Below are the reservoirs (artificial lakes) in the world with a surface area exceeding . Reservoirs can be formed conventionally, by damming the outlet of a canyon or valley to form a lake; the largest of this type is Ghana's Lake Volta, with a water surface of . Reservoirs can also be formed by damming the outlets of natural lakes to regulate water levels, such as ones at Uganda's Owen Falls Dam (Lake Victoria) and Russia's Irkutsk Dam (Lake Baikal); they are included here and indicated with a light blue cell background.
Large reservoir area does not necessarily coincide with large volume, as reservoirs with a large area tend to be shallow, such as at Suriname's Brokopondo Reservoir, with an average depth of just . In comparison, Canada's Kinbasket Lake, with an average depth of , has a volume 25 percent greater – but with a surface area of just , does not meet the cutoff for inclusion in this list.
List
NameCountryDamOutflowSurface area RefImagekm2mi2Lake VictoriaOwen Falls DamWhite NileIrkutsk Reservoir–Lake BaikalIrkutsk DamAngara RiverLake WinnipegJenpeg DamNelson RiverLake VoltaAkosombo DamVolta RiverSmallwood ReservoirMultipleChurchill RiverReindeer LakeWhitesand DamReindeer RiverKuybyshev ReservoirZhiguli DamVolga RiverLake KaribaKariba DamZambezi RiverBukhtarma ReservoirBukhtarma DamIrtysh RiverBratsk ReservoirBratsk DamAngara RiverLake NasserAswan DamNileRybinsk ReservoirRybinsk DamVolga RiverCaniapiscau ReservoirMultipleCaniapiscau RiverLake GuriGuri DamCaroni RiverSobradinho ReservoirSobradinho DamSão Francisco RiverVolgograd ReservoirVolga DamVolga RiverLago TucuruíTucuruí DamTocantins RiverRobert-Bourassa ReservoirRobert-Bourassa DamLa Grande RiverTsimlyansk ReservoirTsimlyansky DamDon RiverCahora Bassa LakeCahora Bassa DamZambezi RiverLa Grande-3 ReservoirLa Grande-3 DamLa Grande RiverVilyuy ReservoirVilyuy DamVilyuy RiverKaptai lakeKaptai DamKarnaphuli RiverBalbina ReservoirBalbina DamUatumã RiverSanmenxia ReservoirSanmenxia DamYellow RiverBoguchany ReservoirBoguchany DamAngara RiverSérgio Motta ReservoirEng Sérgio Motta DamParaná RiverUst-Khantai ReservoirUst-Khantai DamKhantayka RiverCheboksary ReservoirCheboksary DamVolga RiverKremenchuk ReservoirKremenchuk DamDnieper RiverLake ArgyleOrd River DamOrd RiverKrasnoyarsk ReservoirKrasnoyarsk DamYenisei RiverManicouagan ReservoirDaniel-Johnson DamManicouagan RiverUst-Ilimsk ReservoirUst-Ilimsk DamAngara RiverKama ReservoirKama DamKama RiverKapchagay ReservoirKapchagay DamIli RiverSaratov ReservoirBalakovo DamVolga RiverWilliston LakeW.A.C. Bennett DamPeace RiverYacyretá ReservoirYacyretá DamParaná RiverLake SakakaweaGarrison DamMissouri RiverLake OaheOahe DamMissouri RiverBrokopondo ReservoirAfobaka DamSuriname RiverFurnas ReservoirFurnas DamGrande RiverItaipu ReservoirItaipu DamParaná RiverLaforge-1 ReservoirLaforge-1 DamLaforge RiverRincón del Bonete ReservoirRincón del Bonete DamRío Negro River1,240480Nechako ReservoirKenney DamNechako RiverUnknownStiegler's Gorge ReservoirStiegler's Gorge DamRufiji RiverIlha Solteira ReservoirIlha Solteira DamParaná RiverVotkinsk ReservoirVotkinsk DamKama RiverNizhnekamsk ReservoirNizhnekamsk DamKama RiverThree Gorges ReservoirThree Gorges DamYangtze RiverNovosibirsk ReservoirNovosibirsk DamOb RiverJebel Aulia ReservoirJebel Aulia DamWhite NileDanjiangkou ReservoirDanjiangkou DamHan RiverTrês Marias ReservoirTrês Marias DamSão Francisco RiverPipmuacan ReservoirBersimis-1 DamBetsiamites RiverFort Peck LakeFort Peck DamMissouri RiverKyiv ReservoirKyiv DamDnieper RiverShardara ReservoirShardara DamSyr DaryaEl Chocón ReservoirEl Chocón DamLimay RiverTruman ReservoirHarry S. Truman DamOsage RiverLuiz Gonzaga ReservoirLuiz Gonzaga DamSão Francisco River Lake Atatürk DamAtatürk DamEuphrates RiverSrisailam ReservoirSrisailam DamKrishna RiverItumbiara ReservoirItumbiara DamParanaíba RiverLa Grande-4 ReservoirLa Grande-4 DamLa Grande RiverToledo Bend ReservoirToledo Bend DamSabine RiverHirakud ReservoirHirakud DamMahanadi RiverEmborcação ReservoirEmborcação DamParanaíba RiverLake PowellGlen Canyon DamColorado RiverKaniv ReservoirKaniv DamDnieper RiverKeban ReservoirKeban DamEuphratesSão Simão ReservoirSão Simão DamParanaíba RiverLake MeadHoover DamColorado RiverÁgua Vermelha ReservoirÁgua Vermelha DamGrande RiverOutardes-4 ReservoirOutardes-4 DamOutardes RiverLake AssadTabqa DamEuphratesMingachevir ReservoirMingachevir DamKura RiverEastmain ReservoirMultipleEastmain RiverKamianske ReservoirKamianske DamDnieper RiverKayrakkum ReservoirKayrakkum DamSyr DaryaCapivara ReservoirCapivara DamParanapanema River
See also List of reservoirs by volume
Notes
References
de:Liste der größten Stauseen der Erde