J. Percy Priest Lake water level: Percy Priest 
2.0 ft high
J. Percy Priest Lake is 2.0 ft above full pool, higher than usual for early November. The J Percy Priest Dam gauge read 489.29 ft at 6:00 AM CST, November 4, 2026.
How Percy Priest stands today
- 489.29 Feet above sea level6:00 AM CST, November 4, 2026, NGVD29 datum.
- +1.99 Feet from full poolFull pool today is 487.30 ft; it rises to 490.50 ft in the high season.
- +1.24 Feet from normal for Nov 4Median of 1996–2025 is 488.05 ft. Today ranks in the 90th percentile.
- +0.21 Feet from a year ago489.08 ft on November 4, 2025.
- −0.18 Feet over 30 days+0.15 ft over the past 7 days.
The past year, day by day
The shaded band is where Percy Priest usually sits on each date: the middle 80% of years from 1996 to 2025. The blue line is the past 12 months; the sand line is the 12 months before. Hover or use the arrow keys to read any day.
- Past 12 months
- The 12 months before
- Normal range (middle 80% of years)
- Median
- Full pool
Monthly average since 2006
Readings for the last 30 days
| Date | Level (ft) | Normal (ft) |
|---|---|---|
| November 4, 2026 | 489.22 | 488.05 |
| November 3, 2026 | 489.17 | 488.02 |
| November 2, 2026 | 489.16 | 488.05 |
| November 1, 2026 | 489.13 | 488.16 |
| October 31, 2026 | 489.10 | 488.21 |
| October 30, 2026 | 489.10 | 488.29 |
| October 29, 2026 | 489.13 | 488.46 |
| October 28, 2026 | 489.14 | 488.58 |
| October 27, 2026 | 489.15 | 488.63 |
| October 26, 2026 | 489.17 | 488.72 |
| October 25, 2026 | 489.19 | 488.79 |
| October 24, 2026 | 489.21 | 488.92 |
| October 23, 2026 | 489.23 | 488.99 |
| October 22, 2026 | 489.24 | 489.04 |
| October 21, 2026 | 489.26 | 489.10 |
| Date | Level (ft) | Normal (ft) |
|---|---|---|
| October 20, 2026 | 489.27 | 489.20 |
| October 19, 2026 | 489.31 | 489.32 |
| October 18, 2026 | 489.32 | 489.44 |
| October 17, 2026 | 489.36 | 489.51 |
| October 16, 2026 | 489.40 | 489.50 |
| October 15, 2026 | 489.40 | 489.57 |
| October 14, 2026 | 489.41 | 489.64 |
| October 13, 2026 | 489.42 | 489.73 |
| October 12, 2026 | 489.43 | 489.80 |
| October 11, 2026 | 489.48 | 489.81 |
| October 10, 2026 | 489.38 | 489.81 |
| October 9, 2026 | 489.39 | 489.86 |
| October 8, 2026 | 489.42 | 489.94 |
| October 7, 2026 | 489.43 | 489.98 |
| October 6, 2026 | 489.44 | 490.00 |
Is the water above your dock?
Enter the elevation of your dock, ramp end or a mark on your shoreline, in feet above sea level (NGVD29, the datum the Army Corps of Engineers uses for this gauge). You will see how far the water is above or below it today, and how often it dipped below it in each month since 2016.
| Month | Low year (10th %) | Median | High year (90th %) | Days above your mark |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 483.20 | 484.39 | 487.59 | — |
| February | 483.38 | 484.42 | 490.14 | — |
| March | 483.54 | 484.96 | 488.60 | — |
| April | 485.70 | 489.34 | 491.62 | — |
| May | 486.84 | 490.17 | 491.22 | — |
| June | 488.41 | 490.28 | 490.75 | — |
| July | 489.93 | 490.40 | 490.82 | — |
| August | 490.10 | 490.45 | 490.83 | — |
| September | 489.79 | 490.22 | 491.13 | — |
| October | 488.64 | 489.59 | 490.18 | — |
| November | 485.73 | 487.59 | 489.55 | — |
| December | 483.70 | 484.94 | 486.65 | — |
Other Tennessee lakes, lowest first
| Lake | Level (ft) | Vs full pool |
|---|---|---|
 Old Hickory Lake | 444.29 | 0.7 ft below |
| Cheatham Lake | 385.38 | At pool |
 Dale Hollow Lake | 638.25 | 12.8 ft below |
 Kentucky Lake | 354.68 | At pool |
 Lake Barkley | 354.75 | 4.3 ft below |
 Center Hill Lake | 630.38 | 17.6 ft below |
| Cordell Hull Lake | 502.30 | At pool |
Percy Priest questions
What is full pool at J. Percy Priest Lake?
Full pool at J. Percy Priest Lake is 487.30 ft above sea level today. The Army Corps of Engineers changes it through the year, up to 490.50 ft in the high season. The agency's own term for it is “top of power.”
Is J. Percy Priest Lake full right now?
It is over full: 2.0 ft above full pool, with flood storage up to 504.50 ft. Water above full pool is flood water the dam is holding back and releasing over time.
Is J. Percy Priest Lake lower than normal for early November?
No, it is higher than normal. The median level on Nov 4 across 1996–2025 is 488.05 ft, and today's 489.29 ft is +1.24 ft from it. In 8 of 10 years the level on this date fell between 487.12 and 489.12 ft.
How does J. Percy Priest Lake compare with last year?
A year ago, on November 4, 2025, it stood at 489.08 ft. It is 0.21 ft higher now.
What are the highest and lowest levels since 1994?
In the daily record we hold, which starts in 1994, the highest daily level was 504.68 ft on May 4, 2010 and the lowest was 481.78 ft on January 30, 2014.
How often is this page updated?
We pull new readings from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers several times a day. This page was last rebuilt on Wed, 04 Nov 2026 13:52:28 UTC. Readings are provisional and can be revised by the agency.