What are the Best Arowana Tank Mates

Arowanas are tropical freshwater fish, featuring long bodies. Generally, they consist of African arowana, Asian arowana, South American arowana, and Australian arowana. Arowana fish is fond of slow-moving and acid waters. Also, seeing that they are large and aggressive, they are always kept alone. But do arowanas feel lonely? Or can arowanas be kept with other fish? If you are eager to know more and get ready for it, just read on. You will get a deeper understanding of the best fish for arowana tank mates.

• Content Table

• Do Arowanas need tank mates
• Can Oscars and arowana live together
• 10 popular and best arowana tank mates
• Closing thoughts

Do Arowanas need tank mates

Arowanas can grow up to 2–3 feet. Consequently, it is better to keep adult arowanas alone. However, “some arowanas will eat much accompanied by tank mates, while some will kill the tank mates,” said an arowana keeper. Then, can you keep arowanas with other fish? Or do arowanas need tank mates?

Definitely, it is feasible to keep arowana with some other fish species. And tank mates are beneficial to arowana tanks. For instance, some tank mates help to remove algae and avoid algae thriving, like Flying fox fish.

Can Oscars and arowana live together?

Keep oscars and arowanas in one tank? Yes or No?

In the case of plenty of space, you can keep oscars with arowana. However, you should be careful. Here are tips for you.

• Commonly, it is better to keep two fish that come in similar sizes in one tank. Because oscars and arowanas are aggressive. If Oscar is larger than the arowana, Oscar would bully or even eat the arowana. And vice versa.
• Provided that you hold juvenile oscars and arowanas together, you should notice their growth rate. Both of the two grow fast. Consequently, facing one much larger than the other, it is necessary to separate them.

Why you can keep oscars and arowanas together?

Oscars and arowanas demand a similar living environment. The table below gives you a brief comparison.

	Oscars	Arowanas
Water temperature	74-80℉	75-86℉
pH level	6.0-8.0	6.0-7.0
Water hardness	4-10 dKH	1-8 dKH
Ammonia level	0 ppm	0 ppm
Nitrite level	0 ppm	0 ppm
Nitrate level	Less than 20 ppm	Less than 40 ppm
Diet	Omnivore (available food: shrimps, insects, small fish, fruit, etc.)	Carnivore (high-protein food, like worms, shrimps, insects, small fish, etc.)

Plus, both oscars and arowanas are tropical fish. Oscar fish always swim around the middle or bottom of a fish tank, while arowanas prefer exploring on the top of an aquarium. By the way, the best arowanas to be kept with oscars can be silver arowanas. In addition, oscars are compatible with arowanas, and they are smart. Also, keeping oscars and arowanas together makes the aquarium colorful and greatly improves the ornamental value. However, oscars and arowanas require food rich in protein, while they will produce a massive amount of waste. Hence, building a great filtration system is critically crucial. By the way, more about filtration system, you can read:

• Which Fish Tank Filter Media Should You Get
• How Does a Fish Tank Filter Pump Work

10 popular and best arowana tank mates

Basic info about arowana fish

Before getting into tank mates for arowana tanks, let’s take a quick look at some basic information about arowana fish.

• Adult size: 2–3 feet
• Temperament: Aggressive
• Diet: Carnivore
• Ideal water temperature: 75-86℉
• Swimming level: Middle-Top
• Minimum tank size: 250 gallons

10 best tank mates for arowana fish

Next, we will list 10 popular and best tank mates for arowana.

Fish name	Jack Dempsey cichlid	Texas cichlid	Green terror cichlid
Adult size	7–8 inches	12–20 inches	6–12 inches
Temperament	Aggressive & Territorial	Aggressive	Aggressive
Diet	Carnivore	Omnivore	Carnivore
Ideal water temp	72-86℉	68-82℉	69-75℉
Swimming level	Bottom-Middle	Bottom	Middle
Minimum tank size	55 gallons	90 gallons	50 gallons

Fish name	Bichir fish	Blood parrot fish	Common pleco
Adult size	15–30 inches	7–8 inches	12–24 inches
Temperament	Semi-aggressive	Peaceful	Peaceful with semi-aggressive
Diet	Carnivore	Omnivore	Omnivore
Ideal water temp	72-82℉	72-82℉	74-80℉
Swimming level	Bottom	Bottom-Middle	Bottom
Minimum tank size	90 gallons	30 gallons	75 gallons

Fish name	Oscar fish	Silver dollar fish	Clown loach	Knife fish
Adult size	10–14 inches	About 6 inches	6–12 inches	18–20 inches
Temperament	Aggressive & Territorial	Peaceful	Peaceful	Semi-aggressive
Diet	Omnivore	Vegetarian	Omnivore	Carnivore
Ideal water temp	74-80℉	75-82℉	77-86℉	75-80℉
Swimming level	Bottom-Middle	Middle	Bottom	Bottom-Middle
Minimum tank size	55 gallons	20 gallons	55 gallons	55 gallons

Take the silver dollar fish as an example, they are peaceful, hardy, and active. Also, they are not difficult to care for. Thus, the silver dollar fish can be an excellent alternative for arowana fish tanks. Plus, featuring silver body color, the silver dollar fish flicker in the tank, making the arowana aquarium more attractive. Besides that, silver dollar fish are middle dwellers and schooling fish. As a result, you should make sure the tank is large enough to accommodate the silver dollar fish and arowana together.

Aside from the 10 best tank mates for arowana aquariums, there are other feasible choices: Flying fox fish, Tiger datnoid, Freshwater stingray, Pacu fish, Iridescent shark, Firemouth cichlid, Snakehead fish, Tinfoil barb, Bala shark, Flowerhorn cichlid, Severum, and Jaguar cichlid. You can also choose your favorite one among them.

Closing thoughts

Pointers about choosing tank mates for arowanas

Considering the size and temperament of arowana fish, the best tank mates should be:

• Similar in size
• Tolerable to aggressive arowanas
• Swimming and exploring different areas of the tank – bottom to middle dwellers

Related topics about arowana fish

For more about arowana fish, you can go to:

• Fish Profiles – Arowana Fish Distribution and Types
• Guide to Take Care Arowana Fish
• Arowana Fish Common Diseases and Treatments

That’s all for today. For additional interesting arowana facts, welcome to share them with us in the comment. We are happy to receive your sharing. Finally, thanks for taking the time. And we hope the article will help you a lot.