2 Million Lakes? 12 Insane Water Facts That Make Canada the "Planet's Bathtub"

2 Million Lakes? 12 Insane Water Facts That Make Canada the "Planet's Bathtub"

   Canada – Home to More Lakes Than the Rest of the World Combined

   Satellite view showing thousands of Canadian lakes

   Just a tiny slice of Canada’s 2+ million lakes

   12 Mind-Blowing Water Statistics

   Canada owns roughly 60% of all lakes on Earth, the longest coastline on the planet, and enough freshwater to cover the entire United States 1 metre deep.

Canada isn’t just “big” when it comes to water — it’s absolutely dominant. Here are 12 insane facts that prove why Canadians jokingly call their country the world’s giant bathtub.

The 12 Insane Water Facts

1. More Lakes Than Every Other Country Combined – Over 2 million lakes (some counts say 3+ million). The rest of the planet has ~1.5 million.
2. 31,752 Lakes Bigger Than 3 km² – That’s more large lakes than the rest of the world combined, again.
3. Longest Coastline on Earth – 202,080 km (243,000 km if you include islands). If stretched straight, it would circle the equator five times.
4. 60% of All Lakes on Earth Are Canadian – Finland (187,888 lakes) calls itself “Land of a Thousand Lakes.” Canada quietly laughs.
5. Great Bear + Great Slave = Bigger Than Some Countries – Great Bear Lake (31,153 km²) is larger than Belgium. Great Slave Lake (28,568 km²) beats Rwanda.
6. One Lake for Every 18 Canadians – With 38 million people and 2+ million lakes, every Canadian could technically have their own private lake.
7. 9% of Canada Is Freshwater – That’s an area larger than Europe.
8. Lowest Recorded Point Is… a Tunnel – The lowest natural point above sea level is the Atlantic Ocean (0 m), but the lowest man-made point is a Vancouver tunnel at −27 m.
9. 750+ Historic Lighthouses – More than any other country, guarding the longest coastline.
10. Hudson Bay Lowlands – World’s Largest Wetland – 373,700 km² of peatland that stores more carbon than many forests.
11. No Land Below Sea Level Naturally – Unlike the Netherlands or Death Valley, Canada has zero natural depressions below sea level.
12. Freshwater Export Dreams Keep Getting Blocked – Proposals to sell water to the U.S. have been debated (and defeated) for decades.

Why It Matters in 2025

With global freshwater scarcity rising, Canada’s abundance is increasingly seen as a geopolitical superpower asset — and a target.

See also

• Lakes of Canada
• Geography of Canada
• Great Lakes
• Longest coastline