|---|---|---|
| Lough Lene (East Coast & Midlands Region, Ireland, Ireland) |
26,117 ac-ft | (Also known as Lough Lane, Lough Lein, Lough Leibinn) Ireland’s Lough Lene is a natural freshwater glacial lake in northern Westmeath, an inland county in the province of Leinster. This lake has an irregu … |
| Great Salt Plains Lake, OK (Oklahoma, Red Carpet Country, OK, US Southwest Region, USA) |
26,111 ac-ft | With over 8,600 acres of water and 41 miles of shoreline, Great Salt Plains Lake in northern Oklahoma’s Red Carpet Country is an outdoor enthusiast’s … |
| Lake Cleburne (Prairies and Lakes Region, TX, Texas, US Southwest Region, USA) |
26,008 ac-ft | (Also known as Lake Pat Cleburne) Lake Cleburne does far more than provide water for the City of Cleburne, Texas. The reservoir in the Prairies and Lakes region also provides local res … |
| Stonecoal Reservoir, WV (Mountain Lakes Region, WV, US South Region, USA, West Virginia) |
25,800 ac-ft | (Also known as Stonecoal Lake) Stonecoal Reservoir is a 550-acre lake nestled in the foothills of the Allegheny Mountains between the cities of Weston and Buckhannon, West Virginia. … |
| Occoquan Reservoir, VA (Northern Virginia Region, US South Region, USA, Virginia) |
25,472 ac-ft | (Also known as Occoquan River Reservoir or Lake Occoquan) In the dialect of the Native American Dogue tribe, “occoquan” means “at the end of the water.” The Dogue tribe occupied Northern Virginia up until the … |
| Lake Nocona, TX (Prairies and Lakes Region, TX, Texas, US Southwest Region, USA) |
25,400 ac-ft | (Also known as Farmer's Creek Reservoir, Nocona Lake) Lake Nocona, also known as Farmer’s Creek Reservoir, is located in the Prairies and Lakes region of Texas near the Oklahoma border. Managed by the Nor … |
| Morse Reservoir, IN (Central Indiana, Indiana, US Midwest Region, USA) |
25,380 ac-ft | (Also known as Morse Lake) Located in central Indiana, Morse Reservoir awaits visitors and those looking to relocate to the good life. The lake is just a short drive from Indian … |
| Eagle Lake, AB (Alberta, Canada, Canada) |
25,294 ac-ft | (Also known as Pataomoxecing) Follow the Trans-Canada Highway 25 miles east of Calgary and you will arrive at the northern shore of Eagle Lake. Surrounded by south-central Alberta’ … |
| Branched Oak Lake, NE (Metro Region, NE, Nebraska, US Midwest Region, USA) |
25,088 ac-ft | (Also known as Dam Site #18) Branched Oak Lake, part of the Branched Oak State Recreation Area, is conveniently located northwest of Lincoln, Nebraska’s state capital. Branched Oa … |
| Lake Kincaid, LA (Crossroads Region, LA, Louisiana, US South Region, USA) |
25,000 ac-ft | (Also known as Kincaid Reservoir or Kincaid Lake) In the Crossroads region of Louisiana, the bayous, wetlands, pine-covered hills and farms meet. So too do the diversity of Cajun, Anglo, French, Creol … |
| Cedar Lake, IL (Illinois, Southern Illinois, US Midwest Region, USA) |
25,000 ac-ft | Cedar Lake is located at the edge of the Shawnee National Forest in southern Illinois. This 1,750-acre reservoir was created by the City of Carbondale … |
| Lookout Shoals Lake (North Carolina, Piedmont Region, NC, US South Region, USA) |
24,995 ac-ft | (Also known as Lake Lookout, Lookout Shoals Reservoir) Lookout Shoals Lake is a lakefront living gem in North Carolina’s Piedmont region. The 1,300-acre reservoir is known affectionately as Lake Lookout to … |