Best Swimming Lakes in Missouri: Clearest Water, Lowest Algae (2026)

Best-for-swimming on LakeQuality weights water clarity heavily: a swimmer cares whether they can see their feet, whether the water looks inviting on a 90-degree July day, and whether there is a real harmful-algal-bloom risk. The top Missouri swimming lake on current data is Sherwood Lake.

The swimming-best list filters more aggressively on chlorophyll-a than the cleanest list — even very clear lakes can have harmful-algal-bloom risk under specific conditions, so the swimming ranking is more conservative on that front.

Rank	Lake	County	Advisories & bacteria	Clarity	Algae	Phosphorus	Area
1	Sherwood Lake	Warren	Low algae	5.9 ft	4.4 µg/L	14.3 µg/L	145 acres
2	Lake Taneycomo	Taney	Low algae	8.7 ft	1.1 µg/L	13.5 µg/L	-
3	Fox Valley Lake	Clark	Low algae	8.5 ft	3.6 µg/L	16.5 µg/L	96 acres
4	Bull Shoals Lake	Taney	Low algae	8.1 ft	4 µg/L	10 µg/L	-
5	Lake Shayne-Terre du Lac Lakes	Washington	Low algae	11.1 ft	1.2 µg/L	5.2 µg/L	51 acres
6	Lake Konstanz	Warren	Low algae	7.7 ft	1.6 µg/L	7 µg/L	19 acres
7	Lake Capri	St. Francois	Low algae	16.3 ft	0.9 µg/L	5.7 µg/L	112 acres
8	Innsbrook Lake	Warren	Low algae	5.2 ft	5 µg/L	17 µg/L	-
9	Weatherby Lake	Platte	Low algae	6.2 ft	5.9 µg/L	16 µg/L	186 acres
10	Table Rock L. Ab. Carter Br. Lake	Barry	Low algae	6.8 ft	4.3 µg/L	8.5 µg/L	-
11	Council Bluff Lake	Iron	Low algae	13.1 ft	1.3 µg/L	5.7 µg/L	-
12	Bowling Green Lake	Pike	Low algae	5.5 ft	5.1 µg/L	24.6 µg/L	45 acres
13	Lake Taneycomo	Taney	Low algae	8.9 ft	1.2 µg/L	15.8 µg/L	-
14	Lake Taneycomo	Taney	Low algae	12.6 ft	0.9 µg/L	14.5 µg/L	-
15	Lake Wauwanoka	Jefferson	Low algae	12.9 ft	1.7 µg/L	8 µg/L	-
16	Fellows Lake	Greene	Low algae	7.2 ft	3.4 µg/L	11.8 µg/L	812 acres
17	Alpine Lake	Warren	Low algae	12.6 ft	1.5 µg/L	7 µg/L	325 acres
18	Castlenovo Lake	Warren	Low algae	6 ft	2.9 µg/L	16.8 µg/L	10 acres
19	Aspen Lake Along Southern Arm	Warren	Low algae	3.8 ft	5.3 µg/L	20.8 µg/L	146 acres
20	Timberline Lakes	St. Francois	Low algae	14.3 ft	1.6 µg/L	5.5 µg/L	42 acres
21	Lincoln Lake	Lincoln	Bacteria tested: exceedances	5.7 ft	3.6 µg/L	12.7 µg/L	48 acres
22	Lake Buteo	Johnson	Low algae	5.6 ft	4 µg/L	20 µg/L	8 acres
23	Lake Taneycomo Ab. Bee Cr. Arm	Taney	Low algae	13.3 ft	1.1 µg/L	13 µg/L	-
24	Brookfield Lake	Linn	Low algae	4.4 ft	4.9 µg/L	19.7 µg/L	106 acres
25	Rock Lake Village Lake	Johnson	Low algae	4.3 ft	4.8 µg/L	16 µg/L	27 acres

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All-states list →Minnesota version →Wisconsin version →Illinois version →Cleanest lakes in Missouri →Swimming safety guide →Algae bloom guide →

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the best lake to swim in Missouri?

Sherwood Lake in Warren County ranks first for swimming in the 2026 Missouri sampling record, combining the clearest water with low algae and public access. The full top 25 above is ranked the same way.

How do you know if a lake is safe to swim in Missouri?

That is a call for Missouri DNR and county health departments, who post seasonal and same-day advisories — always check before you swim, especially in late summer when blue-green algae bloom risk peaks. The readings on this page show what past sampling found: Secchi depth above 6 feet is a strong sign of low suspended sediment, and chlorophyll-a below 10 µg/L means a low algae load. Neither is a clearance.

Are lakes in Missouri safe to swim in?

Whether a given lake is safe to swim in on a given day is answered by Missouri DNR and the county health department, not by a water-quality reading. The lakes ranked above are filtered to the clearest, lowest-nutrient readings in the sampling record with chlorophyll-a below 10 µg/L, which means they have tested cleaner and carried less algae than the state average. Always check posted advisories before swimming and avoid water after heavy rain, when bacteria spikes from runoff.

What lakes have algae blooms in Missouri?

Algae blooms (especially blue-green / cyanobacteria) are most common in shallow, warm, nutrient-rich (eutrophic) lakes during late summer. Lakes with high phosphorus and chlorophyll-a measurements are at higher risk. The lakes on this page are filtered to exclude high-algae lakes; each lake page shows its own phosphorus and chlorophyll-a readings.

When is it safe to swim in lakes in Missouri?

Algae load in Missouri lakes is typically lowest from late spring through early summer (May–July), when water is cool. It rises in late summer and early fall (August–September) when warm water and accumulated nutrients drive cyanobacteria blooms. Avoid swimming after heavy rainfall, when bacteria spikes from runoff, and check Missouri DNR's current advisories the day you go.

What's the cleanest lake in Missouri?

The single cleanest lake on measured clarity and nutrients leads the Missouri cleanest-lakes ranking, linked below. The lakes on this page are filtered for swimming — the same clarity and nutrient readings, plus low chlorophyll-a (an active algae filter).

Our swimming filter

Lakes here have to pass three filters:

Clear, low-nutrient water — the top of the state’s measured range for clarity, phosphorus and chlorophyll-a
Chlorophyll-a below 10 µg/L — actively low algae density, low risk of harmful blue-green blooms
Multi-year sampling data — excludes lakes with limited sampling history (data confidence)

The Advisories & bacteria column adds a direct bacteria signal: where the EPA Water Quality Portal has enough E. coli or fecal-coliform samples, we show how often the lake has exceeded the EPA recreation threshold. It is a record of past testing, never a live "safe today" reading — bacteria spike fast after rain. Where a lake carries an EPA 303(d) bacteria or recreation listing, that advisory runs above the bacteria record in the table rather than beside it.

The ranking within the filter is on combined readings (Secchi clarity + phosphorus + chlorophyll-a). Always check current Missouri DNR advisories before swimming.

Where to swim near a Missouri city

Looking for a lake close to home? These pages rank swimming lakes within driving distance of Missouri's largest cities.

Swim near St. Louis →Swim near Kansas City →Swim near Springfield →

Where to stay near Missouri swimming lakes

Book a cabin, resort, or rental near Missouri's cleanest swim lakes — live availability and prices for your beach weekend.

Top-rated places to stay near Missouri swim lakes

Prices for Oct 30–Nov 1, 4 adults. Change dates on the map below.

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More on swimming water quality

Best Lakes for Swimming in America, Ranked (2026)

The cleanest lakes for swimming, ranked on EPA nutrient and algae data — plus the one thing a reading cannot tell you the day you go.

Is It Safe to Swim in a Lake? E. coli and Advisories

What a swim advisory actually means, how E. coli monitoring works, how fast a lake clears after rain, and why a long-term reading is not a swim guide.

Lake Water Temperature by Month: How Warm Lakes Get

Typical lake surface temperatures month by month and state by state, from years of monitoring readings — when lakes warm up, how warm they get, and when they turn.

Best Month to Swim, by State — Typical Lake Temperatures

The month when the cleanest lakes in each state are typically warmest, from long-run Water Quality Portal readings rather than this year’s weather.

Source: EPA National Aquatic Resource Surveys, 2026.