Lake ErieThe shallowest Great Lake and the smallest by volume
A broad sheet over a shallow floor.
- Surface area
- 25,700 km²
- Water volume
- 484 km³
- Max depth
- 64 m
See its true size
One shared area scaleBoth outlines share one area scale. The bars compare water volume.
Reference data: Encyclopædia Britannica: jezioro Bajkał (2024).
Simplified outlines: Natural Earth (public domain), reprojected to one shared scale.
among the 18 lakes in this section
Erie holds the least water of all the Great Lakes. With a mean depth of 19 m, its large surface contains less than one third of the volume held by the smaller Lake Ontario.
The map intuition
The fourth largest Great Lake, so plenty of water.
About the lake
Erie covers 25,700 km² and ranks fourth among the five Great Lakes by area. Its mean depth is only 19 m and its maximum depth is 64 m, making it the shallowest Great Lake.
That shallow basin holds only 484 km³ of water, the least of any Great Lake and less than one third of Lake Ontario's volume. Erie warms quickly in summer and develops the most extensive ice cover of the five in winter.
- Mean depth
- 19 m
- Surface elevation
- 174 m a.s.l.
- Location
- USA / Canada
- Type
- glacial lake
Where the lake is
Lake Erie: Questions
It is very shallow, averaging about 19 m. Across 25,700 km², that yields only 484 km³, the least of any Great Lake.
Yes. As the shallowest Great Lake, it cools fastest and can become almost completely ice covered during severe winters.
About 484 km³, the least of the Great Lakes. Erie has a larger surface than Ontario, but Ontario holds more than three times as much water.
Sources and data year
Outline: Natural Earth, public domain. Simplified and reprojected.