What State Has the Most Lakes in the U.S.?

Several states in the Great Lakes region (Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, and Pennsylvania) border the five Great Lakes and contain numerous inland lakes.

The eight Great Lakes states (this one, plus Minnesota, Wisconsin, Michigan, and New York) collectively share the largest freshwater system in the world.

The Great Lakes (Superior, Michigan, Huron, Erie and Ontario) contain about 20 percent of the planet’s surface fresh water and stretch thousands of square kilometers between the United States and Canada.

When researchers decided how to measure which state has the most lakes, they found the answer depended on the definitions. Some studies only count named lakes, while others include unnamed ponds and smaller bodies of water.

Regardless, the northern part of the country shaped by glaciers contains many lakes. Maps of these freshwater sites show how geology, climate, and watersheds helped create so many lakes across the United States.

We created this article in collaboration with AI technology, then made sure it was fact-checked and edited by a HowStuffWorks editor.