IN · ranked by public data

The 25 Biggest Lakes in Indiana

The biggest lakes in Indiana, ranked by surface area computed from USGS National Hydrography Dataset lake polygons — one consistent federal source for every lake, reservoirs and natural lakes alike. Lake Michigan is excluded; this list is inland water only.

32 Indiana lakes cover at least 500 NHD-mapped acres.

32lakes cover at least 500 NHD-mapped acres

Monroe Lake#1 at 11,112 acres

Kosciusko Countymost qualifying lakes (5)

Methodology

How we rank Indiana's biggest lakes

Ranked by surface area computed from USGS National Hydrography Dataset (NHD) lake polygons — consistent federal geometry, not state-documented acreage; figures can differ modestly from traditionally cited ones.
Reservoirs count — most of Indiana's biggest water is impounded (Monroe, Patoka, Brookville).
Lake Michigan is excluded — this list ranks inland lakes.
Lakes whose mapped polygon could not be confidently matched are excluded rather than guessed.
Lakes under 50 acres are excluded from rankings.
Public access inventories are not yet tracked for Indiana here, so access is never shown or ranked.

Every number on this page comes from the same public agency records that power each lake's profile, and the list is recomputed as that data updates — it cannot silently go stale the way a hand-written top-10 does.

The ranking

Indiana's biggest lakes, ranked

111,112 ac
11,112 acres
Monroe County, IN
Monroe Lake
limited
39.06, -86.4311,112 acres0 public access pointsSpecies pending
11,112 acres
29,121 ac
9,121 acres
Orange County, IN
Patoka Lake
limited
38.41, -86.649,121 acres0 public access pointsSpecies pending
9,121 acres
34,364 ac
4,364 acres
Franklin County, IN
Brookville Lake
limited
39.51, -84.994,364 acres0 public access pointsSpecies pending
4,364 acres
43,426 ac
3,426 acres
Kosciusko County, IN
Lake Wawasee
limitedDepth map
41.40, -85.703,426 acres | 75 ft max0 public access pointsSpecies pending
3,426 acres · 75 ft max depth
52,942 ac
2,942 acres
Gibson County, IN
Broad Pond
limited
38.35, -87.762,942 acres0 public access pointsSpecies pending
2,942 acres
62,874 ac
2,874 acres
Huntington County, IN
Salamonie Lake
limited
40.77, -85.612,874 acres0 public access pointsSpecies pending
2,874 acres
72,160 ac
2,160 acres
Wabash County, IN
Mississinewa Lake
limited
40.69, -85.902,160 acres0 public access pointsSpecies pending
2,160 acres
81,910 ac
1,910 acres
Marshall County, IN
Lake Maxinkuckee
limited
41.20, -86.401,910 acres0 public access pointsSpecies pending
1,910 acres
91,883 ac
1,883 acres
Steuben County, IN
Lake James
limited
41.71, -85.041,883 acres0 public access pointsSpecies pending
1,883 acres
101,674 ac
1,674 acres
Parke County, IN
Cecil M Harden Lake
limited
39.72, -87.061,674 acres0 public access pointsSpecies pending
1,674 acres

Rank	Lake	County	Acres	Max depth
11	Lake Freeman	White	1,569 ac	—
12	Turtle Creek Lake	Sullivan	1,558 ac	—
13	Lake Lemon	Monroe	1,454 ac	—
14	Bass Lake	Starke	1,436 ac	—
15	Hovey Lake	Posey	1,370 ac	—
16	Cagles Mill Lake	Owen	1,235 ac	—
17	Dogwood Lake	Daviess	1,235 ac	—
18	Tippecanoe Lake	Kosciusko	840 ac	—
19	Hamilton Lake	Steuben	835 ac	—
20	Greenwood Lake	Martin	831 ac	—
21	Clear Lake	Steuben	815 ac	—
22	Colonial Pond	Fulton	810 ac	—
23	Crooked Lake	Steuben	801 ac	—
24	Cedar Lake	Lake	797 ac	12 ft
25	J C Murphey Lake	Newton	754 ac	8 ft

By county

Biggest lakes by county

Kosciusko County (5)

Lake Wawasee · 3,426 ac

Steuben County (5)

Lake James · 1,883 ac

Daviess County (2)

Dogwood Lake · 1,235 ac

Monroe County (2)

Monroe Lake · 11,112 ac

Franklin County (1)

Brookville Lake · 4,364 ac

Fulton County (1)

Colonial Pond · 810 ac

Gibson County (1)

Broad Pond · 2,942 ac

Huntington County (1)

Salamonie Lake · 2,874 ac

Lake County (1)

Cedar Lake · 797 ac

LaPorte County (1)

Pine Lake · 583 ac

Marshall County (1)

Lake Maxinkuckee · 1,910 ac

Martin County (1)

Greenwood Lake · 831 ac

FAQ

Indiana lake records FAQ

What is the biggest lake in Indiana?

Monroe Lake — Monroe Lake in Monroe County is the biggest inland lake in Indiana by USGS NHD surface area, at 11,112 acres.

How many Indiana lakes cover at least 500 NHD-mapped acres?

32 Indiana lakes currently cover at least 500 NHD-mapped acresin LakeList's aggregation of public DNR records.

Where do these numbers come from?

Every figure is drawn from public agency data — USGS National Hydrography Dataset lake polygons (computed surface area) — as aggregated by LakeList. Each lake links to a full profile showing the underlying records.

Best lakes by species All Indiana lakes

Source data: USGS National Hydrography Dataset lake polygons as aggregated by LakeList. NHD-computed area can differ modestly from traditionally cited acreages.Lake outlines are shoreline shapes from LakeList and the USGS National Hydrography Dataset; they illustrate a lake's form and are not depth or navigation charts.