The origin of organic C supporting zoobenthic communities in 8 boreal lakes with different concentrations of dissolved organic C (DOC) was assessed by stable-isotope analysis. Profundal zoobenthos was depleted in ¹³C compared to littoral zoobenthos, and this difference increased with decreasing DOC concentration. The δ¹³C of littoral zoobenthos suggested reliance on benthic algae, whereas depleted ¹³C of profundal zoobenthos could be explained by contributions from allochthonous and autochthonous C sources. In deeper lakes, profundal zoobenthos diets also included C processed by methanotrophic bacteria. Littoral zoobenthos δ¹³C decreased with increasing DOC concentration in the lake water. Our results suggest that littoral benthic fauna are mainly supported by benthic algae in low-DOC lakes and by phytoplankton and allochthonous organic C in high-DOC lakes and that this difference is a result of light absorbance and energy supply by allochthonous organic C. Increasing allochthonous DOC inputs, as expected in a warmer and wetter climate, might reduce benthic algal production and alter the organic C base for benthic food webs in lake ecosystems.