The Zeller See lies entirely in the municipality of the town of Zell am See im Pinzgau in the Salzburger Land, Austria, which gives the lake its name.

It was formed at the end of the last ice age about 10,000 to 16,000 years ago through an excavation caused by the ice masses of the northern Glockner group. The current area of ​​the lake is a remnant of the original water area, which reached to Saalfelden in the north and also filled part of the Salzach valley in the south.