Largest Lakes in New York

50 New York lakes with measured surface area, ranked by acreage. The biggest lake in New York is Otisco Lake, which tops the list at 2,291 acres in Onondaga County.

Lakes with area data

2,291

Largest (acres)

194

Median of top 50

50/50

Reservoirs (vs natural)

Reading New York's size profile

New York's largest lake by surface area is Otisco Lake in Onondaga County, spanning 2,291 acres. Most of New York'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 50 biggest lakes in New York by surface area

#	Lake	County	Surface area	Max depth	Grade
1	Otisco Lake	Onondaga	2,291 acres	-	D
2	Lake Placid	Essex	2,173 acres	-	A
3	Hemlock Lake	Livingston	2,054 acres	-	B
4	Peck Lake	Fulton	1,300 acres	-	B
5	Lake Bonaparte	Lewis	1,286 acres	-	A
6	Silver Lake	Wyoming	761 acres	-	C
7	Canadice Lake	Ontario	657 acres	-	A
8	Galway Lake	Saratoga	564 acres	-	B
9	Deruyter Reservoir	Madison	560 acres	-	A
10	South Lake	Herkimer	499 acres	-	A
11	Lincoln Pond	Essex	475 acres	-	A
12	Cuba Lake	Allegany	465 acres	-	B
13	Friends Lake	Warren	450 acres	-	B
14	Deer River Flow Lake	Franklin	403 acres	-	F
15	Burden Lake	Rensselaer	369 acres	-	A
16	Tuscarora Lake	Madison	362 acres	-	A
17	Kinderhook Lake	Columbia	350 acres	-	D
18	Findley Lake	Chautauqua	330 acres	-	C
19	Brantingham Lake	Lewis	327 acres	-	B
20	Sleepy Hollow Lake	Greene	324 acres	-	D
21	Lake Moraine	Madison	260 acres	-	A
22	Jamesville Reservoir	Onondaga	252 acres	-	D
23	Pleasant Lake	Fulton	248 acres	-	B
24	Lake Carmel	Putnam	240 acres	-	D
25	Pleasure Lake	Sullivan	218 acres	-	D
26	Hadlock Pond	Washington	194 acres	-	B
27	Lime Lake	Cattaraugus	154 acres	-	C
28	Upper Little York Lake	Cortland	150 acres	-	B
29	Bradley Brook Reservoir	Madison	141 acres	-	A
30	Otter Lake	Oneida	135 acres	-	D
31	Oquaga Lake	Broome	134 acres	-	A
32	Hatch Lake	Madison	134 acres	-	B
33	Canada Lake	Fulton	128 acres	-	B
34	Robinson Pond	Columbia	125 acres	-	B
35	Kirk Lake	Putnam	124 acres	-	D
36	Duane Lake	Schenectady	120 acres	-	D
37	Roaring Brook Lake	Putnam	112 acres	-	C
38	Genegantslet Lake	Chenango	112 acres	-	B
39	Lake Luzerne	Warren	111 acres	-	A
40	Sagamore Lake	Putnam	96 acres	-	D
41	Plymouth Reservoir	Chenango	77 acres	-	D
42	Guilford Lake	Chenango	74 acres	-	B
43	Barrett Pond	Putnam	70 acres	-	B
44	Swamp Pond	Sullivan	64 acres	-	D
45	Sage Pond	Oswego	60 acres	-	D
46	Kasoag Lake	Oswego	58 acres	-	C
47	Seven Hills Lake	Putnam	56 acres	-	D
48	Lake Peekskill	Putnam	52 acres	-	D
49	China Pond	Putnam	45 acres	-	A
50	Ellis Lake	Cortland	44 acres	-	C

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the largest lake in New York?

The largest lake in New York in the LakeGrade dataset is Otisco Lake in Onondaga County at 2,291 acres. Water quality grade: D.

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 New York's largest lakes natural or reservoirs?

Of the top 50 New York lakes by area, 50 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 New York lake in this ranking?

Across the top 50 New York lakes by surface area, the median is 194 acres (Hadlock Pond). This list is biased toward the biggest waters; the typical New York lake is far smaller.

Where to stay near New York's largest lakes

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

Deepest lakes in New York →Cleanest lakes in New York →Largest lakes (all states) →All New York lakes →