If you are hoping to add some more fish to the community of your Chinese algae eater, you’ll need to understand not only which ones make the best choices, but why they are compatible with your algae eater. We’ve prepared a list for you!
The Best Chinese Algae Eater tank Mates include fish that can survive in the same general water and tank conditions, but also live peacefully with the algae eater. This means they do not compete for the same food sources at the bottom of the tank or have conflicting temperaments. Examples include barbs, danios, and even some tetras.
In this article, you will not only find our list of the top 15 tank mates that work best for Chinese algae eaters, but also what you should be looking for in tank mates to keep your aquarium community happy and healthy. With so much to cover, let’s get right into it!
Contents
Chinese Algae Eater Tank Mates – What You Need to Know
Temperament
The chinese algae eater is generally a peaceful fish, but it can become aggressive under certain circumstances. This aspect of their temperament comes out when tank mates ate near to their own color and size, being a territorial fish that does not want to compete with others of it’s own kind.
To resolve any tension, pick tank mates that are also peaceful and unlikely to bother the Chinese Algae Eater!
Size
A Chinese Algae Eater is capable of growing to a whopping 10 or even 11 inches long, though they sometimes stay at 6 inches in length. Either way, it is important to get fish that are not too much smaller by comparison, but will not be likely to be mistaken for another Chinese Algae Eater.
Competition
Chinese Algae Eaters tend to start out eating just algae, which is how they get their name. Eventually, they start to want more, like bloodworms and brine shrimp, but they’ll also eat algae wafers. You’ll need to make sure that your chinese algae eater isn’t prompted to compete for this food from other fish who might like to eat algae or the same protein at the tank floor.
Parameters ; Tank Setup
Chinese Algae Eaters do best when they’re allowed to explore fine sand substrate and some large, flat rocks. The rocks will collect algae, which your Chinese Algae Eater will love to eat and hunt for.
Find other fish that enjoy soft substrate and can handle the Chinese Algae Eater’s preferred water conditions, such as a temperature of 74 to 80 degrees Fahrenheit.
15 Best Chinese Algae Eater Tank Mates
Now that we know what we’re looking for in good tank mates, let’s take a look at the list of the best below!
- Zebra Danios
- Tiger Barb
- Rosy Barb
- Emperor Tetra
- Mickey Mouse Platy
- Convict Cichlid
- Blue Wag Platy
- Black Molly
- Sailfin Molly
- Scissortail Rasbora
- Gold Doubloon Molly
- Blue Dwarf Gourami
- Honey Dwarf Gourami
- Flame Dwarf Gourami
- Black Ruby Barb
Let’s look even more closely at each of these fish to see why they make excellent choices for tank mates for your Chinese Algae Eater!
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1. Zebra Danios
- Scientific Name: Danio rerio
- Adult Size: 2 inches
- Compatible With: Chinese Algae Eater
- Care Level: Easy
- Origin: India
This peaceable fish is popular among many aquarium builders for tank mates. This is because as long as this fish has more of its own kind to hang out with, it does nothing but liven up a tank!
This is accomplished with its sweetly striped body, which comes in many different colors. The most common is a reflective dark blue and warm fiery crisscrossing of stripes.
Pros of keeping with Chinese Algae Eater:
- No food competition
- No aggression
Cons of keeping with Chinese Algae Eater :
- Should be kept with at least 6 others of it’s own kind
2. Tiger Barb
- Scientific Name: Barbus tetrazona
- Adult Size: 3 inches
- Compatible With: Chinese Algae Eater
- Care Level: Easy
- Origin: Sumatra, Indonesia, Borneo
Tiger Barbs are very easy to care for. They will eat just about anything, but they stay near the middle of the aquarium, so they pose no threat to your Chinese algae eater. As long as they have enough of their own kind to chase about, Tiger Barbs are not aggressive.
Additionally, Tiger Barbs are beautiful. They are usually a warm sun color with dark stripes, earning them their name.
Pros of keeping with Chinese Algae Eater:
- No aggression as long as they’re with their own kind
- Very little food competition
Cons of keeping with Chinese Algae Eater :
- None!
3. Rosy Barb
- Scientific Name: Puntius conchonius
- Adult Size: 6 inches
- Compatible With: Chinese Algae Eater
- Care Level: Easy
- Origin: India
Rosy barbs are beloved because they are another type of small fish that is beautiful to look at and not too hard to care for. They are omnivores, meaning they’ll eat plenty of different kinds of food.
Additionally, rosy barbs are active fish. They like to play with one another and are comfortable as long as a tank has plenty of places to hide in. They may venture toward the bottom of the tank, but they are agile and look dissimilar enough to the Chinese Algae Eater to avoid any trouble.
Pros of keeping with Chinese Algae Eater:
- No aggression
- No food competition
Cons of keeping with Chinese Algae Eater :
- None!
4. Emperor Tetra
- Scientific Name: Nematobrycon palmeri
- Adult Size: 2 inches
- Compatible With: Chinese Algae Eater
- Care Level: Medium Difficulty
- Origin: Colombia
Emperor Tetras are commonly found in the middle of the aquarium, meaning they will not be likely to bother the Chinese Algae Eater. Even if they did make their way down to his territory, Emperor Tetras are peaceful creatures.
They are also nothing alike to Chinese Algae Eaters in looks, being beautiful in yellow color with black and red markings.
Pros of keeping with Chinese Algae Eater:
- No aggression
- No food competition
Cons of keeping with Chinese Algae Eater :
- None!
5. Mickey Mouse Platy
- Scientific Name: Xixophorus maculatus
- Adult Size: 1 to 2 inches
- Compatible With: Chinese Algae Eater
- Care Level: Easy
- Origin: Guatemala, Mexico, Honduras
Mickey Mouse Platies are also called golden moon platies, or moonfish. They spend most of their time away from the Chinese Algae Eater’s lower turf of the tank, and are easy to care for thanks to their wide diet.
Mickey Mouse Platies are certainly cheerful enough in visual appearance. The thing that gives them their name is not their bright orange coloration, but the dark three circles near their tails which look like a mouse and his ears!
Pros of keeping with Chinese Algae Eater:
- No aggression
- No food competition
Cons of keeping with Chinese Algae Eater :
- None!
6. Convict Cichlid
- Scientific Name: Archocentrus Nigrofasciatus
- Adult Size: 6 inches
- Compatible With: Chinese Algae Eater
- Care Level: Medium Difficulty
- Origin: Central America
The main trick to keeping a convict cichlid with a Chinese Algae Eater is to have a really large tank, at least 50 gallons. Once this is accomplished, the two fish, though sometimes aggressive, will rarely notice and bother one another.
Then you’ll have a cichlid with striking black and white stripes to enjoy! Be careful, however; generally, the Convict cichlid likes water that is a bit cooler than what the Chinese Algae Eater enjoys. You’ll have to be mindful of the overlap in their comfortable temperatures!
Pros of keeping with Chinese Algae Eater:
- No food competition
- No aggression with enough room
Cons of keeping with Chinese Algae Eater :
- Can be aggressive with other mid-dwelling tank mates.
7. Blue Wag Platy
- Scientific Name: Xiphophorus maculatus
- Adult Size: 2 inches
- Compatible With: Chinese Algae Eater
- Care Level: Easy
- Origin: South America and Central America
This fish is technically of the same species as the Mickey Mouse Platy. However, the blue wag platy is a much different color than the Mickey Mouse Platy!
It is a neon, bright blue that will certainly pop against the yellow that your Chinese Algae Eater adds to the aquarium. Other than that, these two fish will be unlikely to bother one another in different zones of the aquarium.
Pros of keeping with Chinese Algae Eater:
- No aggression
- No food competition
Cons of keeping with Chinese Algae Eater :
- None!
8. Black Molly
- Scientific Name: Poecilia latipinna
- Adult Size: 4 inches
- Compatible With: Chinese Algae Eater
- Care Level: Easy
- Origin: Central America
Another Central American type of fish rounding out our list is the Black Molly! Black Mollies are excellent for keeping in any community tank, but they will add a special splotch of dark color to your Chinese Algae Eater’s bright yellow.
The Black Molly is peaceful by nature and like to spend their time in the middle and top of the aquarium. They are highly active breeders, however, so make sure you’re prepared for that if you have more than one Black Molly of opposite sexes.
Pros of keeping with Chinese Algae Eater:
- No aggression
- No food competition
Cons of keeping with Chinese Algae Eater :
- None!
9. Sailfin Molly
- Scientific Name: Poecilia latipinna
- Adult Size: 6 inches
- Compatible With: Chinese Algae Eater
- Care Level: Easy
- Origin: Southern North America
Sailfin Mollies are notable for their large size and beautifully shaped fins. The sailfin molly’s dorsal fin is nearly taller than the rest of its body, speckled with blue and lined with a beautiful yellow fringe.
Not only are they pretty, but Sailfin Mollies are too large to be threatened by Chinese Algae Eaters, and normally keep to their own area of the tank, anyway.
Pros of keeping with Chinese Algae Eater:
- Not aggressive
- No food competition
Cons of keeping with Chinese Algae Eater :
- None!
10. Scissortail Rasbora
- Scientific Name: Rasbora trilineata
- Adult Size: 3 inches
- Compatible With: Chinese Algae Eater
- Care Level: Easy
- Origin: Borneo, Sumatra, Malaysia, Cambodia, Thailand, Laos
Scissortail rasboras should be kept and enjoyed thanks to their beautiful silvery coloration and scissor-shaped tail fins, but they are also great tank mates for Chinese Algae Eaters because they are very easy to take care of!
In addition to this, they are peaceful as long as they have a few of their own kind to help them feel safe, and stay away from the bottom of the tank.
Pros of keeping with Chinese Algae Eater:
- No aggression
- No food competition
Cons of keeping with Chinese Algae Eater :
- None!
11. Gold Doubloon Molly
- Scientific Name: Poecilia latipinna
- Adult Size: 5 inches
- Compatible With: Chinese Algae Eater
- Care Level: Easy
- Origin: North America, Mexico
Gold Doubloon Mollies are named for their bright yellow coloration. However, there’s no reason to worry that your Chinese Algae Eater will mistake Gold Doubloon Mollies for rivals and attack. These fish keep out of the lower part of the tank.
They also school together, and only need to eat meat every once in a while. This means that as the Chinese Algae Eater ages and prefers meat, the gold doubloon molly is not likely to get in it’s way.
Pros of keeping with Chinese Algae Eater:
- No aggression
- No food competition
Cons of keeping with Chinese Algae Eater :
- None!
12. Blue Dwarf Gourami
- Scientific Name: Trichogaster trichopterus
- Adult Size: 5 inches
- Compatible With: Chinese Algae Eater
- Care Level: Easy
- Origin: Asia
The blue dwarf gourami does happen to be a little aggressive, but the good news is, it is too small to pose much of a threat to your Chinese Algae Eater.
Additionally, the blue dwarf gourami is easy to care for. It goes by many names, but most of these have to do with its beautiful dark blue coloration dappled with lighter blue speckles.
Pros of keeping with Chinese Algae Eater:
- Too small to pose a threat to Chinese Algae Eater
- No Food competition
Cons of keeping with Chinese Algae Eater :
- None
13. Honey Dwarf Gourami
- Scientific Name: Trichogaster chuna
- Adult Size: 2 inches
- Compatible With: Chinese Algae Eater
- Care Level: Easy
- Origin: India
Honey gouramis are named for their beautiful golden color, like drops of bee’s honey in your aquarium! They have warm personalities, too, being very peaceful critters.
Honey Dwarf Gouramis are not only likely to stay away from the Chinese Algae Eater’s protected turf and food sources, but they are also not aggressive and will be fine as long as there are plants to hide behind!
Pros of keeping with Chinese Algae Eater:
- No aggression
- No food competition
Cons of keeping with Chinese Algae Eater :
- None!
14. Flame Dwarf Gourami
- Scientific Name: Trichogaster Ialius
- Adult Size: 2 inches
- Compatible With: Chinese Algae Eater
- Care Level: Easy
- Origin: Asia, India
This very small fish will stay far from the bottom of the tank where the Chinese Algae Eater roams. However, it does like to be in a tank with other fish, being a social and peaceful neighbor.
Flame Dwarf Gouramis add to their list of benefits by being an absolutely beautiful species of gourami. They range from the blue of a gas-lit stove to the orange and yellow of open flames, which is how they earn their name. They also have two distinct whiskers!
Pros of keeping with Chinese Algae Eater:
- No aggression
- No food competition
Cons of keeping with Chinese Algae Eater :
- None!
15. Black Ruby Barb
- Scientific Name: Pethia nigrofasciata
- Adult Size: 2 inches
- Compatible With: Chinese Algae Eater
- Care Level: Easy
- Origin: Sri Lanka
Finally, the black ruby barb is a must-have for any Chinese Algae Eater’s tank. Black Ruby Barbs are found on the bottom of the tank, which is where the Chinese Algae Eater roams, but they are too small in size for the territorial fish to bother.
Black Ruby Barbs do eat algae, however, so for young Chinese Algae Eaters, they could pose a dietary competition problem. To prevent this, make sure you have a very large tank.
Pros of keeping with Chinese Algae Eater:
- No aggression
Cons of keeping with Chinese Algae Eater :
- Can have some food competition without a large enough tank
In Conclusion
To summarize everything we have learned, the 15 Best Chinese Algae Eater Tank Mates are fish that have no problem staying away from the bottom level of the tank and can survive in the same temperature and overall conditions as the Chinese algae eater.
Some of these include barbs, tetras, and even mollies! Though these fish are small, they stay out of the more territorial algae eater’s way and look nothing like potential rivals of the same species. By choosing one of the fish above, you’ll have a beautiful algae eater community!
Ian Sterling, founder of Fishlab.com, began his aquarium journey over 30 years ago, driven by a deep fascination for fish and their diverse personalities. His website, Fishlab.com, is dedicated to making fishkeeping accessible and enjoyable, offering beginner-friendly guidance, expert insights, and a community for aquarists to connect and share experiences.