25 lakes live now

Live US lake & reservoir water levels

Percent full and 30-day trend from USGS and CDEC gages, with a plain-English read on whether you can launch a boat.

Is that level normal?

At 3,521.43 ft, Lake Powell is lower than it has been on this date in 64 years of daily record.

Every tracker shows today’s elevation. The Lake Level Almanac shows whether it is normal, from 64 years of daily federal record across 19 reservoirs: day-of-year normals, month-by-month climatology, and how often your own ramp or dock elevation has been above water.

Lake Powell almanac, $19 See all 19 lakes

Lakes with a current reading

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Biggest 24-hour movers

LakeStateLevel24h Δ (ft)
Lake Oroville CA 62% −1
Millerton Lake CA 48% −1
Pine Flat Lake CA 20% −1
Folsom Lake CA 52% −1
San Luis Reservoir CA 59% +1
Shasta Lake CA 61% −0

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Common questions

Where does the lake level data come from?
Directly from public water-data feeds: USGS Water Services for most lakes and CDEC for California reservoirs. LakeLevelNow fetches each lake's own gage, so the number you see is the same one the operator reports.
How often are the levels updated?
USGS instantaneous gages update every 15–60 minutes; CDEC storage is daily. Each reading carries a timestamp so you can see exactly when it was taken.
What does "percent full" mean?
Current storage divided by published full capacity, as a percentage. 100% means full pool; low percentages indicate drawdown for drought, flood control, or water supply.
Is the level shown in real time?
Almost. It is the most recent reading from the source, usually minutes to hours old. Always confirm conditions with the lake operator before heading out.