Best Bass Lakes in Minnesota, Wisconsin & Michigan

Top 50 bass lakes ranked by water quality grade. Includes both largemouth and smallmouth bass. Smallmouth bass prefer clear, rocky lakes while largemouth thrive in warmer waters with vegetation. Fish-species data currently covers Minnesota, Wisconsin, and Michigan.

Rank	Lake	County	State	Grade	Clarity	Depth	Bass Type
1	Caribou Lake	Itasca	MN	A	31 ft	152 ft	Both
2	Black Oak Lake	Vilas	WI	A	28.5 ft	85 ft	Both
3	Bear Lake Southeast Basin	Kalkaska	MI	A	36.5 ft	-	Both
4	Bad Medicine Lake	Becker	MN	A	25 ft	84 ft	Both
5	Wheeler Lake	Oconto	WI	A	27 ft	35 ft	Both
6	Long Lake	Grand Traverse	MI	A	24 ft	-	Both
7	Serpent Lake	Crow Wing	MN	A	25 ft	65 ft	Both
8	Bardon Lake	Douglas	WI	A	27 ft	102 ft	Both
9	Cub Lake Central Basin	Kalkaska	MI	A	19 ft	-	Both
10	Big Cormorant Lake	Becker	MN	A	24.8 ft	75 ft	Both
11	Whitefish Lake	Douglas	WI	A	25.3 ft	102 ft	Both
12	Opal Lake	Otsego	MI	A	18.5 ft	-	Both
13	Miner'S Pit West Lake	St. Louis	MN	A	23.1 ft	140 ft	Both
14	Pine Lake	Waukesha	WI	A	25 ft	85 ft	Both
15	Long Lake	Cheboygan	MI	A	18 ft	-	Both
16	Big Sand Lake	Hubbard	MN	A	23 ft	135 ft	Both
17	Lake Owen	Bayfield	WI	A	24.6 ft	95 ft	Both
18	Douglas Lake	Otsego	MI	A	16.5 ft	-	Both
19	Stony Lake	Cass	MN	A	23 ft	50 ft	Both
20	Whitefish Lake	Douglas	WI	A	24.5 ft	102 ft	Both
21	Lake Margrethe	Crawford	MI	A	16 ft	-	Both
22	Belle Taine Lake	Hubbard	MN	A	22.8 ft	56 ft	Both
23	Geneva Lake Site B	Walworth	WI	A	24.1 ft	135 ft	Both
24	Beaver Lake Central Basin; Ossineke Township	Alpena	MI	A	16 ft	-	Both
25	Little Jay Gould Lake	Itasca	MN	A	21.5 ft	56 ft	Both
26	Carlin Lake	Vilas	WI	A	24 ft	36 ft	Both
27	Diamond Lake	Osceola	MI	A	16 ft	-	Both
28	Little Long Lake	St. Louis	MN	A	21 ft	45 ft	Both
29	Stone Lake	Washburn	WI	A	23 ft	49 ft	Both
30	Lower Herring Lake East Basin; Blaire Township	Benzie	MI	A	16 ft	-	Smallmouth
31	Ten Mile Lake	Cass	MN	A	20.5 ft	208 ft	Both
32	Blue Lake	Oneida	WI	A	23 ft	49 ft	Both
33	Sanford Lake	Benzie	MI	A	15.8 ft	-	Both
34	Gilmore Lake	Hubbard	MN	A	20.3 ft	54 ft	Both
35	Forest Lake	Vilas	WI	A	23 ft	60 ft	Both
36	Burt Lake	Cheboygan	MI	A	15.5 ft	-	Both
37	Ossawinnamakee Lake	Crow Wing	MN	A	20 ft	63 ft	Both
38	Maiden Lake	Oconto	WI	A	22.7 ft	52 ft	Both
39	Pickerel Lake	Kalkaska	MI	A	15 ft	-	Both
40	Sand Lake	Cass	MN	A	20 ft	54 ft	Both
41	Lee Lake	Oneida	WI	A	22.5 ft	44 ft	Both
42	Round Lake	Benzie	MI	A	15 ft	-	Both
43	Little Sand Lake	Hubbard	MN	A	20 ft	80 ft	Both
44	Forest Lake	Vilas	WI	A	22.2 ft	60 ft	Both
45	Round Lake	Benzie	MI	A	15 ft	-	Both
46	Thunder Lake	Cass	MN	A	20 ft	95 ft	Both
47	Lake Metonga	Forest	WI	A	22 ft	79 ft	Both
48	Walloon Lake	Emmet	MI	A	-	-	Both
49	Lower Hay Lake	Crow Wing	MN	A	19.5 ft	100 ft	Both
50	Buskey Bay Lake	Bayfield	WI	A	21.9 ft	51 ft	Both

Largemouth vs. Smallmouth Bass Habitat

Smallmouth bass are a coldwater-edge species that prefer clear, deep lakes with rocky structure. They thrive in A and B graded lakes with high water clarity and moderate temperatures. Look for lakes with Secchi depth over 8 feet for the best smallmouth fishing.

Largemouth bass tolerate a wider range of water quality and prefer warmer, shallower lakes with aquatic vegetation. They can be found in lakes graded C and above. Weed beds, lily pads, and fallen timber are key habitat features.

Cleanest Lakes →Worst Water Quality →Clearest Water →Improving →Declining →

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