Assessed acreage ranking · Michigan · EPA ATTAINS
Largest lakes in Michigan
Ranked by the acreage Michigan attached to each lake-type assessment unit in EPA ATTAINS, the federal system holding Integrated Report decisions under Clean Water Act sections 303(d) and 305(b). Assessed acreage is the regulatory unit's size, which can differ from a lake's full surface area. Great Lakes rows are Michigan's jurisdictional units, not the whole lake, and nested units under different names are listed separately.
- 5,815,360
- #1: Lake Huron (Michigan Jurisdiction) (acres)
- 25
- Ranked waterbodies
- 4,307
- Reported in Michigan
This ranking in one line
Lake Huron (Michigan Jurisdiction) is the largest lake-type assessment unit Michigan filed at 9,086.50 square miles (5,815,360 acres), with an overall status of Not Supporting and 4 listed impairment causes.
- #1
- Lake Huron (Michigan Jurisdiction)
- Assessed area
- 9,086.50 square miles (5,815,360 acres)
- Status
- Not Supporting
Data updated 2026-08-17
According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's ATTAINS program, Michigan files 4,307 lake-type waterbodies in the August 2026 extract, and this ranking orders the 25 largest by the assessed acreage the state attached to each unit. See our methodology for reporting-unit limits and refresh cadence.
Assessment verdicts across Michigan's 25 largest
Latest overall status filed for each ranked assessment unit
- Not Supporting
Not Supporting
23 units
- Fully Supporting 2
Fully Supporting
2 units
What this shows 23 of the 25 largest assessed lake units carry a Not Supporting verdict.
Every row
Full ranking
| # | Name | Assessed acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Lake Huron (Michigan Jurisdiction) Not Supporting | 5,815,360 |
| 2 | Lake Michigan South of Frankfort (Michigan Jurisdiction) Not Supporting | 5,665,920 |
| 3 | St. Marys River Largest of 2 assessment units the state files for this water Not Supporting | 129,983 |
| 4 | Lake St. Clair (Michigan Jurisdiction) Not Supporting | 103,616 |
| 5 | Lake Erie (Michigan Jurisdiction) Not Supporting | 71,680 |
| 6 | Houghton Lake Not Supporting | 20,066 |
| 7 | Torch Lake Not Supporting | 18,713 |
| 8 | Burt Lake Not Supporting | 17,395 |
| 9 | Lake Charlevoix Not Supporting | 17,324 |
| 10 | Mullett Lake Not Supporting | 16,701 |
| 11 | Lake Gogebic Not Supporting | 13,079 |
| 12 | Manistique Lake Not Supporting | 10,336 |
| 13 | Higgins Lake Not Supporting | 10,189 |
| 14 | Black Lake Fully Supporting | 10,110 |
| 15 | Crystal Lake Not Supporting | 9,867 |
| 16 | Hubbard Lake Not Supporting | 8,776 |
| 17 | Indian Lake Fully Supporting | 8,638 |
| 18 | Portage Lake Not Supporting | 8,464 |
| 19 | Elk Lake Largest of 2 assessment units the state files for this water Not Supporting | 8,045 |
| 20 | Fletcher Pond Not Supporting | 6,814 |
| 21 | Grand Lake Not Supporting | 5,823 |
| 22 | South Lake Leelanau Not Supporting | 5,694 |
| 23 | Michigamme Reservoir Not Supporting | 5,440 |
| 24 | Long Lake Not Supporting | 5,347 |
| 25 | Big Glen Lake Not Supporting | 4,872 |
Ordered by the size Michigan filed for each assessment unit. States file this figure in acres or in square miles; square-mile filings are converted at 640 acres per square mile and each record page shows the state’s own number. Units filed only as a shoreline length in miles are a different quantity and are not ranked here. Great Lakes appear as Michigan jurisdiction units, not whole-lake surfaces.
Reading this ranking
- See Michigan's full assessment picture, status mix, causes, and gauged lakes on the state profile. Michigan profile
- Compare assessed-acreage rankings nationwide, with multi-state splits disclosed. U.S. largest lakes
- Understand reporting-unit limits, multi-unit lakes, and refresh cadence. Methodology
Rankings order reported source data; they are not endorsements or safety determinations.
Rankings are computed from state assessment decisions in EPA's ATTAINS system and USGS National Water Information System daily values; the ordering metric and any exclusion floor are stated above the table, no number is typed in by an editor. Ranking recomputed from Michigan's ingested ATTAINS lake-type units on every data refresh. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of 2026-08-17. Primary sources: EPA ATTAINS and USGS National Water Information System.