Updated August 2026
Cleanest Lakes in Florida: Top 25 Ranked by Water Quality
Filtered to remove lakes with limited data (<3 sampling years). Sorted by overall water quality score.
The single cleanest lake in Florida is Jacc Lake, with the highest combined water quality score in our 2026 dataset (grade A). Cleanliness is measured by Secchi depth (clarity), total phosphorus, and chlorophyll-a — all sourced from EPA Water Quality Portal and state agency sampling. The full top 25 ranked list appears below.
Ranking the cleanest Florida lakes means picking the basins with the strongest nutrient-and-algae letters, then the clearer water among lakes that share a letter. Jacc Lake leads the list with a grade of A, with Bay-Deer Point Lake close behind.
The top of the cleanest-lakes list is dominated by deep, glacial, cold-water basins — the same basins that produce the A-grade bracket overall. The pattern is not coincidence: depth and watershed land-use are the dominant inputs to water-clarity and nutrient-loading both.
| Rank | Lake | County | Grade | Clarity | Phosphorus | Chlorophyll-a | Area |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Jacc Lake | Walton | A | 9.3 ft | 12 µg/L | 5.3 µg/L | - |
| 2 | Bay-Deer Point Lake | Bay | B | 4 ft | 14 µg/L | — | - |
| 3 | Lake Lancaster West | Orange | B | 3.5 ft | 28 µg/L | — | - |
| 4 | Eastern Lake Outlet | Walton | B | 4.2 ft | 16 µg/L | — | - |
| 5 | Highlands-Sirena Lake | Highlands | B | 16 ft | 8 µg/L | — | - |
| 6 | Seminole-Secret Lake | Seminole | B | 4.5 ft | 21.5 µg/L | — | - |
| 7 | Brevard-Clear Lake | Brevard | B | 9.8 ft | 21 µg/L | — | - |
| 8 | Polk-Fannie Lake | Polk | B | 3.5 ft | 28 µg/L | — | - |
| 9 | Volusia-North Talmadge Lake | Volusia | B | 4.5 ft | 22 µg/L | — | - |
| 10 | Seminole-Spring Lake | Seminole | B | 3 ft | 24 µg/L | — | - |
| 11 | Lake Rowena | Orange | B | 1.8 ft | 34 µg/L | — | - |
| 12 | Marion-Deerback Lake | Marion | B | 7 ft | 11 µg/L | — | - |
| 13 | Putnam-Suggs Lake | Putnam | B | 2 ft | 35 µg/L | — | - |
| 14 | Hillsborough-Flynn Lake | Hillsborough | B | 6 ft | 10.5 µg/L | — | - |
| 15 | Alachua-Elizabeth Lake | Alachua | B | 3 ft | 16 µg/L | — | - |
| 16 | Lake-Emma | Lake | B | 6.5 ft | 12 µg/L | — | - |
| 17 | Hillsborough-Lutz Lake | Hillsborough | B | 6.5 ft | 22.5 µg/L | — | - |
| 18 | Camp Creek Roadside Lake | Walton | B | 3.3 ft | 12 µg/L | — | - |
| 19 | Hillsborough-Dan Lake | Hillsborough | B | 4.8 ft | 24 µg/L | — | - |
| 20 | Campbell Lake Middle | Walton | B | 9 ft | 9 µg/L | — | - |
| 21 | Walton-Powell Lake | Walton | B | 3.5 ft | 15.5 µg/L | — | - |
| 22 | Walton-Western Lake | Walton | B | 6 ft | 10 µg/L | — | - |
| 23 | Orange-Holden Lake | Orange | B | 10.5 ft | 16 µg/L | — | - |
| 24 | Fuller Lake Middle | Walton | B | 2.5 ft | 13.5 µg/L | — | - |
| 25 | Seminole-Bear Gully Lake | Seminole | B | 3.3 ft | 34.5 µg/L | — | - |
Clearest lakes in Florida by water clarity
“Clearest” ranks by Secchi depth — how far you can see into the water — which can differ from the combined cleanliness score above. The clearest water in Florida is Jackson-Silver Lake at 25 ft of Secchi visibility.
- 1. Jackson-Silver Lake — 25 ft, Jackson County
- 2. Open Lake — 24.3 ft, Washington County
- 3. Highlands-Denton Lake — 23.4 ft, Highlands County
- 4. Clay-Sheelar Lake — 20.8 ft, Clay County
- 5. Clay-Deer Lake — 20 ft, Clay County
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the cleanest lake in Florida?
Jacc Lake has the highest water quality score in our 2026 Florida dataset (grade A), based on combined Secchi clarity, phosphorus, and chlorophyll-a measurements. Cleanliness here means low nutrient load, deep water clarity, and minimal algae — measured directly from EPA and state DNR samples.
What is the most polluted lake in Florida?
Among monitored Florida lakes, West Pond Outfall ranks among the most polluted by combined phosphorus and chlorophyll-a load. See our full ranking on the most-polluted-lakes trend page for state-by-state details.
Where in Florida has the cleanest water?
Florida's clearest waters are concentrated in deeper, lower-nutrient glacial basins with forested or low-agriculture watersheds. Among the current top-ranked lakes above, counties like Walton, Orange, and Seminole produce the highest-scoring lakes.
What is the clearest lake in Florida?
Jackson-Silver Lake is the clearest lake in Florida by water clarity, with a Secchi depth of 25 feet — the deepest transparency in our 2026 dataset. "Clearest" ranks by Secchi depth (how far you can see into the water) specifically, while "cleanest" combines clarity with phosphorus and chlorophyll-a. See our full clearest-lakes ranking for Florida for the top 25 by Secchi clarity.
Are these lakes safe to swim in?
Not on the letter alone. An A or B is a nutrients-and-algae classification, not a swimming clearance — it does not measure E. coli, cyanotoxins, or a posted beach closure, and a lake with low chlorophyll-a can still bloom. Always check current posted advisories before swimming: water quality changes seasonally, especially in late summer when blue-green algae bloom risk peaks.
How are these grades calculated?
The letter is nutrients and algae — phosphorus, nitrogen, chlorophyll-a, and turbidity — scored against EPA National Lakes Assessment 2022 condition classes for that lake’s ecoregion, not a Florida-only 0–100 average and not an equal-weight mean with Secchi. Water clarity is shown; it is not scored. Lakes without enough recent sampling are UNRATED. Our methodology page has the full rubric.
What are the top 5 cleanest lakes in the US?
There is no single national ranking of cleanest lakes — each state agency uses different metrics. Crater Lake (Oregon) is widely cited as the clearest US lake, with Secchi depths over 30 m. Lake Tahoe and Lake Superior are also top-tier nationally. Within Florida, the lakes ranked above are the top 25 by our standardized 2026 grading.
How we rank cleanest lakes
Cleanliness here means three things working together:
- Secchi clarity — how deep you can see into the water (in feet). Greater depth = clearer water = lower suspended sediment and algae.
- Total phosphorus — the nutrient that fuels algae. Lower phosphorus levels mean less algae growth potential.
- Chlorophyll-a — the green pigment in algae. Direct measurement of how much algae is currently in the water.
Each signal is normalized against Florida state norms and combined into a single 0–100 score. The lakes above are sorted by that combined score.Full methodology →
More on clean water
The cleanest and dirtiest U.S. lakes in the monitoring record, ranked on EPA nutrient and algae condition classes across thousands of graded lakes.
The top-graded lake in every state we cover, picked grade-first with water clarity as the tie-breaker — plus the states whose winner is still not clean.
How lakes are graded A–F on nutrients and algae using EPA ecoregion condition classes, what each letter means in the water, and why an A is not a clearance.
The cleanest U.S. lakes under 500 acres, ranked on measured nutrients, algae, and water clarity — with the size cutoff applied to the lake, not the sample.
Where to stay near Florida's cleanest lakes
Compare cabins, resorts, and rentals near the clearest, lowest-algae lakes in Florida — live availability and prices for your trip.
Top-rated places to stay near Florida's cleanest lakes
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Source: EPA National Aquatic Resource Surveys, 2026.