Barbs, danios and rasboras

Barbs, danios and rasboras are the small, active cyprinids that fill the middle of a community tank. Most want a group of six or more and use the open water, from fast zebra danios to shoaling tiger barbs and nano rasboras. Each profile lists tank size and the water a species prefers, and most give a school size.

Tank size: 5–5,283 gal; 5 gal (20 L) to 5,283 gal (20,000 L); half the list needs 24 gal (90 L) or more
Temperature: 72–79°F; 22–26°C, most of the list
pH: 6.0–7.5; Most of the list
Difficulty: 67 easy; 70 medium · 12 difficult
Temperament: 113 peaceful; 31 mostly peaceful · 5 aggressive

149 species and 7 varieties

Start here

The cyprinids everyone starts with

The harlequin rasbora is marked beginner at 2 inches (5 cm) for 15 gallons (55 liters). It wants soft water at a pH from 6 to 7. The zebra danio is the same rating and size and lists 64–75°F (18–24°C), a fish that never stops moving. The cherry barb is the barb for a community tank, marked beginner and peaceful at 2 inches (5 cm) for 14 gallons (54 liters). The tiger barb is marked beginner and aggressive at 2.8 inches (7 cm), and it nips less in a group of eight or more. The white cloud mountain minnow is marked beginner at 1.6 inches (4 cm) and lists 57–72°F (14–22°C), so it lives in an unheated tank. The rosy barb is marked beginner at 2.8 inches (7 cm), the same size as the tiger and gold barbs. It lists 24 gallons (90 liters) at 61–75°F (16–24°C).

The rule

What the whole family has in common

Most barbs, danios and rasboras are schooling fish kept in groups of six or more. A dozen is better, since a short-handed school hides and a short-handed barb nips fins, which is where the tiger barb's reputation comes from. The Danionella species want ten or more, the dwarf amber barb a dozen and the blue axelrodi rasbora 20 to 30. The yellowcheek and the hampala barb are predators kept alone, and the Gangetic latia does best in a group of three to five. The schooling species run rather than hover, so a long tank beats a tall one. Many of them come from cool streams: the white cloud, the Odessa barb, the pearl danio, the gold barb and the rosy barb all list a range that starts at 57 to 64°F (14 to 18°C), which makes them the schools for a tank without a heater.

01
Six is the usual floor
Some want 10 to 30, and two big predators live alone
02
Length over height
They run, so a long tank beats a tall one
03
Barbs nip short-handed
A tiger barb in a group of eight nips less
04
Many like it cool
White clouds, Odessa barbs and pearl danios start at 57–64°F

Rasboras

Harlequin cousins and nano rasboras

The espei rasbora is the harlequin's smaller cousin at 1.5 inches (3.8 cm) for 11 gallons (40 liters), marked easy, and the glowlight rasbora is the third of the trio at 1.6 inches (4 cm) for 12 gallons (45 liters). The chili rasbora is 0.8 inches (2 cm) for 10 gallons (38 liters), marked medium for its soft water and its shyness in small numbers. The exclamation-point rasbora stays at 0.6 inches (1.6 cm), marked easy, the smallest easy fish in the catalog. The green neon rasbora is a 0.8 inch (2 cm) shoaler for 10 gallons (38 liters). The scissortail rasbora is the big one, 5.5 inches (14 cm) for 45 gallons (170 liters), marked easy and peaceful.

Danios

Danios beyond the zebra

The celestial pearl danio is 0.8 inches (2 cm) for 9 gallons (35 liters), marked easy, with a spotted body and red fins. The pearl danio is 2.4 inches (6 cm) for 18 gallons (70 liters) at 61–77°F (16–25°C). The gold ring danio is marked beginner at 1.2 inches (3 cm) for 11 gallons (40 liters). The glowlight danio is the same size in medium light, marked easy for 20 gallons (75 liters). The Lake Inle danio wants hard water at a pH from 7 to 8, 3.1 inches (8 cm) for 24 gallons (90 liters). The giant danio is the largest danio at 5.9 inches (15 cm) for 50 gallons (190 liters). It is marked medium and aggressive and bullies anything slower. The Malabar and moustached danios are big too, at 5.1 inches (13 cm).

Barbs

Small barbs and the two that need room

The Odessa barb is marked easy and peaceful at 1.8 inches (4.5 cm) for 20 gallons (75 liters) at 61–77°F (16–25°C). The black ruby barb is 2.4 inches (6 cm) for the same tank, and the males turn wine red at spawning time. The five-banded barb has a tiger-barb look without the fin nipping, marked easy and peaceful at 2 inches (5 cm). It wants soft water at a pH from 5.5 to 7. The checkered barb is 1.8 inches (4.5 cm) for 16 gallons (60 liters), marked easy. The redline torpedo barb, the Denison barb of the shops, reaches 4.3 inches (11 cm), lists 53 gallons (200 liters) and 59–77°F (15–25°C), and needs current. The filament barb is 5.1 inches (13 cm) of trailing dorsal fin for 53 gallons (200 liters).

The extremes

The biggest and the smallest

The tinfoil barb reaches 13.8 inches (35 cm), lists 180 gallons (680 liters) and is sold as a 2 inch schooling fish. The red-tailed tinfoil barb is the smaller relative at 9.8 inches (25 cm) for 106 gallons (400 liters), marked easy and peaceful, and the lemon-fin barb is the same size and rating. At the other end, Danionella cerebrum is 0.5 inches (1.3 cm) of transparent fish for 8 gallons (30 liters). The pygmy carplet is the smallest fish on the page at 0.5 inches (1.2 cm), marked difficult for a pH from 4.5 to 6.5. The sawbwa barb is 1.2 inches (3 cm) for 20 gallons (75 liters) at a pH from 7 to 8, a Lake Inle fish with a red nose on the males.

By the numbers

Smallest

Largest

Easiest to keep

Fits a 20 gallon tank

Fits a 30 gallon tank

FAQ

Common questions

How many barbs, danios or rasboras should I keep?

Six of one species is the usual floor for the small schoolers. Some want bigger groups, such as ten Danionella, a dozen dwarf amber barbs or 20 to 30 blue axelrodi rasboras. The yellowcheek and the hampala barb are predators kept on their own. Ten or twelve of a tiger barb or a harlequin rasbora is calmer and shows more color than six.

Why do tiger barbs nip fins?

They nip when the group is too small to keep them busy with each other. A group of eight or more spends more of its time on its own pecking order and nips less. Keep them away from angelfish, gouramis and bettas even in a big group, since slow, long-finned fish still get nipped.

Which of these fit a 10 gallon tank?

The chili and green neon rasboras list 10 gallons (38 liters), and the celestial pearl danio and the eyespot rasbora 9 gallons (35 liters). The micro rasbora and Danionella cerebrum list 8 gallons (30 liters), and the dwarf rasbora 7 gallons (25 liters). The pygmy carplet, marked difficult, and the dwarf amber barb list 5 gallons (20 liters). The espei and exclamation-point rasboras and the gold ring danio need 11 gallons (40 liters), a little more than a 10 gallon tank. Eight to ten of one species is a full tank.

Which barbs and danios live without a heater?

The white cloud mountain minnow lists 57–72°F (14–22°C), and the pearl danio, Odessa barb and Taiwan barb 61–77°F (16–25°C). The rosy barb lists 61–75°F (16–24°C), and the gold barb and zebra danio 64–75°F (18–24°C).

Do barbs, danios and rasboras need soft water?

Most list a pH from 6 to 7.5 and take ordinary tap water. The five-banded barb and the Boraras rasboras want it softer. The blue axelrodi rasbora, pygmy carplet and six-banded barb go lower still, down to a pH of 4 to 4.5. The Lake Inle danio, the red dwarf rasbora and the sawbwa barb want it harder, at a pH from 7 to 8.

What is the difference between a barb, a danio and a rasbora?

They are all cyprinids, the carp family. Most barbs are deeper-bodied and many carry barbels at the mouth. The beardless and canius barbs have none. Danios are slim, fast swimmers of the middle and upper water with stripes or spots. Rasboras are the slender, often red or orange schoolers of Southeast Asian streams.

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