Guide Rankings Geography Updated June 3, 2026

Great Lakes States: Full List, Lake Borders, and Shoreline Map

Chicago skyline viewed from Lake Michigan, showing the city's shoreline along the southern end of the lake

Great Lakes States: Full List, Lake Borders, and Shoreline Map

Ranking - Geography

Illinois has approximately 63 miles of Lake Michigan shoreline — the second shortest of any Great Lakes state — but its largest city, Chicago, sits directly on the lake and is the largest city on any Great Lake.

Quick Answer

Great Lakes States: Full List, Lake Borders, and Shoreline Map

  1. 1

    8 states have Great Lakes shoreline: Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin. Michigan borders 4 of the 5 Great Lakes — Superior, Michigan, Huron, and Erie — and has 3,224 miles of Great Lakes coastline, more than any other state.

  2. 2

    Pennsylvania has the shortest Great Lakes shoreline of any of the 8 states — approximately 51 miles along Lake Erie. Indiana is second shortest at 45 miles, also along Lake Michigan. Both states touch only one Great Lake.

  3. 3

    Lake Michigan is the only Great Lake touched exclusively by U.S. states — Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, and Wisconsin all border it, with no Canadian shoreline. The other four lakes are shared with Canada.

Map

Great Lakes States Map: Shoreline by State

Great Lakes shoreline (miles)
No data
Michigan (3,224 miles) is the darkest blue — its shoreline exceeds the combined total of the other 7 states. Indiana (45 miles) and Pennsylvania (51 miles) are the lightest, reflecting their narrow strips of lake access.
Great Lakes States Map: Shoreline by State
Rank State Great Lakes shoreline (miles)
1 Michigan 3,224
2 Wisconsin 820
3 New York 580
4 Ohio 312
5 Minnesota 189
6 Illinois 63
7 Pennsylvania 51
8 Indiana 45

Michigan (3,224 miles) is the darkest blue — its shoreline exceeds the combined total of the other 7 states. Indiana (45 miles) and Pennsylvania (51 miles) are the lightest, reflecting their narrow strips of lake access.

Great Lakes States: Full List, Lake Borders, and Shoreline Map Table

Lakes Bordered

Download this table as a PDF

Clean, print-ready version of Great Lakes States: Full List, Lake Borders, and Shoreline Map.

What States Are in the Great Lakes Region?

Chicago skyline viewed from Lake Michigan with the city's shoreline in the foreground
Chicago sits at the southwestern corner of Lake Michigan, giving Illinois access to the Great Lakes despite having only 63 miles of shoreline. It is the largest city on any of the five Great Lakes.

8 states have Great Lakes shoreline: Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin. This is the standard definition used by the Great Lakes Commission and NOAA. A broader 'Great Lakes region' sometimes used in economic and environmental policy can include additional states without lake shoreline, but the 8-state definition refers specifically to states with direct coastal access to one or more of the five lakes.

Michigan is the dominant Great Lakes state by every measure — 3,224 miles of shoreline, contact with 4 of 5 lakes, and a geography defined entirely by the Great Lakes on three sides. Indiana and Pennsylvania each have less than 55 miles of shoreline and touch only one lake, making them the most marginal Great Lakes states geographically.

States That Border the Great Lakes: Which Lake Touches Which State

Rocky Lake Superior shoreline in Michigan's Upper Peninsula with pine trees and clear blue water
Michigan's Upper Peninsula borders both Lake Superior and Lake Huron. Michigan's total 3,224 miles of Great Lakes coastline exceeds the combined shoreline of the other 7 Great Lakes states.

Lake Superior is bordered by Minnesota, Wisconsin, and Michigan (Upper Peninsula). Lake Michigan is bordered by Illinois, Indiana, Wisconsin, and Michigan (both peninsulas) — it is the only Great Lake with no Canadian shoreline. Lake Huron is bordered by Michigan only on the U.S. side. Lake Erie is bordered by Ohio, Pennsylvania, New York, and Michigan (a small southeastern corner). Lake Ontario is bordered by New York only among U.S. states.

Michigan is the only state to border 4 lakes. New York and Wisconsin each border 2. Illinois, Indiana, Minnesota, Ohio, and Pennsylvania each border exactly 1. Lake Ontario is the most exclusive: New York is the only U.S. state that touches it, making it the least-shared lake among the 8 states.

The Five Great Lakes

The five Great Lakes — Superior, Michigan, Huron, Erie, and Ontario (remembered by the acronym HOMES) — together form the largest group of freshwater lakes in the world by total area, covering approximately 94,250 square miles. Lake Superior is the largest by surface area at 31,700 square miles and the deepest at 1,333 feet. Lake Ontario is the smallest by surface area at 7,340 square miles. Lake Erie is the shallowest at an average depth of 62 feet and the smallest by volume.

Lake Michigan is the only Great Lake lying entirely within the United States — no part of its shoreline is Canadian. It is the second largest by volume and the third largest by surface area at 22,400 square miles. Lakes Huron and Michigan are connected by the Straits of Mackinac and are sometimes considered a single hydrologic unit (Lake Michigan-Huron), which would make it the largest lake in the world by surface area.

Quick Answers

What states are in the Great Lakes region?
8 states have Great Lakes shoreline: Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin. These are the states with direct coastal access to one or more of the five Great Lakes. A broader 'Great Lakes region' used in some economic contexts can include additional states, but the 8-state definition is the standard geographic one.
How many states touch the Great Lakes?
8 U.S. states touch the Great Lakes: Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin. The five Great Lakes also border two Canadian provinces — Ontario and Quebec — on their northern and eastern shores.
Which state has the most Great Lakes shoreline?
Michigan has the most Great Lakes shoreline by far — approximately 3,224 miles, which exceeds the combined shoreline of the other 7 Great Lakes states. Michigan borders 4 of the 5 Great Lakes: Superior, Michigan, Huron, and Erie. Its unusual shape, with two peninsulas, gives it more lake coastline than any other state.
Which Great Lake does Illinois border?
Illinois borders only Lake Michigan, along approximately 63 miles of shoreline in the Chicago metropolitan area. Illinois has the second-shortest Great Lakes shoreline of any state, but Chicago — located at the southwestern corner of Lake Michigan — is the largest city on any Great Lake.
Does Pennsylvania border the Great Lakes?
Yes. Pennsylvania borders Lake Erie along a 51-mile strip in its northwestern corner. Erie is the only Great Lakes city in Pennsylvania. This narrow strip is Pennsylvania's sole connection to the Great Lakes and gives the state access to water-borne trade with the interior of North America.
Which Great Lake is entirely in the United States?
Lake Michigan is the only Great Lake lying entirely within the United States. All of its shoreline belongs to four U.S. states — Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, and Wisconsin. The other four Great Lakes — Superior, Huron, Erie, and Ontario — all share their northern or eastern shores with Canada.

Methodology

Great Lakes states are defined as the 8 U.S. states with direct shoreline on one or more of the five Great Lakes. A broader 'Great Lakes region' used in some economic and governmental contexts includes additional states without shoreline access; this page uses only the 8-state shoreline criterion. Shoreline lengths are approximate per NOAA Great Lakes Environmental Research Laboratory.

Sources

Information is cross-referenced with official state archives.
Found an error? Report it here.

You Might Also Like