Betta Fish Companions

If you have enough space in your betta tank (like more than five gallons – ten is better), its pretty natural to want to add some more fish. While bettas are territorial, and they may fight with any fish you put into their tank, some fish make much better (betta?) companions for bettas than others.

Here are some good choices for betta tanks. Remember… you really ought to have at least a ten gallon tank to give your betta some room, and twenty gallons is better.

1) Cherry barbs

2) Rasboras. There are many kinds of rasboras. Harlequin, scissortail, red-tailed, clown and pygmy rasboras are all good choices for a betta tank. These fish all school (except for the clown rasboras), so you should get at least six of them to keep them happy. Rasboras won’t grow larger than two inches, max, and many stay smaller than that. They are also colorful, so they’ll complement your betta’s looks. A little band of schooling fish is fun to watch and it makes a nice counterpoint to a lone betta.

3) Danios

4) Small barbs

5) Angel fish

6) Cory catfish

7) Coolie loaches

Glass catfish

This is just a starter list. Here’s how to tell if a fish would be a good companion for your betta.

Swimming habits – Pick fish that have similar swimming habits to your betta. In other words, fish that streak around near the surface of the water are going to cause problems – fish like sharks (no, not ocean-going sharks… freshwater fish called “sharks”) and hatchet fish.

Temperature needs – Choose fish that like to be kept a bit warmer than the average community tank. If your betta is happiest at 80 degrees (or at least 78 degrees), choose fish that will be happy at that temperature. Goldfish, for example, are cold water fish and probably aren’t good companions for bettas. Either your betta is going to be cold all the time, or your goldfish is going to be hot all the time.

pH needs – Bettas are pretty easy to accommodate when it comes to pH. Most standard community fishes won’t give you a problem here, but be sure to check. Discus fish, for example, like the gentle currents and warm temperatures that bettas do, so they seem like good tank mates until you consider pH. But discus like a pH around 6.5 or lower, and that’s going to be hard on your betta.