Updated Aug 2026
Florida Lake Water Quality
Water quality grades for 2,159 monitored lakes across 59 counties.
2,159 Florida lakes carry a grade. Most of the input data flows through monitoring run by the Florida Department of Environmental Protection, which feeds state, federal, and volunteer measurements into the EPA Water Quality Portal. Only about 0% of Florida's lakes pull an A grade — the smaller, agricultural-watershed lakes that dominate the dataset tend to carry persistent nutrient loads. 15% of lakes fall in the D or F brackets.
The state's lakes lean eutrophic: enough nutrient input to support an active algal community, with the trade-offs in clarity and dissolved oxygen that come with it. The cleanest county on average is Bay (grade B); the most-stressed is Okeechobee. The gap between the top and bottom counties is large enough that "Florida lake water quality" hides real local variation.
Grade Distribution
All 2,159 Florida lakes in the index: 1,370 (63.5%) carry an A–F grade and 789 (36.5%) are not rated, because they lack enough recent nutrient or algae sampling to support a letter.
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Top-Graded Florida Lakes
The highest water-quality grades in Florida — clarity, depth, and A-F grade at a glance.
Lake Map
Explore Florida Lakes
Florida reports, fishing & travel
Reservoirs in Florida
View all 101 reservoirs →101 of 2,159 Florida lakes (5%) are man-made reservoirs in the USACE National Inventory of Dams. 65 carry a High or Significant hazard rating. The oldest matched dam dates to 1949.
EPA-Impaired Lakes in Florida
View all 1,850 impaired lakes →1,850 of 2,159 Florida lakes (86%) are officially listed as impaired under Clean Water Act §303(d) in the most recent EPA ATTAINS reporting cycle. 1,000 have an approved Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) restoration plan.
Florida Fishing & Recreation
Licenses, regulations, records, and where to fish across Florida.
Counties
All 59 Florida counties, ranked by average lake water quality. Compare them against every county nationwide in the county rankings, browse the full directory of graded lakes, or pick a different state.
Top 25 Cleanest Lakes
25 lakes25 graded lakes
| # | Lake | County | Grade | Clarity | Trophic | Access |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | AJacc Lake | Walton | A | 9.3 ft | Mesotrophic | ✓ Public |
| 2 | BBay-Deer Point Lake | Bay | B | 4 ft | Mesotrophic | Not recorded |
| 3 | BLake Lancaster West | Orange | B | 3.5 ft | Eutrophic | Not recorded |
| 4 | BEastern Lake Outlet | Walton | B | 4.2 ft | Eutrophic | Not recorded |
| 5 | BHighlands-Sirena Lake | Highlands | B | 16 ft | Oligotrophic | Not recorded |
| 6 | BSeminole-Secret Lake | Seminole | B | 4.5 ft | Eutrophic | Not recorded |
| 7 | BSpring Lake | Seminole | B | 2.9 ft | Eutrophic | Not recorded |
| 8 | BBrevard-Clear Lake | Brevard | B | 9.8 ft | Mesotrophic | ✓ Public |
| 9 | BPolk-Fannie Lake | Polk | B | 3.5 ft | Eutrophic | ✓ Public |
| 10 | BVolusia-North Talmadge Lake | Volusia | B | 4.5 ft | Eutrophic | Not recorded |
| 11 | BSeminole-Spring Lake | Seminole | B | 3 ft | Eutrophic | Not recorded |
| 12 | BAlachua-Santa Fe Painter Canal Lake | Alachua | B | 5.5 ft | Eutrophic | Not recorded |
| 13 | BLake Rowena | Orange | B | 1.8 ft | Eutrophic | Not recorded |
| 14 | BSeminole-Little Howell Lake | Seminole | B | 5 ft | Eutrophic | Not recorded |
| 15 | BMarion-Deerback Lake | Marion | B | 7 ft | Mesotrophic | Not recorded |
| 16 | BPutnam-Suggs Lake | Putnam | B | 2 ft | Eutrophic | Not recorded |
| 17 | BHillsborough-Flynn Lake | Hillsborough | B | 6 ft | Mesotrophic | Not recorded |
| 18 | BWestern Lake Middle | Walton | B | 4 ft | Mesotrophic | Not recorded |
| 19 | BAlachua-Elizabeth Lake | Alachua | B | 3 ft | Eutrophic | Not recorded |
| 20 | BLake-Emma | Lake | B | 6.5 ft | Mesotrophic | Not recorded |
| 21 | BHillsborough-Lutz Lake | Hillsborough | B | 6.5 ft | Mesotrophic | Not recorded |
| 22 | BCamp Creek Roadside Lake | Walton | B | 3.3 ft | Mesotrophic | Not recorded |
| 23 | BHillsborough-Dan Lake | Hillsborough | B | 4.8 ft | Eutrophic | Not recorded |
| 24 | BCampbell Lake Middle | Walton | B | 9 ft | Mesotrophic | Not recorded |
| 25 | BWalton-Powell Lake | Walton | B | 3.5 ft | Eutrophic | Not recorded |
25 Lakes Needing Attention
25 lakes25 graded lakes
| # | Lake | County | Grade | Clarity |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | DLake Diane Outfall | Pinellas | D | No recent samples |
| 2 | DSouth Channel From Lake Suemar | Pinellas | D | No recent samples |
| 3 | DWest Pond Outfall | Charlotte | D | No recent samples |
| 4 | DBeaudette Pond Middle | Hillsborough | D | No recent samples |
| 5 | DBeaudette Pond West | Hillsborough | D | No recent samples |
| 6 | DBeaudette Pond Inlet | Hillsborough | D | No recent samples |
| 7 | DBeaudette Pond Outlet | Hillsborough | D | No recent samples |
| 8 | DBehind Jacaranda Rest Lake | Lee | D | No recent samples |
| 9 | DMud Lake Dock | Hillsborough | D | No recent samples |
| 10 | DCity Hall Lake | Lee | D | No recent samples |
| 11 | DPointe Santo Pond | Lee | D | No recent samples |
| 12 | DRv Park Pond | Lee | D | No recent samples |
| 13 | DSanibel Lake Estates Lake | Lee | D | No recent samples |
| 14 | DPeriwinkle Place Lake | Lee | D | No recent samples |
| 15 | DTwin Pond West | Lee | D | No recent samples |
| 16 | DSouthern Tradewinds Lake | Lee | D | No recent samples |
| 17 | DRoadside Park Island Water Assoc. Pond | Lee | D | No recent samples |
| 18 | DBrightwater Lake of St. Kilda | Lee | D | No recent samples |
| 19 | DCasa Ybel Large Pond | Lee | D | No recent samples |
| 20 | DLake | Lee | D | No recent samples |
| 21 | DNorthern Lake | Lee | D | No recent samples |
| 22 | DSmith Lake Nwr Bailey Tract | Lee | D | No recent samples |
| 23 | DWaterbody Lake | Lee | D | No recent samples |
| 24 | DNorthern Lake | Lee | D | No recent samples |
| 25 | DRmp Lake Bailey Tract | Lee | D | No recent samples |
Lake Match
Which lake suits how you actually use one?
Six questions — swimming, fishing, quiet, cabins, drive time — and a shortlist of graded lakes that fit, with the water quality behind each one.
Source: EPA National Aquatic Resource Surveys and the EPA Water Quality Portal.
More on lake water quality
The top-graded lake in every state we cover, picked grade-first with water clarity as the tie-breaker — plus the states whose winner is still not clean.
State-by-state Secchi champions: the clearest measured lake in each U.S. state we grade, which is not the same as the cleanest nutrient grade.
A data snapshot of the lakes we grade: how the A–F distribution breaks down, the clearest and the greenest states, and where the water is improving.
How lakes are graded A–F on nutrients and algae using EPA ecoregion condition classes, what each letter means in the water, and why an A is not a clearance.