Which lake in Asia is the deepest freshwater lake in the world?

Lake Baikal is the deepest freshwater lake in the world.

Located in southern Siberia, Russia, Baikal reaches a maximum depth of 1,642 metres. It formed in an active continental rift, where the Earth’s crust is slowly pulling apart. Although it is only the world’s seventh-largest lake by surface area, its unusual depth gives it the greatest volume of any freshwater lake.

Baikal holds roughly 22–23% of the world’s fresh surface water—more than all five North American Great Lakes combined. It is also among the planet’s oldest lakes, estimated at 25–30 million years old, and supports many endemic species, including the Baikal seal and omul fish.

A common mix-up is Lake Superior, which is the largest freshwater lake by surface area, not depth. The Caspian Sea is larger but saline, while Lake Tanganyika is the second-deepest lake and the world’s longest freshwater lake.