Lake Kariba, held back by Kariba Dam on the Zambezi, is the largest dam reservoir on Earth, at about 180 km³ of total storage. These are 16 reservoirs ranked by gross capacity, from Kariba down to Cahora Bassa in Mozambique, as of 26 October 2026.
Pictured: a still from a European Union in Zambia video on the Kariba Dam rehabilitation, showing Kariba Dam, #1 with a reservoir capacity of 180 km³.
Rank
Dam / reservoir
Reservoir capacity (km³)
Live capacity (km³)
Country
River
Dam completed (year)
Primary purpose
Dam height (m)
1
Kariba Dam / Lake Kariba
180
n/a
Zambia / Zimbabwe
Zambezi
1959
Hydropower
128
2
Bratsk Dam / Bratsk Reservoir
169.3
n/a
Russia
Angara
1964
Hydropower
124.5
3
Akosombo Dam / Lake Volta
148
n/a
Ghana
Volta
1965
Hydropower
114
4
Daniel-Johnson Dam / Manicouagan Reservoir
141.9
n/a
Canada
Manicouagan
1968
Hydropower
214
5
Guri Dam / Guri Reservoir
135
n/a
Venezuela
Caroní
1986
Hydropower
162
6
Aswan High Dam / Lake Nasser
132
90
Egypt / Sudan
Nile
1971
Irrigation, flood control, hydropower
111
7
W. A. C. Bennett Dam / Williston Lake
74.3
n/a
Canada
Peace
1967
Hydropower
186
8
Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam / Nigat Lake
74
59.2
Ethiopia
Blue Nile
2025
Hydropower
145
9
Krasnoyarsk Dam / Krasnoyarsk Reservoir
73.3
n/a
Russia
Yenisei
1967
Hydropower
124
10
Zeya Dam / Zeya Reservoir
68.4
n/a
Russia
Zeya
1978
Hydropower
115.5
11
Robert-Bourassa / Robert-Bourassa Reservoir
61.7
n/a
Canada
La Grande
1981
Hydropower
162
12
La Grande-3 / La Grande-3 Nord Reservoir
60
n/a
Canada
La Grande
1981
Hydropower
n/a
13
Ust-Ilimsk Dam / Ust-Ilimsk Reservoir
59.3
n/a
Russia
Angara
1977
Hydropower
105
14
Boguchany Dam / Boguchany Reservoir
58.2
2.31
Russia
Angara
2012
Hydropower
96
15
Zhiguli (Kuybyshev) Dam / Kuybyshev Reservoir
58
n/a
Russia
Volga
1955
Hydropower, navigation
n/a
16
Cahora Bassa Dam / Cahora Bassa Lake
55.8
n/a
Mozambique
Zambezi
1974
Hydropower
171
No matching rows.
Read this first: this ranks each reservoir’s total (gross) storage capacity as reported, in cubic kilometres, as of 26 October 2026, one row per dam-reservoir system. Capacities come from one source family, Wikipedia’s List of reservoirs by volume, which cites ICOLD and national agencies, and each top-10 figure was checked against the dam’s own Wikipedia article, which draws on the dam owners.[1][2] Only reservoirs created by a dam count, so natural lakes with regulating structures, such as Lake Victoria, are left out. Gross and useful (live) capacity differ a lot: the live column is filled only where a figure was found (Lake Nasser, the GERD and Boguchany), and Boguchany’s 2.31 km³ shows how small it can be next to the total. Sources disagree for a few rows: Wikipedia’s list shows 150 km³ for Lake Volta (the dam article says 148, used here), 79 km³ for the GERD (its dam article says 74, used here, so it sits just below Williston’s 74.3), and 160.3 km³ as a second figure for Kariba. “Dam completed” follows the year in that list, which can differ from other sources by several years because dams are raised in stages (Guri, Bratsk, Krasnoyarsk). Dam heights are from each dam’s article; two are blank where none was found. The table stops at 16 and Wikipedia’s next rows are Serra da Mesa (54.4 km³) and Caniapiscau (53.8 km³). Smallwood Reservoir is not in the top 16: the list gives it only 32.64 km³. For height, not volume, see The Tallest Dams in the World.
The Top 10
#1
Kariba — 180 km³
Kariba Dam on the Zambezi, on the border of Zambia and Zimbabwe, holds Lake Kariba, the largest reservoir by volume. The 128 m double-curvature arch dam is owned by the two governments and run by the Zambezi River Authority; Wikipedia gives its total capacity as 180 km³, though the main list also carries a lower 160.3 km³ figure from another source. Its two power stations total about 2,010 MW. Work started in 1955 and cost about US$480 million. The dam is currently being rehabilitated, with the plunge pool below it reshaped; the video is the European Union delegation’s explainer of that project.[1][2]
#2
Bratsk — 169 km³
Bratsk Dam on the Angara River in Siberia, about 124.5 m high, feeds a 4,515 MW power station and the Bratsk Reservoir, whose total capacity is given as 169.3 km³. Britannica calls it the second-biggest reservoir by storage capacity and dates it to 1964, while Wikipedia dates the concrete dam’s opening to 1967, so the year differs by source. The old town of Bratsk was flooded and moved for the project. The video is a British Pathé newsreel from 1960, while it was being built.[1][2]
#3
Akosombo (Lake Volta) — 148 km³
Akosombo Dam on the Volta River in Ghana, owned by the Volta River Authority, created Lake Volta, with a total capacity of 148 km³ (the main list shows 150 km³ from a second source). The dam is about 114 m high from its foundation and its station is rated 1,038 MW. Construction ran from 1961 to 1965. In 2023 the VRA spilled water from Akosombo and Kpong after high inflows, and floods displaced more than 26,000 people downstream. The video is the VRA’s own oral history of the dam.[1][2][3]
#4
Daniel-Johnson Dam (Manicouagan) — 142 km³
Daniel-Johnson Dam, formerly Manic-5, closes the Manicouagan River in Quebec and is owned by Hydro-Québec. At 214 m it is the world’s highest multiple-arch-and-buttress dam. Its reservoir, a ring around an ancient impact crater, holds about 141.9 km³ (Wikipedia’s dam article rounds this to 142 km³). It was built between 1959 and 1970 and named after Premier Daniel Johnson Sr., who died the night before its 1968 inauguration. The video is Hydro-Québec’s own “Welcome to the Manic!”.[1][2]
#5
Guri — 135 km³
Guri Dam, also called the Simón Bolívar plant, impounds the Caroní River in Venezuela. It is 162 m high with a crest about 7.4 km long, and its 10,235 MW station was once the largest hydroelectric plant by installed capacity, until Itaipu. The reservoir’s total capacity is 135 km³, and the dam supplies much of Venezuela’s electricity, so low water levels in 2016 became a national power problem. The dam’s main stage was finished in 1978 and raised later; the list gives 1986. No suitable video from an authoritative channel was verified, so the building icon stands in.[1][2]
#6
Aswan High Dam (Lake Nasser) — 132 km³
Aswan High Dam on the Nile in Egypt creates Lake Nasser, which extends into Sudan, with a total capacity of 132 km³. The dam is 111 m high and 3,830 m long and was built with Soviet help between 1960 and 1970. Wikipedia describes the lake’s storage as a dead zone, about 90 km³ of live storage and a flood-control zone above it, which is why the live figure here is 90 km³. About 100,000 residents were moved, and Abu Simbel was relocated above the waterline. The video is a British Pathé progress report from 1964, during construction.[1][2]
#7
W. A. C. Bennett Dam (Williston Lake) — 74 km³
This 186 m earth-fill dam on the Peace River in British Columbia holds Williston Lake, the largest reservoir in the province, with a capacity of about 74.3 km³. Its station is rated about 2,907 MW. The first generators started in 1968 and the reservoir filled by 1971. It is owned by BC Hydro, whose own video gives an inside look at the dam.[1][2]
#8
Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (Nigat Lake) — 74 km³
The GERD on the Blue Nile is Africa’s biggest hydropower dam, 145 m high with 5.15 GW installed, and was inaugurated on 9 September 2025. Wikipedia’s dam article gives its reservoir as 74 km³ total and 59.2 km³ active, while the main reservoir list shows 79 km³; RList uses 74 km³, which puts it just behind Williston (74.3 km³), so the two are effectively tied. Egypt and Sudan have raised concerns over how fast it fills. The video is Reuters’ report on the dam being switched on.[1][2]
#9
Krasnoyarsk — 73.3 km³
Krasnoyarsk Dam on the Yenisei in Siberia is 124 m high, with a 6,000 MW station, and holds a reservoir of 73.3 km³. Construction began in 1956; Wikipedia gives its opening as 1972, the reservoir list 1967. It is known for a ship lift that raises vessels past the dam. The video is a British Pathé newsreel from 1967.[1][2]
#10
Zeya — 68.4 km³
Zeya Dam on the Zeya River, a tributary of the Amur in Russia’s Far East, is 115.5 m high with a 1.33 GW station and a reservoir of 68.4 km³. It was the first big hydropower dam in the Russian Far East; construction began in 1965 and the plant opened in 1975, with the list giving 1978. No suitable video from an authoritative channel was verified, so the building icon stands in.[1][2]
Wikipedia, List of reservoirs by volume, read 26 October 2026: ranks, reservoirs, rivers, countries, years and nominal volumes (citing ICOLD and national agencies).
Videos: European Union in Zambia, British Pathé, Volta River Authority, Hydro-Québec, Reuters and BC Hydro on YouTube; each ID was checked for channel and title. Guri and Zeya have no video here because none from an authoritative channel was verified.
