What kind of freshwater fish can I put in a 5 gallon tank?

Answer 1

In general the previous posts are right considering the limitations of such a small tank, but at the same time, there are more fish you can go with and sometimes people can get overly paranoid. As long as you remember that smaller tanks need more care, you'll be fine. If you don't think you can handle weekly cleaning (partial water changes and gravel vacuuming) it's probably not a good idea to set up the tank at all.

Ghost shrimp: The perfect small tank bottom dweller - they help clean up, look cool, and have a very light bioload, so you can easily have 5 or 6 in a 5 gallon tank with another couple of fish.

Dwarf/Pigmy Corydora catfish: These guys stay very small, and like the ghost shrimp have a light bioload. No reason at all you can't do a trio of these guys. There are Corydora fish that get pretty large, so make sure it's specifically the small species you go for.

Guppies: Tried tested and true, the aquarium fish for anyone - tough and won't have a problem in this tank.

Betta: Old loner here is surrounded by false myths and highly misregarded, yet still a great little fish - full of curiosity and character. You can keep one in this size of tank and would still have room for one group of the bottom dwellers mentioned above.

Dwarf Gourami: Like the betta he won't outgrow this tank, but you'll also want to keep him as the main attraction, alone or with bottom the bottom dwellers that won't get in his way.

White cloud mountain minnows: Instead of the solo fish or guppies you can try a school of these little guys - you won't have a problem keeping a school of 5 or 6 and they're pretty hardy.

Neon tetras (or glowlight, head-tail light, or any small sized tetra variety): Again, small sized and calm fish that don't need a ton of space, and a school of 5 or 6 would not be a problem, but some of these breeds can be finicky, so take good care of that tank.


Just remember, when it comes to the schooling fish variety becomes a bad thing. Buying 1 of 6 different types of tetra is not how to keep them - buying 6 of the same type is. Also, all of these fish that work in this tank will benefit greatly if you provide lots of plants (real or fake) in the tank.

Answer 2

zebra danio would be great. You could keep 5-6 of them for a small school since they are not messy fish. You can get the neon colored glofish ones if you like the more colorful fish. They do not require a heater (actually prefer cooler water) so just a small filter and maybe an airstone and you are good to go. Another option is a male betta (just one) with a sponge filter system. Regular filter intakes can suck the betta in! Betta also need a heater but you can find one made for mini aquariums for around $10. I recomend a nerlite snail for the cleaning crew. Please read up on cycling a tank before getting any fish. Feel free to e-mail or IM me questions. i do not mind mind helping out a new fish keeper and pointing them in the right direction :)

Answer 3

I agree with John. A Betta is the best option for a 5 gallon tank, but you could also add a SMALL school of SLOW fish, like Neon Tetras. Danios are a recipe for disaster in such a small tank because of their high activity level. Their hyperactivity can cause them to injure themselves on the cramped walls of the tank. Guppies are another option, but I would suggest only males. Keeping both sexes together will lead to uncontrollable breeding and overstocking. As far as Mollies and Swordtails go (and probably Platties as well), they get too big for a 5 gallon tank. At 3+ inches, Mollies and Swordtails will be miserable in such small confines.

Soop Nazi

Answer 4

There are variety of fish that you can put in a 5 gallon tank but you might only be able to put 5 or 6 fish in there. In that case, I would either stick with one school of schooling fish or have some livebearers or a male betta and maybe 3-4 livebearers.

Here is a list:
Schooling (Provided 4-5 per school.):
Zebra Danios
Copper Tetras
Neon Tetras
Cherry Barbs
Bronze Cories
Skunk Cories
Pearl Danio
Celestial Pearl Danio
Harlequin Rasboras

Livebearers (these fish can be kept singly or in pairs or trios and they can all be mixed with each other):
Guppies
Mollies
Platies
Swordtails
Halfbeak

Gouramis and family:
1 Siamese fighting fish with 3 White Cloud Minnows
2 Dwarf Gourami and 3 Harlequin Rasboras

Answer 5

-4 male guppies. Make sure you have a filter and heater (set the heater to 80 degrees)
-ONE betta, IF YOU GET MORE THEN ONE THEY WILL KILL EACH OTHER!
-2 african dwarf frogs (make sure you get a dwarf frog because if it isn't dwarf, it will grow 6 inches long). You'll need a filter and a heater (keep the water from 75-78 degrees).

GET AN AQUARIUM COVER WITH AN AQUARIUM LIGHT! THESE FISH WILL JUMP OUT OF THE TANK IF YOU DON'T!

CHOOSE ONE OPTION, DON'T COMBINE ANY OF THESE FISH!

Answer 6

i would only do one betta. everything else people are telling you will be much better off in a ten gallon tank minimum.

Answer 7

Only a betta. Anything else will be suffering, and will die and get real messy.

Answer 8

a pair of german blue cichlids