Honey gourami tank mates

Honey gourami: peaceful and shy, 2.2 in, kept in groups of 4 or more, swims in the top and middle of the tank and needs about 17 gallons. The list below checks every species in our catalog against it.

Each species is checked against honey gouramis both ways: mouth size, fin nipping, temperament, territory, water overlap and keeper reports.

Good tank mates

Neon tetra
Paracheirodon innesi
Fits
The classic community fish: a tight school of electric-blue stripes that suits planted tanks of 15 gallons and up.
1.2 in · 17+ gal · 70–77°F · pH 5–7
Harlequin rasbora
Trigonostigma heteromorpha
Fits
Copper-orange schooling fish with a black wedge; hardy, calm and a good first school for a 15–20 gallon tank.
1.4 in · 17+ gal · 73–81°F · pH 6–7
Panda corydoras
Corydoras panda
Fits
Friendly armoured catfish that sift the sand in groups; need soft substrate and a group of six or more.
1.6 in · 17+ gal · 72–77°F · pH 6–7.2
Otocinclus
Otocinclus vittatus
Fits
Tiny algae grazers for mature planted tanks; keep six or more and supplement with vegetables.
1.4 in · 17+ gal · 72–79°F · pH 6–7.2
Cherry shrimp
Neocaridina davidi
Fits
Bright red dwarf shrimp that graze all day and breed in a planted tank; tiny bioload, but fry are snacks for most fish.
1.6 in · 4+ gal · 72–75°F · pH 6.5–7.8
Black neon tetra
Hyphessobrycon herbertaxelrodi
Fits
A peaceful tetra with a bright white-over-black stripe; hardier than the neon tetra and an easy fit in any calm community tank.
1.4 in · 23+ gal · 73–81°F · pH 5.5–7.5
Black widow tetra
Gymnocorymbus ternetzi
Fits
A hardy, deep-bodied tetra with black 'skirt' fins; easy for beginners, but a small group nips the fins of its tank mates.
2.4 in · 22+ gal · 68–79°F · pH 6–7
Blood parrot cichlid
hybrid
Fits
A man-made hybrid cichlid with a round body and a beak-like mouth that barely closes; usually gentle and rarely able to swallow tank mates.
7.9 in · 36+ gal · 72–82°F · pH 6.5–8
Bristlenose pleco
Ancistrus cf. cirrhosus
Fits
The go-to glass cleaner: a compact 5-inch pleco with bushy whiskers on the males that needs a cave and vegetables, not just algae.
4.9 in · 17+ gal · 70–79°F · pH 5.5–7.5
Bronze cory
Corydoras aeneus
Fits
The most widely kept cory: a tough bronze-green or albino catfish that shoals along the bottom and handles a broad range of water.
3 in · 23+ gal · 70–81°F · pH 6–8
Cardinal tetra
Paracheirodon axelrodi
Fits
The neon's close cousin, with red running the full length of the belly; a soft, acidic-water schooling fish that likes it warmer than neons.
1.4 in · 17+ gal · 73–81°F · pH 4–6
Cherry barb
Puntius titteya
Fits
One of the most peaceful barbs: males glow cherry red and leave fins alone, making it great for planted community tanks.
2 in · 17+ gal · 73–81°F · pH 6–8
Discus
Symphysodon aequifasciatus (species complex)
Fits
The 'king of the aquarium': a disc-shaped Amazon cichlid in countless bred colours that needs warm, soft, very clean water.
5.5 in · 80+ gal · 79–86°F · pH 5–7
Fairy cichlid
Neolamprologus brichardi
Fits
A graceful Tanganyika cichlid with a lyre tail; one pair grows into a family colony that guards its rocks year-round.
3.5 in · 34+ gal · 73–79°F · pH 8–9
Glowlight tetra
Hemigrammus erythrozonus
Fits
A small, translucent tetra with a glowing orange stripe along its body; peaceful, hardy and at its best in a densely planted tank.
1.6 in · 22+ gal · 75–82°F · pH 6–7.5
Kribensis
Pelvicachromis pulcher
Fits
A small West African cichlid whose female has a bright belly; a cave-spawning pair digs pits and guards fry along the bottom.
3.9 in · 23+ gal · 75–81°F · pH 6.5–7
Kuhli loach
Pangio semicincta
Fits
A banded, eel-like loach of about 4 inches that burrows by day and explores the bottom as a group in the evening; needs soft sand.
3.9 in · 17+ gal · 70–79°F · pH 3.5–7
Molly
Poecilia sphenops
Fits
A sturdy livebearer that needs hard water and plenty of plant food, and does well in slightly brackish conditions.
3.1 in · 26+ gal · 70–82°F · pH 7–8.5
Multies
Neolamprologus multifasciatus
Fits
The smallest Tanganyika cichlid, about 2 inches, living in empty snail shells; a colony carves the sand into tiny fiercely guarded plots.
1.8 in · 13+ gal · 77–80°F · pH 8–8.5
Peacock cichlid
Aulonocara jacobfreibergi
Fits
The peacocks of Lake Malawi: brilliant males, grey females, calmer than mbuna and gentle with plants, but they need fine sand to feed.
6.7 in · 135+ gal · 77–84°F · pH 7.5–9
Pearl gourami
Trichopodus leerii
Fits
One of the calmest and most beautiful gouramis, covered in pearly spots; ideal for a quiet planted tank with floating plants.
4.7 in · 26+ gal · 75–86°F · pH 5.5–8
Peppered cory
Corydoras paleatus
Fits
One of the hardiest corys: a mottled catfish that sifts sand in a group of six and prefers slightly cooler water.
2.8 in · 22+ gal · 72–79°F · pH 6–7
Platy
Xiphophorus maculatus
Fits
One of the easiest livebearers for beginners: peaceful, colourful and undemanding, happiest in moderately hard water with plants.
2.4 in · 17+ gal · 68–79°F · pH 7–8.2
Ram cichlid
Mikrogeophagus ramirezi
Fits
A brilliantly coloured dwarf cichlid from the Orinoco llanos that needs warm, very clean water and calm tank mates.
1.6 in · 17+ gal · 81–86°F · pH 4–7

And 42 more in the species catalog.

Risky

And 27 more in the species catalog.

Avoid

And 32 more in the species catalog.

Every tank is different. Set yours up once (size, water, who already lives there) and each species is checked against it.

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