Largest Lakes in the World by Surface Area

Source: Wikipedia - List of lakes by volume

Largest Lakes in the World by Surface Area

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Key Findings

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Caspian Sea leads in Surface area (square kilometres) with 371,000.

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Average Surface area (square kilometres): 69,451 · median: 32,311.

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Gap: Caspian Sea is 15.1× larger than Winnipeg.

About This Dataset

Largest Lakes in the World by Surface Area

This chart ranks the world's major lakes by the area of water they cover, in square kilometres. Surface area is what maps show, and it produces a different order from a ranking by the volume of water a lake actually holds.

Analysis

Caspian Sea is the largest by surface area at 371,000 square kilometres, 4.5 times Superior on 82,100. Comparing this order with the volume ranking is the useful part: a wide, shallow lake can cover enormous ground while holding relatively little water, and a narrow, deep one does the opposite. These 12 lakes cover 833,416 square kilometres in total, of which Caspian Sea alone accounts for 45%.

Data Insights Below

Data Insights

Numbers, trends & sources behind this chart

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Data Points

12 categories · 1 year

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Top Value

371,000

Caspian Sea

Surface area (square kilometres) · All Time

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Metrics

Surface area (square kilometres)

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Period

All Time

Single year snapshot

Methodology & source

Data source: Wikipedia - List of lakes by volume
Coverage: 12 entities · 12 observations
Measure: Surface area (square kilometres)
Last updated: 10 September 2026
Compiled by: The ANYSTAT team, from the source above

How the figures are calculated

Values use the measure and unit named on this page. Consult the dataset description and cited source for coverage, definitions and any unit conversions. Displayed values may be rounded for readability.
Entities are ranked highest-first on their value.

Rankings & Full Data

12 records · Surface area (square kilometres) · ranked by All Time

✓ 12 sourced

#	Category	All Time
🥇	Caspian Sea	371,000
🥈	Superior	82,100
🥉	Victoria	59,940
4	Huron	59,590
5	Michigan	58,030
6	Tanganyika	32,900
7	Baikal	31,722
8	Great Bear	31,153
9	Malawi	29,600
10	Great Slave	27,200
11	Erie	25,667
12	Winnipeg	24,514

Data Sources & References

All external sources cited in this dataset

1 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_lakes_by_volume Visit ↗

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APA

ANYSTAT. (2026). Largest Lakes in the World by Surface Area [Data set]. Data: Wikipedia - List of lakes by volume. https://anystat.ai/stats/1711/largest-lakes-in-the-world-by-surface-area-1788986034

MLA

"Largest Lakes in the World by Surface Area." ANYSTAT, 10 Sep. 2026, https://anystat.ai/stats/1711/largest-lakes-in-the-world-by-surface-area-1788986034.

Link for your website

<a href="https://anystat.ai/stats/1711/largest-lakes-in-the-world-by-surface-area-1788986034">Largest Lakes in the World by Surface Area</a> (ANYSTAT)

Largest Lakes in the World by Surface Area