Lakes of Fribourg 2026: 16, more than half above 10 ha
In Switzerland, only one lake in five is larger than ten hectares. In Fribourg it is 9 of 16. The largest lying entirely within the canton is the Lac de la Gruyère, 8.55 km².
Number of lakes in Fribourg: 16
16 lakes of half a hectare or more, and yet the national map shows 369 bodies of standing water in Fribourg. The gap is not imprecision; it is a way of counting.
- 1369 water surfaces appear in swisstopo's landscape model for the canton.
- 244 of them are at least half a hectare (5,000 m²).
- 320 carry an official name, however small.
- 416 are both, named and at least 0.5 ha. That is what we count as a lake.
Anyone reading a different figure has almost always drawn a different line: count every water surface and Fribourg has 369; count only lakes over one square kilometre and you get 4. Even a plain name such as "Weiher" counts as official: what decides is the entry in the swissNAMES3D gazetteer. Our count states where the line is, so it can be checked.
Lake Finder: find any lake in Fribourg
Every officially named lake in Switzerland with area, elevation and canton. Filter by elevation and canton, search in all national languages.
- Municipalities: Estavayer · Cudrefin · Cheyres-Châbles · Concise · Delley-Portalban · Vully-les-Lacs · Chevroux · Cheseaux-Noréaz · Yvonand · Grandson · Corcelles-près-Concise · Gletterens · Onnens (VD) · Yverdon-les-Bains · Bonvillars · Neuchâtel · Milvignes · La Grande Béroche · Laténa · Cortaillod · Gampelen · Boudry · Montagny-près-YverdonOfficial names: Neuenburgersee · Lago di Neuchâtel · Lai da NeuchâtelArea by canton: Neuchâtel 39% · Vaud 35% · Fribourg 25% · Bern 0.9%
- Municipalities: Mont-Vully · Vully-les-Lacs · Murten · Faoug · Avenches · Meyriez · Greng · MuntelierOfficial names: Murtensee · Lago di Morat · Lai da MurtenArea by canton: Fribourg 63% · Vaud 37%
- Municipalities: Pont-en-Ogoz · Morlon · Hauteville · Pont-la-Ville · Corbières · Echarlens · Marsens · Botterens · Gibloux · La Roche · Broc
- Municipalities: Düdingen · Courtepin · La Sonnaz · Granges-Paccot · Fribourg · Gurmels · KleinbösingenOfficial names: Lac de Schiffenen
- Municipalities: Val-de-Charmey · Crésuz · Broc · Châtel-sur-Montsalvens
- Municipalities: Plaffeien · Jaun · Val-de-CharmeyOfficial names: Schwarzsee
- Municipalities: Fribourg · Pierrafortscha · Marly
Source: swissTLM3D, swissNAMES3D, swissBOUNDARIES3D (© swisstopo, 2026 edition). Area = entire water surface, including the foreign part for border lakes. Elevation = water level in the landscape model. Analysis by ConvivaPlus.
Largest lake in Fribourg: Lac de la Gruyère
The largest lake touching Fribourg is the Lac de Neuchâtel (215.1 km²), but only 25% of its surface lies in the canton. The largest lake belonging entirely to the canton is the Lac de la Gruyère: 8.55 km² at 674 m.
| Lake | Area | Elevation | Share in canton |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lac de Neuchâtel | 215.1 km² | 429 m | 25% |
| Lac de Morat | 22.7 km² | 429 m | 63% |
| Lac de la Gruyère | 8.55 km² | 674 m | 100% |
| Schiffenensee | 3.99 km² | 531 m | 100% |
| Lac de Montsalvens | 52 ha | 795 m | 100% |
| Lac Noir | 46 ha | 1045 m | 100% |
| Lac de Lessoc | 21 ha | 772 m | 100% |
| Lac de Pérolles | 21 ha | 553 m | 100% |
| Lac de Seedorf | 10 ha | 609 m | 100% |
| Etang de la Tuilerie | 3.2 ha | 702 m | 100% |
Highest lake in Fribourg: Lac de Coudré
The highest lake in Fribourg is also one of the smallest: the Lac de Coudré in Grandvillard lies at 1330 m and covers 0.57 ha; no other lake in the canton is smaller.
The canton's lowest-lying lake is the Lac de Neuchâtel at 429 m. The canton's median lake sits at 737 m. Elevation is the water level in the landscape model; for reservoirs it varies with how full they are. 5 of the 16 lakes in the canton have a dam or embankment (structures in swissTLM3D): Lac de la Gruyère, Schiffenensee, Lac de Montsalvens, Lac de Lessoc and Lac de Pérolles.
Shared lakes: which lakes Fribourg shares
83% of the lake surface in Fribourg lies in lakes it does not own alone. Fribourg shares 2 of its 16 lakes with other cantons; the table shows how much of each lies in the canton.
List of lakes in Fribourg
13 of the 16 lakes in Fribourg together cover less area than a single lake, Lac de la Gruyère: 5.61 km² against 8.55 km². The list shows all 20 officially named bodies of water in the canton, by area. The 16 lakes of half a hectare or more come first; smaller ponds are marked.
- 1.Lac de Neuchâtel · 23 municipalities215.1 km²429 m
- 2.Lac de Morat · 8 municipalities22.7 km²429 m
- 3.Lac de la Gruyère · 11 municipalities8.55 km²674 m
- 4.Schiffenensee · 7 municipalities3.99 km²531 m
- 5.Lac de Montsalvens · 4 municipalities52 ha795 m
- 6.Lac Noir · 3 municipalities46 ha1045 m
- 7.Lac de Lessoc · Haut-Intyamon21 ha772 m
- 8.Lac de Pérolles · 3 municipalities21 ha553 m
- 9.Lac de Seedorf · Prez, Avry10 ha609 m
- 10.Etang de la Tuilerie · La Brillaz3.2 ha702 m
- 11.Lac Lussy · Châtel-Saint-Denis3.1 ha820 m
- 12.Etang du Dévin · Sâles2.4 ha946 m
- 13.La Goillette · Prez1.5 ha613 m
- 14.Etang des Bugnons · Marsens, Sâles0.95 ha946 m
- 15.Lac des Joncs · Châtel-Saint-Denis0.59 ha1230 m
- 16.Lac de Coudré · Grandvillard0.57 ha1330 m
- 17.La Grande Gouille · Estavayer0.46 ha429 m
- 18.La Gouille · Gibloux0.12 ha676 m
- 19.Etang de Bouleyres · Bulle0.11 ha727 m
- 20.Lac de Leity · Bas-Intyamon260 m²1624 m
Lakes by size: 9 larger than 10 ha
9 of the 16 lakes in Fribourg are larger than ten hectares, or 56%. Across Switzerland the share is 20%. By the number of lakes over 10 ha, Fribourg ranks 7 of the 26 cantons.
Measured by area, the small lakes almost vanish: the 7 of the 16 lakes of half a hectare or more that stay under five hectares together cover less than 1% of the lake surface in Fribourg. Lac de Neuchâtel, counting only its part in the canton, alone covers 66%.
The median lake in Fribourg sits 1170 m lower than the median Swiss lake (1907 m).
Lake names in several languages
Some lakes in Fribourg carry official names in several national languages. They come from swisstopo's gazetteer; none is our translation.
- Lac de Neuchâtel · Neuenburgersee · Lago di Neuchâtel · Lai da Neuchâtel
- Lac de Morat · Murtensee · Lago di Morat · Lai da Murten
- Schiffenensee · Lac de Schiffenen
- Lac Noir · Schwarzsee
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891 lakes of half a hectare or more, 16 of them in Fribourg, number 12 among the 26 cantons by count of lakes. Grisons has the most, with 236.
86 lakes of 0.5 ha or more; the largest entirely within the canton is Thunersee, 47.8 km².
Residents, taxes, rents, wages and events: Fribourg in figures.
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ConvivaPlus Editor · Data & Switzerland
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Source: swisstopo (swissTLM3D, swissNAMES3D, swissBOUNDARIES3D, 2026 edition), analysis by ConvivaPlus. Switzerland as a whole: 891 lakes out of 17'873 water surfaces; parts with the same name no more than 50 m apart count as one lake. Area = water surface at the shoreline of the landscape model; reference works using a different shoreline or water level sometimes give other values.
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