Guppy Compatibility

Elkaybee

I currently have 4 fancy Guppy males in a 5.5 gallon tank. I will be upgrading my Goldfish from a 10 gallon to a 20 gallon tank soon so I will move the guppies to the 10 gallon. My question is, what other fish would be compatible and also work with the extra space I will have? I don't have any live plants if that makes a difference.

Thank you for your help!

Holly

Any community fish will go well with guppies especially and livebearer like mollys and swords. You realy limitation will still be the size of the tank. Tem gallons is bigger than what you have but it's still considered a small tank. What do you like? Have you had your eyes on any fish specifically? Stay away from some of the barbs like green ones since they seem to be nippier than most. Also if you keep them in schools of 6, they will probably leave your guppies alone. I even have guppies in my tank still with my barbs and Rams which are dwarf cichlids and no one bothers eachother.

Elkaybee

Thanks for your reply! I'm new to fish so I'm not sure what I like. I know I'd like fish to compliment the guppies (whatever that means : ). Maybe a cory tetra or a couple of neons, but I'm not sure of the number I should attempt with 10 gallons. I love the colorful fish and am loving my guppies. I know the spacial rule of thumb for Goldfish, but not sure about the smaller fish. Do you have an opinion on spacial considerations for smaller fish?

iamntbatman

Since there are so many things to consider, there's not really a "rule." Part of stocking has to do with fish waste - you don't want more waste produced than your system can handle. More fish make more waste, and some fish make considerably more waste than others.

Strata is another consideration - many fish stick to certain levels of the tank, so it's usually a good idea to have different fish occupy different levels of the tank. Guppies pretty much inhabit every level of the tank, though they probably spend more time up top than in other places.

You also need to consider swimming room. Some species need a lot of room to swim (especially fast fish like danios and barbs) therefore need bigger tanks than you'd expect.

Finally, some fish are pretty aggressive, so you don't want anything that will go after your guppies. This includes many barbs and some of the nippier tetras. Some bettas will go after flashier guppies.

In a ten gallon with guppies, I'd recommend something for the bottom, like a group of pygmy cories or a trio or so of kuhli loaches. Rasboras and cardinal tetras would also be a good choice.

It'sJames

I also think pygmy cories would be nice. They're neat little fish. They need a soft substrate though, so don't use gravel that has any bit of sharpness to it.

Oldman47

I'm going to chime in on the pygmy corydoras. They are very playful in groups of 5 or more and are a very light biological load. They are also quite safe with the guppies and vice versa. James is right that the substrate should either be smooth gravel or sand to avoid damaging the cories. Pygmy cories can be pygmaeus, habrosus or hastatus cories. All three grow to about 3 cm at full grown and are gentle with your other fish.

Elkaybee

Thanks for all of your input! I think I'll look for a cory when the time comes.

JMeenen

Im no Guppy expert but I have Tetras..they go well with the Guppies and they are pretty and they come in different colors..like red,black etc..

Flashygrrl

If you want them happy you'll need a group.