Goldfish Tank Mates – The compatibility of goldfish with other species of fish is one of the necessary conditions for their harmonious life in a home aquarium. The health status of the fish, behavior, life expectancy depends on proper compatibility with other fishes.
Before determining what types of fish can live with goldfish, A lot of observations were made that began in the Middle Ages.
Since the goldfish (lat. Carassius auratus) is one of the oldest aquarium pets, compatibility has long been verified, which allows you to settle it with other fish without worries.
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What Affects Compatibility With Goldfish?
- Decorative varieties of goldfish are very large creatures with a body size of 20 cm in length, and more, Thus successful maintenance requires a tank of 50-80 liters per individual.
- This species of fish is slow and graceful, so more active neighbors will bother them.
- “Cinderella” loves to plow the ground, looking for food in it or digging up plants. This habit is common to everyone, so the water will become dirty and cloudy in a short time. Fish who love crystal clear water will suffer.
- They are omnivorous – they eat live, frozen, plant foods. The diet with the neighbors in the aquarium should match.
- Goldfish can eat very small fish. As representatives of the Carp family, they borrowed a tendency to eat small animals from their ancestors.
- Compatibility is also affected by their colorful, beautiful color, as well as lush and long fins. They can live with species that are not averse to nibbling their luxurious tail.
Who are Best Tank Mates for Goldfish?
Keeping goldfish is possible with representatives of the carp family. An important point – the fish of this family prefer cool water, not higher than 24 degrees Celsius.
Next to certain types of cyprinids, A goldfish will look spectacular, and there will be less conflict with tank mates.
Successful tankmates for a goldfish are Rainbow Shark, Zebrafish, Koi carp, Crucian carp, etc.
As for carp, koi is a wonderful fish, often grown in decorative ponds or aquariums as an exhibition. Koi Carp will not offend a goldfish, but his appearance is so self-sufficient that it is better to settle it separately.
As for the other fish of the carp family, they don’t get along with barbs and Rasboras. The reason is that these tankmates can become either predator for goldfish or their victims.
Catfish & Corydoras
Decorative Catfish, Small corydoras, and hoplo catfish are good tankmates for decorative goldfish. They live in the lower layers of the water, so they do not bother anyone, but peacefully collect food leftovers from the bottom, clean it from dirt, which is a lot after the goldfish.
However, one must be careful – catfish are slow creatures, which can annoy goldfish. It is not worth settling Ancistrus with catfish, they are an exception. Ancistrus are large and can ruffle the lush fins of beautiful women.
All Species of Goldfish
All species of Goldfish like veil-tail, wakins goldfish, shubunkins, telescopes, ryukins, will quietly cohabit in a common tank. The same parameters of the aquatic environment are suitable for them, which simplifies the care of these fish.
However, there is a flaw in this neighborhood. Between some adult fish, crossbreeding can occur, and they might bring hybrid offspring.
The constant crossing of different breeds will lead to the fact that in one generation of offspring there will appear fish that are no different from river crucians.
It is best to settle Carassius auratus alone – she is already self-sufficient and also the queen of aquariums. Caring for one goldfish will not cause you any trouble.
If you want to take a chance, you can settle it with other fish, but watch out for the consequences. Sometimes all pets get along well, but there are exceptions.
21 More tank mates you can keep with Goldfish
- Bristlenose Pleco
- Platies
- Black Skirt Tetras
- Bloodfin Tetras
- Checker Barbs
- Corydoras Catfish
- Giant Danios
- Gold Barbs
- Hillstream Loaches
- Japanese Rice Fish
- Murray River Rainbow Fish
- Rosy Barbs
- Rubberlip Plecos
- Scissortail Rasboras
- Weather Loaches
- White Cloud Mountain Minnow Fish
- Zebrafish
- Apple Snails
- Axolotls
- Bamboo Shrimp
- Ghost Shrimp
What Fishes are incompatible with Goldfish?
Representatives of the characin family are not ideal tankmates for “Goldfish”. Neon Tetras, Rummy nose tetra, and other tetras small in size can be eaten by cyprinids.
They can get used to each other at a young age, but later irreversible consequences will occur. If you plan to settle goldfish with large tetra then diamond tetra or Congo tetra is perfect for it.
Labyrinth Fish – not suitable as tankmates for goldfish. The first reason – labyrinths (Gourami Fish, laliuses) prefer warm water, and goldfish prefer cool or normal water.
The second reason is that labyrinths lead an active lifestyle, they can engage in fights with veil tailed fish.
Theoretically, the compatibility of the “Goldfish” with the Ctenopoma is possible, but it swims in the lower layers of the water, and the annoying tankmate with a long tail may simply annoy her.
Cichlids – Settling cichlids with your goldfish in the same aquarium is impossible due to the difference in temperature, conditions, and nature. Cichlids are territorial fish, quite large and at times aggressive.
The habitat of cichlids is the tropical regions of the globe, where the water is warm and clean. Goldfish are descendants of freshwater crucian carp that live in temperate latitudes.
Therefore, such a neighborhood for both species will be unusual. Because of this, scalar compatibility is also unacceptable.
William Smith is an Bachelor of Science in Marine Biology & holds 5+ years of experience in fishkeeping. Inspired by his grandfather’s aquariums, he created CichlidTips.com to help both novices and seasoned fishkeepers. His expertise spans aquarium setup, maintenance, fish behavior, and health. William constantly researches to provide up-to-date and accurate content, aiming to make CichlidTips.com a trusted resource in the fishkeeping community. He encourages engagement with fellow enthusiasts for mutual growth and improvement in this captivating hobby.
