So you finally took that leap of faith and bought a fish tank. Perhaps you bought a 10 gallon, 20 gall0n, 25 gallon or even a 29 gallon tank and now you’re not sure where to begin with regard to fish selection? If you’re striving for a peaceful community tank with friendly colorful fish that are hardy and won’t break your budget, then the following top 5 list is just for you.

Zebra Danio prefer cooler water temperatures

Community Fish Considerations

If you’re new to the aquarium hobby, make sure you have a fully cycled tank before rushing out and buying a bunch of fish. A good article on setting up and cycling a tank can be found here. It’s always best to go slowly and add fish only a few at a time. The reason for this is, as more fish are added to your tank, the biological load will increase. Increasing that load too quickly by adding too many fish at once will cause your water parameters to spike out of control, which can be dangerous (and even deadly) to fish. I’ve used the following product with great success when starting new tanks, adding fish to existing tanks or when changing water or filter media ⇩

Some considerations you’ll want to keep in mind when choosing tank mates are:

the size of the fish as an adult
water parameters such as preferred temperature, pH and water hardness
a slightly larger centerpiece fish
behaviors such as schooling or aggression

Apistogramma Dwarf Cichlid from South American and the Amazon rain forest

Our Top 5 Picks:

5. Cherry Barb

Cherry Barbs belong to the family Cyprinidae, the largest family of fish in the world with over 2000 species. In recent decades these fish have been under pressure in the wild. This is due to natural habitat loss and illegal poaching causing their numbers to decline. One of the most popular barb species in the aquarium trade, Cherry Barb numbers remain robust and growing in captivity.

Cherry Barbs prefer to swim in schools for protection and will add a lot of bright color to the middle of your tank. It is not recommended to keep just a single Cherry Barb, as it will be too shy and spend most of it’s time hiding. A good rule of thumb is to allow 5 gallons of water per Cherry Barb. These peaceful fish thrive in community tanks. Cherry Barbs tend to be very active and have lively personalities.

4. Fancy Guppy

Owning guppies is like a time honored tradition in the aquarium hobby. Guppies are extremely peaceful and can tolerate smaller tank sizes, making them perfect for a tank as small as 10 gallons. The color varieties are endless, they are extremely easy to care for and they are voracious eaters. Although their lifespan is on the shorter side, their propensity to breed and regularly produce babies will more than make up for any losses. With regular feeding and excellent tank maintenance, you’ll have more guppy fry than you know what to do with!

3. Harlequin Rasbora

Harlequin Rasbora bright orange with a black triangular patch

There are many varieties of Rasbora, but hands down our favorite is the Harlequin Rasbora. These fish are known for their black triangular patch and bright orange color. These nano-sided fish only grow to about two inches long, are perfectly peaceful and can be found readily at most aquarium stores. For a striking display in your community tank, purchase six or more Harlequin Rasbora for a beautiful schooling display.

2. Bolivian Ram

Bolivian Ram are a peaceful South American Cichlid

The Bolivian Rams is a South American Cichlid that is a peaceful addition for any community tank and perfect for beginners as well. This fish has beautiful colors and a great personality. Bolivian Rams will get along with peaceful tank mates of a similar size. At three inches long they make an excellent centerpiece fish. Exercise caution when adding a Bolivian Ram to a community tank that has much smaller fish that can be mistaken for food items.

1. Neon Tetra

Neon Tetra the worlds best selling aquarium fish

Popular with beginning fishkeepers, the classic Neon Tetra is one of the best selling aquarium fish in the world. Neon tetras are easy to take care of and maintain and do amazingly well a community tank as long as larger fish in that community don’t see them as prey items. Ideally, a school of 6 to 10 (or more) Neon Tetras will help the fish to feel secure with safety in higher numbers. Providing plenty of plant cover will also help the Neon Tetras when they have the urge to run and hide.

That concludes our top 5 fish for a small to medium sized community tank article. Our goal with this top 5 list was to write it with the beginner aquarium hobbyist in mind. We all have opinions about what our favorite fish are and those opinions are bound to change with time and experience in the hobby.