In this study we prove the feasibility of the advanced very high resolution radiometer (AVHRR) and Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer sea surface temperature algorithms to derive operational lake surface water temperature (LSWT). A validation study covering 2 years was done using data from the AVHRR on NOAA 12, 15, 16, and 17, the MODIS on TERRA, and AQUA and with different method‐ingested in situ data from different sized lakes. Best results were found for NOAA 16 nighttime data at Lake Geneva (bias of 0.18 K and standard deviation of 0.73 K) and TERRA nighttime data at Lake Constance (satellite‐buoy bias of −0.08 K and standard deviation of 0.92 K). For all sensor families an overall scatter ranging from 0.9 to 1.6 K was found. Bias of MODIS is larger, −1.73 to 1.9 K, than the one of the AVHRR (−0.28 to 1.5 K). The current orbital configuration of the platforms used revealed the diurnal evolution of the lake surface temperature amplitude from space. The damped mixing found for a typical calm and clear‐sky regime is different from open ocean conditions. As the main error source, we found undetected cloudy pixel. Furthermore, the physical difference between skin and bulk temperature, especially its relation to the diurnal thermocline, solar insolation, and wind stress contributes to the bias and scatter within the match‐up data set. The data sets have been validated to allow further application for LSWT climatology and assimilation into numerical weather prediction models.