Largest Lakes in Michigan

38 Michigan lakes with measured surface area, ranked by acreage. The biggest lake in Michigan is Hubbard Lake, which tops the list at 8,800 acres in Alcona County.

Lakes with area data

8,800

Largest (acres)

361

Median of top 38

38/38

Reservoirs (vs natural)

Reading Michigan's size profile

Michigan's largest lake by surface area is Hubbard Lake in Alcona County, spanning 8,800 acres. Most of Michigan's biggest waters are reservoirs — dammed river valleys built for water supply, flood control, and recreation, so their footprints shift with pool level.

Surface area is a poor proxy for water quality on its own — a large lake can hold a clean, deep core and a nutrient-loaded bay at the same time. Each lake below links to its full report card with grade, clarity, depth, and EPA impairment status. Area figures come from state DNR surveys and the USACE National Inventory of Dams; grades come from EPA and state monitoring data.

The 38 biggest lakes in Michigan by surface area

#	Lake	County	Surface area	Max depth	Grade
1	Hubbard Lake	Alcona	8,800 acres	-	A
2	Lake Independence	Marquette	2,071 acres	-	C
3	Gull Lake	Kalamazoo	2,050 acres	-	B
4	Lake Bellaire	Antrim	1,520 acres	-	C
5	Tippy Pond by Dam	Manistee	1,330 acres	-	A
6	Van Etten Lake	Iosco	1,320 acres	-	D
7	Lake Lancer	Gladwin	977 acres	-	A
8	Lake James	Roscommon	900 acres	-	C
9	Lake Templene	St. Joseph	870 acres	-	D
10	Corey Lake Southeastern Basin; Fabius Township	St. Joseph	567 acres	-	A
11	Lake Orion	Oakland	470 acres	-	B
12	Lakeville Lake	Oakland	460 acres	-	C
13	Lake Lansing Northwest Basin; Meridian Township	Ingham	453 acres	-	A
14	Rogers Dam Pond; Central Basin; Mecosta Township	Mecosta	449 acres	-	B
15	Whitmore Lake	Livingston	441 acres	-	C
16	Horsehead Lake	Mecosta	430 acres	-	B
17	Lobdell Lake West Basin; Argentine Township	Genesee	416 acres	-	C
18	Lake Ovid	Clinton	413 acres	-	D
19	Wormer Lake	Oakland	370 acres	-	B
20	Canadian Lake Southeast Basin; Morton Township	Mecosta	361 acres	-	F
21	Avery Lake	Montmorency	322 acres	-	A
22	Lake Lapeer	Lapeer	297 acres	-	D
23	Lake Diane South Basin; Amboy Township	Hillsdale	290 acres	-	D
24	Cedar Island Lake	Oakland	290 acres	-	B
25	Sugarloaf Lake	Washtenaw	280 acres	-	C
26	Lake Lancelot	Gladwin	250 acres	-	C
27	Louis Lake East Central Basin; Waucedah Township	Dickinson	230 acres	-	B
28	Posey Lake	Lenawee	150 acres	-	D
29	Wakeley Lake; Central Basin; Grayling Township	Crawford	149 acres	-	B
30	Oneal Lake	Emmet	138 acres	-	A
31	Little Lake Twenty	Gladwin	128 acres	-	C
32	Crystal Lake	Hillsdale	125 acres	-	B
33	Barnes Lake	Lapeer	110 acres	-	A
34	Shavehead Lake	Cass	93 acres	-	C
35	Tull Lake Central Basin; White Lake Township	Oakland	81 acres	-	D
36	Thread Lake Central Basin	Genesee	80 acres	-	C
37	Hemmingway Lake	Lapeer	65 acres	-	C
38	Lake Victoria	Clinton	52 acres	-	C

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the largest lake in Michigan?

The largest lake in Michigan in the LakeGrade dataset is Hubbard Lake in Alcona County at 8,800 acres. Water quality grade: A.

How is lake surface area measured?

Surface area comes from state DNR lake surveys and, for reservoirs, US Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) National Inventory of Dams records. Area is reported in acres at normal pool level. Reservoirs rise and fall with management and drought, so their listed area is the long-term normal rather than a single-day reading.

Are Michigan's largest lakes natural or reservoirs?

Of the top 38 Michigan lakes by area, 38 sit on a dammed river (reservoirs) and 0 are natural basins. Glacial states (MN, WI, MI, NY) skew natural; plains and southern states (MO, IA, ND, OH) skew toward reservoirs built for water supply, flood control, and recreation.

Do larger lakes have better water quality?

Not reliably. Quality varies more within a big lake than between lakes — a large lake can have a clean, deep main basin and a murky, algae-prone bay fed by a tributary, so one grade can mask wide swings. Depth, watershed land use, and how fast the lake flushes matter far more than raw surface area.

How big is the typical Michigan lake in this ranking?

Across the top 38 Michigan lakes by surface area, the median is 361 acres (Canadian Lake Southeast Basin; Morton Township). This list is biased toward the biggest waters; the typical Michigan lake is far smaller.

Where to stay near Michigan's largest lakes

Planning a trip? Jump to live cabin, resort, and hotel availability near Michigan's biggest lakes.

Deepest lakes in Michigan →Cleanest lakes in Michigan →Largest lakes (all states) →All Michigan lakes →