Lake Victoria is enormous: it covers about 68,800–69,500 square kilometers (around 26,500–26,800 square miles), making it Africa’s largest lake by area and the world’s largest tropical lake. It stretches roughly 337 km long and 250 km wide at its widest points, with an average depth of about 40 meters and a maximum depth of roughly 80–84 meters.

Quick Scoop

  • Surface area : About 68,800–69,500 km² (≈26,500–26,800 sq mi).
  • Length : Around 337 km from end to end.
  • Width : Up to about 250 km at its widest.
  • Average depth : About 40 m (≈130 ft).
  • Maximum depth : About 80–84 m (≈260–275 ft).
  • Shoreline : Over 7,100 km of shoreline when you include its many islands.

To picture how big Lake Victoria is, its surface area is in the same ballpark as the entire country of Ireland, which is why it is often described as a massive inland sea in East Africa.

Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.