8 Best Danio Tank Mates -FishLab

Danios are some of the most adorable, good-looking, and fun fish to keep in an aquarium, but it’s always nice to have some variety in our tanks! The question is, which are the best fish to keep as danio tank mates?

The best danio tank mates are fish that are not too much larger than the average danio species of your choosing in order to minimize the risk of danios being eaten. They should also be relatively peaceful and enjoy similar tank parameters to the danio for their health. Some of these can include mollies, tetras, guppies, and even some loaches!

In this article we’ll take a look at a list of some of the best tank mates for danios. We’ll go over what you need to know, including information on each type of fish. Let’s get started!

Danio Tank Mates – What You Need to Know

There is plenty to consider when caring for just one type of fish. When you add other varieties to the tank, it can be difficult to know where to start. In order to cut down on the stress, we’ve prepared some of the most important considerations to take for your danio and it’s tank mates.

Temperament

Danios are generally peaceful fish. There are very few types in the whole danio family that would get aggressive or territorial with other fish. That being said, you can still get into temperament trouble when looking for tank mates for the danio.

Danios are a small, schooling fish that typically won’t bother other fish in the tank and will do best with fish that behave the same way. With these small fish like the danio, sometimes all it takes to lower fish stress is to keep more than one of the same kind of fish together. Many types of small fish prefer being in a school of 6 or more because it makes them feel safe. These schooling fish will tend to hide if they are the only one of their species in the tank.

Size

Danios are notoriously some of the smaller fish in the aquarium hobby. Very few danios grow to be much larger than 2 inches, and even then, none exceed 5 inches. These fish are not likely to try and snack on other fish; however, size comes into play when other fish might try and eat the danios!

To prevent this, try not to attempt tank mates that are much larger than 3 to 4 inches in length, unless these tank mates aren’t interested in chasing and eating live danios.

Competition

Competition is what happens when two fish species want to eat the same foods at the same time. Danios do not eat much; they only grab a tiny bit of food each time they eat, which is only about twice a day at most.

Most danios are fine eating a tropical flake as their main food, but they love to eat frozen or live invertebrates and a variety of veggie food, too. Danios, though not picky, are not aggressive eaters. Other fish that eat in a similar way or at the top of the tank might deprive them of that food.

This means you’ll need fish that either eat in different zones, with different frequencies, or simply don’t eat the same types of things as danios do.

Parameters & Tank Setup

A danio likes to be in a group of other fish, sometimes of it’s own species. Regardless, if you have more than one fish in the tank, you need your danio’s habitat to be at least 10 gallons. It is recommended that every inch of fish added to the tank should promote another gallon of water to the tank size!

Additionally, fish this small like to have plants and other obstacles in the tank that they can hide or play in. Provide lots of these!

Best Danio Tank Mates

1.  Kuhli Loach

2. Swordtail Fish

3. Ember Tetra

4. Cardinal Tetra

5. Guppy

6. Bronze Corydoras

7. Rosy Barb

8. Honey Gourami

Let’s look at each of these great fish more closely to see what makes them right for you and your danios.

You will also like these other related posts in this category:

• Valentini Puffer Tank Mates
• Red Eye Tetra Tank Mates
• Koi Tank Mates

1. Kuhli Loach

• Scientific Name: Pangio kuhli
• Adult Size: 4 inches
• Compatible With: Danios
• Care Level: Easy
• Origin: Indonesia

Kuhli Loaches are some of the most fascinating fish you can pair up with danios safely! For one thing, they don’t really look like fish; instead, they have more in common visually with eels. Kuhli loaches have long, snake-like bodies. They are a wide range in colors, but often they are a pale yellow with brown spots saddling their backs.

Kuhli loaches are bottom feeders so there won’t be any competition for food with your danios. They will be just fine eating the danios leftovers. They like to hide among plant stems and caves so you may not always see them in the tank. Your best chance to see them active is in the evening after feeding time because kuhli loaches are nocturnal

Pros of keeping with Danio:

• No aggression
• No food competition
• Cleans up the bottom of the tank

Cons of keeping with Danio :

• None

2. Swordtail Fish

• Scientific Name: Xiphophorus helleri
• Adult Size: 3 to 4 inches
• Compatible With: Danios
• Care Level: Easy
• Origin: Central America, Mexico

Swordtails are some of the best fish you can add to a tank full of danios. They are peaceful, so they won’t nip or cause any trouble with their tank mates. They also contrast nicely with several different types of danios because of their varied coloration!

Swordtails are mainly vibrant in color, ranging from black to blue to red. This solid color is interspersed with stripes or even bars that can be an electric yellow or more dark in color. Their name comes from their sword-like tail, which is long and lovely.

Pros of keeping with Danio:

• No aggression
• No food competition

Cons of keeping with Danio :

• None

3. Ember Tetra

• Scientific Name: Hyphessobrycon amandae
• Adult Size: 1 inch
• Compatible With: Danios
• Care Level: Easy
• Origin: South America

Ember Tetras are little schools of burning-hot sunshine in a community tank. They do like to be kept in groups of 6 or more of their own kind, but beyond that they are pretty gentle and playful, making them great tank mates for danios.

Ember tetras are small with bright red bodies. The tips of their dorsal fins are a subtle black, making their vibrancy pop even more!

Pros of keeping with Danio:

• No aggression
• No food competition

Cons of keeping with Danio :

• None

4. Cardinal Tetra

• Scientific Name: Paracheirodon axelrodi
• Adult Size: 2 inches
• Compatible With: Danios
• Care Level: Easy
• Origin: Colombia, Brazil, Venezuela

This fish goes by many names: the cardinal tetra, the roter neon, and the red neon! They are highly popular because they are easy to keep, and they have shimmery color combination that is absolutely stunning.

Cardinal tetras are a bright strawberry red with a lighter belly and a ribbon of neon blue striping their bodies. This blue color is very reflective, giving off a light-up neon effect as it swims in and out of the plants it loves in the aquarium!

Pros of keeping with Danios

• No aggression
• No food competition

Cons of keeping with Danio :

• None

5. Guppy

• Scientific Name: Poecilia reticulata
• Adult Size: 2 inches
• Compatible With: Danios
• Care Level: Easy
• Origin: South America

These fish are so popular among aquarists for their good looks and good attitudes. Although they were found in South America, they have been widely bred in captivity. If you are interested in breeding fish, guppies are a great place to start. They are common to find in pet stores, but you’ll have a great variety of guppies to choose from!

Guppies are colored like little galaxies. They are usually one color speckled with an iridescent version of a second color, while their fins may be a third color entirely. They are not aggressive and not picky when it comes to eating first.

Pros of keeping with Danio:

• No aggression
• No food competition

Cons of keeping with Danio :

• None

6. Bronze Corydoras

• Scientific Name: Corydoras aeneus
• Adult Size: 2.5 inches
• Compatible With: Danios
• Care Level: Easy
• Origin: Argentina, Venezuela, Colombia

This bottom-dwelling fish is a popular choice when looking for an easygoing tank mate that won’t cause a fuss for its neighbors. The bronze corydora is a bottom-dweller, meaning that just like the kuhli loach, you can expect it to clean up some detritus and keep to itself!

The peaceful bronze corydora (also known as the emerald corydora) is named for its bronze coloration with some hints of green. It is shaped roughly like an arrow-head with black eyes and cute little catfish whiskers, which are used to detect food on the tank floor.

Pros of keeping with Danio:

• No aggression
• No competition
• Cleans up the tank
• Keeps to itself

Cons of keeping with Danio :

• None

7. Rosy Barb

• Scientific Name: Puntius conchonius
• Adult Size: 6 inches
• Compatible With: Danios
• Care Level: Easy
• Origin: India, Bengal

The rosy barb is named for it’s bright red appearance. In fact, another name for the rosy barb is the red barb! This fish doesn’t get much larger than the largest species of danio, and it’s peaceful and playful nature won’t cause trouble.

While you have fun watching the rosy barb dart around playing tag with others of it’s own kind, you’ll notice it’s beautiful coloration. The rosy barb is gold with reddish highlights on each scale and matching red eyes. Even it’s fins, which are speckled with black, are red.

Pros of keeping with Danio:

• No aggression
• No food competition
• Fun to watch

Cons of keeping with Danio :

• None

8. Honey Gourami

• Scientific Name: Trichogaster chuna
• Adult Size: 3 inches
• Compatible With: Danios
• Care Level: Easy
• Origin: Bangladesh, India

The honey gourami is another bright little slice of happiness ready to swim around your danio’s tank, causing no trouble and bringing beauty. It is interesting to watch a gourami in the wild because they like to hunt by squirting water at flying insects, then speeding up and eating them once they’re knocked out of the sky!

Honey gouramis in the tank are small, yellow, and friendly. They may bicker amongst others of their own kind, but with plenty of vegetation, these active fish will not cause problems for the various danios you keep in your tank.

Pros of keeping with Danio:

• No aggression
• No food competition

Cons of keeping with Danio :

• None 

In Conclusion

To sum it all up, the best danio tank mates are fish that enjoy the same hardness and temperature levels in the tank as danios, but also have similar temperaments. They should not eat the same foods as danios at the same time, or at least be able to hold their own when it comes to getting a fair share at mealtime.

Fish that easily fit this description are several popular, smaller fish like the molly, the guppy, the tetra, and even the kuhli loach! With fish like these, your danio will have plenty of friends to keep it company and to keep your tank looking vibrant and varied.