Updated August 2026
Cleanest Lakes in North Carolina: Top 25 Ranked by Water Quality
Ranked from the North Carolina lakes that carry an A–F grade. Lakes with fewer than three sampling years, and lakes nobody has sampled, are not rated and are not ranked here.
The single cleanest lake in North Carolina is Lake Waccamaw, 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 North Carolina lakes means picking the basins with the strongest nutrient-and-algae letters, then the clearer water among lakes that share a letter. Lake Waccamaw leads the list with a grade of A, with Merchants Millpond 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 | Lake Waccamaw | Columbus | A | — | 30 µg/L | 3.6 µg/L | - |
| 2 | Merchants Millpond | Gates | B | 1.6 ft | 270 µg/L | 8.2 µg/L | 760 acres |
| 3 | Catawba Riv Lake | Mecklenburg | C | 6.6 ft | 20 µg/L | 2.3 µg/L | - |
| 4 | Belews Lake | Stokes | C | 11.6 ft | 30 µg/L | 3.5 µg/L | 3,863 acres |
| 5 | Lake Ben Johnson | Orange | C | 3.3 ft | 50 µg/L | 6.5 µg/L | - |
| 6 | Corporation Lake | Orange | C | 2.2 ft | 50 µg/L | 11 µg/L | 5 acres |
| 7 | Phelps Lake | Washington | C | 3.6 ft | 50 µg/L | 6.2 µg/L | - |
| 8 | West Fk Eno R Reservoir | Orange | D | 3.8 ft | 35.5 µg/L | 14.9 µg/L | 272 acres |
| 9 | Cane Creek Reservoir | Orange | D | 3.6 ft | 30 µg/L | 19.5 µg/L | - |
| 10 | B Everett Jordan Lake | Chatham | D | 1.8 ft | 117 µg/L | 22.9 µg/L | 13,940 acres |
| 11 | Catawba Creek Lake | Gaston | D | 3.6 ft | 35 µg/L | 18.5 µg/L | - |
| 12 | S Fork Catawba Riv Lake | Gaston | D | 3.9 ft | 40 µg/L | 13 µg/L | - |
| 13 | Kerr Scott Reservoir | Wilkes | D | 4.9 ft | 30 µg/L | 17 µg/L | - |
| 14 | Farmer Lake | Caswell | D | 2.1 ft | 30 µg/L | 27 µg/L | 390 acres |
| 15 | Wiggins Mill Reservoir | Wilson | D | 2.6 ft | 60 µg/L | 29 µg/L | - |
| 16 | Lake Butner | Granville | D | 5.4 ft | 40 µg/L | 11 µg/L | 340 acres |
| 17 | Kings Mountain Reservoir | Cleveland | D | 6.9 ft | 50 µg/L | 11 µg/L | 0 acres |
| 18 | Lake Adger | Polk | D | 3.9 ft | 50 µg/L | 7.2 µg/L | 438 acres |
| 19 | Lake Johnson | Wake | D | 3 ft | 40 µg/L | 23 µg/L | 148 acres |
| 20 | West Fork Eno River Reservoir | Orange | D | 3.8 ft | 50 µg/L | 30 µg/L | - |
| 21 | Lake Raleigh | Wake | D | 2.5 ft | 45 µg/L | 29.5 µg/L | 88 acres |
| 22 | Toisnot Reservoir | Wilson | D | 2.3 ft | 90 µg/L | 18 µg/L | - |
| 23 | Back Creek Lake | Randolph | D | — | 40 µg/L | 27 µg/L | 236 acres |
| 24 | University Lake | Orange | F | 2.3 ft | 40 µg/L | 33.3 µg/L | 213 acres |
| 25 | B E Jordan Lake | Chatham | F | 2.6 ft | 40.5 µg/L | 35.5 µg/L | - |
Get updates when North Carolina's cleanest-lake list changes
New nutrient and algae samples can move a lake up or down this ranking. Unsubscribe anytime.
Clearest lakes in North Carolina 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 North Carolina is Wolf Creek Reservoir at 19.7 ft of Secchi visibility.
- 1. Wolf Creek Reservoir — 19.7 ft, Jackson County
- 2. Calderwood Lake — 16.4 ft, Graham County
- 3. Lake Cheoah — 14.6 ft, Graham County
- 4. Santeetlah Lake — 14.3 ft, Graham County
- 5. Fontana Lake — 14.1 ft, Graham County
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the cleanest lake in North Carolina?
Lake Waccamaw has the highest water quality score in our 2026 North Carolina dataset (grade A). Lakes are graded A to F on nutrients and algae — total phosphorus, total nitrogen, chlorophyll-a, and turbidity — measured against the EPA National Lakes Assessment 2022 condition classes for that lake's own ecoregion, so a lake is judged against the lakes it would naturally resemble. Cleanliness here means a low nutrient load and little algae, measured directly from EPA and state DNR samples; where two lakes tie on the letter, the deeper Secchi reading ranks first.
What is the most polluted lake in North Carolina?
Among monitored North Carolina lakes, Lake Reese 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 North Carolina has the cleanest water?
North Carolina'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 Orange, Chatham, and Gaston produce the highest-scoring lakes.
What is the clearest lake in North Carolina?
Wolf Creek Reservoir is the clearest lake in North Carolina by water clarity, with a Secchi depth of 19.7 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 North Carolina 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 North Carolina-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 North Carolina, the 25 lakes ranked above are the graded lakes with the highest letters in our 2026 dataset.
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 North Carolina 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.
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.
A practical checklist for picking a lake with good water quality — clarity, phosphorus, algae history, depth, and the data to check before you commit.
Where to stay near North Carolina's cleanest lakes
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Source: EPA National Aquatic Resource Surveys, 2026.