| Property | Natural lakes | Reservoirs |
| Origin | Lakes are naturally formed depressions | Reservoirs are broadly defined as human-made lakes |
| Location | Typically located in the central part of a drainage basin | May be embedded within a river network or not |
| Landscape position | Natural placement; fed by lower order streams; diffuse inputs | Lower in the catchment; fed by higher order streams; surface water dominated |
| Regional distribution (and function) | Dictated by geomorphology | Influenced by regional demand for dam related ecosystem services |
| Proportion of catchment area to surface area | Catchment area is relatively greater than surface area | Catchment area is much greater than surface area |
| Shape of waterbody | Bowl shaped | Dendric shape |
| Shoreline | Shorter | Longer |
| Drainage basin | Shorter | Longer |
| Location of deepest part | Its deepest part is usually at its centre | Its deepest part is near the dam |
| Reservoir morphometry | Circular basin; less complex perimeter | Longer, narrower basin; more complex perimeter |
| Secchi depth | Generally deeper | Generally more shallow |
| Temperature | Somewhat lower | Somewhat higher |
| Waterbody management | Less managed | More managed |
| Catchment management | Watersheds both developed and undeveloped | Watersheds more developed |