Butternut Lake vs Round Lake
Water quality, depth, fish species, and recreation comparison.
Butternut Lake and Round Lake both received the same overall water quality grade of C (Fair). Both are in Price County, Wisconsin.
Butternut Lake and Round Lake are both in Wisconsin — a same-state head-to-head where the comparison comes down to lake-specific differences in depth, watershed, and monitoring history rather than the broader state-level water-quality regime. These two are within a letter of each other on the rubric — Butternut Lake (C) versus Round Lake (C). The deciding factors for a recreational visitor are likely physical (depth, access, fish species) rather than water-quality differences.
With grades this close, the choice between the two lakes turns on non-water-quality factors: depth, fish species, public access, distance from home. The per-lake pages below cover all of those.
Butternut Lake
Murky, only visible to about 4 ft.
Round Lake
Murky, only visible to about 4 ft.
Side-by-Side Metrics
| Metric | Butternut Lake | Round Lake |
|---|---|---|
| Overall Grade | C (Fair) | C (Fair) |
| Water Clarity | 4 ft | 4 ft |
| Phosphorus | 36.1 µg/L | 28 µg/L |
| Chlorophyll-a (Algae) | No data | No data |
| Maximum Depth | 32 ft | 24 ft |
| Surface Area | 983 acres | 748 acres |
| Public Access | Yes | Yes |
| Fish Species | 7 | 6 |
| Trophic State | eutrophic | eutrophic |
Bold value = better for that metric (lower phosphorus / chlorophyll = cleaner; higher Secchi / depth / species count = better).
Verdict
Both lakes earn the same Grade C. The tiebreakers come down to clarity (Butternut Lake: 4 ft, Round Lake: 4 ft) and what you want from the lake. Butternut Lake supports more documented fish species.
Source: EPA National Aquatic Resource Surveys, 2026.