ChowChowRankings
English

Lakes in South America Ranked by Surface area

Lakes recorded in Wikidata, ranked by Surface area. Figures can vary with water level and season. Only items Wikidata places in South America (directly or through their country) are included. Source: Wikidata (CC0 1.0 (public domain)).

Summary

Lake Tauca ranks #1 with 80,000 km². That is 6.1 times Lake Maracaibo in second place (13,210 km²). The top five are Lake Tauca, Lake Maracaibo, Lagoa dos Patos, Titicaca and Sobradinho Reservoir. The median across all 50 is 322.3 km²; Laguna de Castillos is last at 82.6 km².

#1
Lake Tauca · 80,000 km²
Median
322.3 km²
Coverage
50 lakes in South America
Data year
As recorded in Wikidata
Last updated
2026-11-14
Top 10: Surface areaBar chart of the top 10: 1. Lake Tauca 80,000; 2. Lake Maracaibo 13,210; 3. Lagoa dos Patos 10,000; 4. Titicaca 8,562; 5. Sobradinho Reservoir 4,220; 6. Lagoa Mirim 3,994; 7. Salar de Coipasa 2,218; 8. Lake General Carrera/Buenos Aires 1,850; 9. Argentino Lake 1,415; 10. Itaipu Reservoir 1,350.Lake Tauca80,000Lake Maracaibo13,210Lagoa dos Patos10,000Titicaca8,562Sobradinho Reservoir4,220Lagoa Mirim3,994Salar de Coipasa2,218Lake General Carrera/Bu…1,850Argentino Lake1,415Itaipu Reservoir1,350
Top 10: Surface area (km²). Bar chart of the top 10: 1. Lake Tauca 80,000; 2. Lake Maracaibo 13,210; 3. Lagoa dos Patos 10,000; 4. Titicaca 8,562; 5. Sobradinho Reservoir 4,220; 6. Lagoa Mirim 3,994; 7. Salar de Coipasa 2,218; 8. Lake General Carrera/Buenos Aires 1,850; 9. Argentino Lake 1,415; 10. Itaipu Reservoir 1,350.

Full ranking

Lakes in South America Ranked by Surface area
RankLakeLocationSurface area (km²)
1Lake TaucaPeru80,000
2Lake MaracaiboVenezuela, RB13,210
3Lagoa dos PatosBrazil10,000
4TiticacaPeru, Bolivia8,562
5Sobradinho ReservoirBrazil4,220
6Lagoa MirimUruguay, Brazil3,994
7Salar de CoipasaChile, Bolivia2,218
8Lake General Carrera/Buenos AiresChile, Argentina1,850
9Argentino LakeArgentina1,415
10Itaipu ReservoirBrazil, Paraguay1,350
11Poopó LakeBolivia1,340
12Lago DeseadoChile, Argentina1,212
13O'Higgins/San Martín LakeChile, Argentina1,058
14Llanquihue LakeChile860
15Coipasa LakeBolivia806
16Lagoa MangueiraBrazil800
17Llancanelo LakeArgentina650
18Escondido LakeArgentina632
19Lago de CoariBrazil624
20Lake FagnanoChile, Argentina590
21Ranco LakeChile442
22Lake MustersArgentina414
23Embalse Cerros ColoradosArgentina413.1
24Cardiel LakeArgentina345
25Huaytunas LakeBolivia329.5
26Rogaguado LakeBolivia315
27Presidente Ríos LakeChile313
28Mandioré LakeBolivia300
29Cochrane/Pueyrredón LakeChile, Argentina271
30Uru Uru LakeBolivia260
31Lake JunínPeru260
32Laguna de GuayatayocArgentina240
33Rupanco LakeChile223
34Del Toro LakeChile202
35Cáceres LakeBolivia200
36La Gaiba LakeBrazil, Bolivia200
37Concepción LakeBolivia200
38Lago MamiáBrazil200
39Todos los Santos LakeChile178.5
40Villarrica LakeChile176
41Laguna de los Pozuelos natural monumentArgentina162.2
42Puyehue LakeChile157
43Rogagua LakeBolivia155
44Lake TeféBrazil145
45Palena/General Vintter LakeChile, Argentina135
46Pastos Grandes LakeBolivia120
47Yelcho LakeChile116
48Embalse del NihuilArgentina96
49Sarmiento LakeChile90
50Laguna de CastillosUruguay82.6

About the top 10

#3 Lagoa dos Patos

Lagoa dos Patos ranks #3 on this list with 10,000 km².

Country
Brazil
Length
265 km
Elevation
5 m
Area
10,000 km²
Maximum depth
7 m

Also ranks #20 in surface area.

Full lake profile

#6 Lagoa Mirim

Lagoa Mirim ranks #6 on this list with 3,994 km².

Countries
Uruguay, Brazil
Length
185 km
Elevation
1 m
Area
3,994 km²
Maximum depth
12 m

Also ranks #48 in surface area.

Full lake profile

#7 Salar de Coipasa

Salar de Coipasa ranks #7 on this list with 2,218 km².

Countries
Chile, Bolivia
Length
70 km
Elevation
3,666 m
Area
2,218 km²

Also ranks #70 in surface area.

Full lake profile

#9 Argentino Lake

Argentino Lake ranks #9 on this list with 1,415 km².

Country
Argentina
Elevation
187 m
Area
1,415 km²
Maximum depth
150 m

Full lake profile

#10 Itaipu Reservoir

Itaipu Reservoir ranks #10 on this list with 1,350 km².

Countries
Brazil, Paraguay
Elevation
217 m
Area
1,350 km²

Full lake profile

Profile facts: Wikidata (CC0).

Related rankings

Source and method

Lakes recorded in Wikidata, ranked by Surface area. Figures can vary with water level and season. Only items Wikidata places in South America (directly or through their country) are included.

Source: Wikidata. Licence: CC0 1.0 (public domain). Retrieved: 2026-11-14.

Data: Wikidata (CC0)

Values are shown as published. Provider terms: Wikidata. All licences: Sources & licences.