Algae are an interesting feedstock for producing biofuel via hydrothermal liquefaction (HTL), due to their high water content. In this study, algae slurries (5-7 wt% daf) from different species were liquefied at 250 and 375 °C in batch autoclaves during 5 min. The aim was to analyze the influence of strain-specific parameters (cell structure, biochemical composition and growth environment) on the HTL process. Results show big variations in the biocrude oil yield within species at 250 °C (from 17.6 to 44.8 wt%). At 375 °C, these differences become less significant (from 45.6 to 58.1 wt%). An appropriate characterization of feedstock appeared to be critical to interpret the results. If a high conversion of microalgae-to-biocrude is pursued, near critical conditions are required, with Scenedesmus almeriensis (freshwater) and Nannochloropsis gaditana (marine) leading to the biocrude oils with lower nitrogen content from each growth environment.