Black Crappie Lakes in Minnesota

Found in 1,369 Minnesota lakes · 59 in Michigan

Black Crappie is panfish — the family of smaller, abundant species that anchor kid-friendly fishing and ice-fishing in Minnesota. Documented in 1,428 lakes across our dataset. Black Crappie is widely distributed: 1,369 lakes in Minnesota and 59 in Michigan. That breadth means anglers across most of the coverage area can find a documented Black Crappie lake within a reasonable drive.

Panfish species like Black Crappie tolerate a wide range of water quality, so their presence in a lake says less about the lake than the absence of a game-fish would. Cross-reference the Black Crappie lake list below against the letter grades: lakes with both an A or B grade and Black Crappie documented are the best places to start for recreational targeting.

1,369

Minnesota Lakes

Avg. Grade

472

Grade A Lakes

Counties

Black Crappie Lakes Map

Every Minnesota lake with documented black crappie, colored by water-quality grade.

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Best Black Crappie Lakes in Minnesota

Rank	Lake	County	Grade	Clarity	Depth
1	Lobster Lake	Douglas	A	13 ft	65 ft
2	East Fox Lake	Crow Wing	A	16.4 ft	65 ft
3	Deep Portage Lake	Cass	A	15.4 ft	105 ft
4	Clearwater Lake	Wright	A	9.8 ft	73 ft
5	Clearwater Lake	Crow Wing	A	13 ft	54 ft
6	Clearwater Lake	Clearwater	A	10 ft	65 ft
7	Lower Hay Lake	Crow Wing	A	18.5 ft	100 ft
8	Latoka Lake	Douglas	A	19 ft	108 ft
9	Little Birch Lake	Todd	A	13 ft	89 ft
10	North Long Lake	Crow Wing	A	15.1 ft	97 ft
11	Bad Medicine Lake	Becker	A	25 ft	84 ft
12	Mud Lake	Becker	A	12.5 ft	34 ft
13	Big Lake	Beltrami	A	9.7 ft	35 ft
14	Big Lake	Carlton	A	10 ft	25 ft
15	Big Lake	Sherburne	A	13.6 ft	48 ft
16	Big Lake	St. Louis	A	8.2 ft	22 ft
17	Big Sugar Bush Lake	Becker	A	16.5 ft	42 ft
18	Pelican Lake	Otter Tail	A	16.4 ft	55 ft
19	Pelican Lake	Crow Wing	A	14.3 ft	104 ft
20	Birch Lake	Wright	A	15 ft	52 ft
21	Birch Lake	Cass	A	14 ft	45 ft
22	Round Lake	Aitkin	A	14.5 ft	125 ft
23	Round Lake	Crow Wing	A	13.5 ft	51 ft
24	Round Lake	Becker	A	10 ft	69 ft
25	Ada Lake	Cass	A	14 ft	60 ft
26	Whitefish Lake	Crow Wing	A	14.4 ft	138 ft
27	Whitefish Lake	Beltrami	A	12.5 ft	30 ft
28	Horseshoe Lake	Crow Wing	A	14.4 ft	56 ft
29	Farm Lake	Lake	A	5.5 ft	56 ft
30	Washburn Lake	Cass	A	14.1 ft	111 ft
31	Long Lake	Kandiyohi	A	10.5 ft	46 ft
32	Long Lake	Clearwater	A	20.5 ft	80 ft
33	Long Lake	Cass	A	21.5 ft	115 ft
34	Long Lake	Beltrami	A	20 ft	87 ft
35	Long Lake	Otter Tail	A	12.3 ft	128 ft
36	Long Lake	Becker	A	19.5 ft	61 ft
37	Long Lake	Hubbard	A	11.2 ft	135 ft
38	Long Lake	Otter Tail	A	11.6 ft	73 ft
39	Long Lake	Itasca	A	16.7 ft	72 ft
40	Long Lake	Itasca	A	16.9 ft	85 ft
41	Dead Lake	Hubbard	A	16 ft	34 ft
42	Dead Lake	Otter Tail	A	10.2 ft	65 ft
43	Unnamed Lake	Nicollet	A	5.6 ft	35 ft
44	Unnamed Lake	Sherburne	A	13 ft	43 ft
45	Maple Lake	Douglas	A	14.1 ft	78 ft
46	Maple Lake	Itasca	A	15.3 ft	39 ft
47	West Twin Lake	Crow Wing	A	13.3 ft	42 ft
48	Shallow Lake	Itasca	A	16.4 ft	85 ft
49	Shallow Lake	Hubbard	A	8.2 ft	10 ft
50	Detroit Lake	Becker	A	14 ft	89 ft

Showing top 50 of 1,369 lakes.

Frequently Asked Questions

How many Minnesota lakes have black crappie?

Black Crappie are found in 1,369 lakes in Minnesota. The average water quality grade of these lakes is C (Fair).

What are the best black crappie lakes in Minnesota?

The best black crappie lakes in Minnesota by water quality are Lobster Lake, East Fox Lake, Deep Portage Lake, Clearwater Lake, Clearwater Lake.

Fish species from state agency survey, stocking, and public fishing-access records; water-quality grades from the EPA National Aquatic Resource Surveys.