A hardy and brave fish, guppies enjoy swimming out in the open in midwater. These fish are perfect for beginners, though they are extremely popular among experienced aquarists due to their diverse colours and tail shapes. Guppies also breed like crazy, which is why they are sometimes referred to as Millionfish. This also makes them an ideal choice for those that would like to begin breeding fish.
Guppy Care
Guppies are a very easy fish to take care of. A hardy, confident and low maintenance fish, they make a great fish species for beginners. Although they come in around 300 different varieties, they all have the same relative size, shape and behaviour. Males are more colourful than females, though obviously, females are a must if you would like to breed your guppies. The most popular species include the Cobra Tail guppy, Neon Blue Guppy, and Black guppies. Our assorted packages of 10 guppies or 20 guppies are great options for beginners. These are all available through our online fish shop.
Natural Habitat
Guppies were first found throughout South America in warm ponds, lakes and slow-moving rivers and streams. They have since been introduced to many other countries, though this has sometimes caused problems with local fish populations. They are particularly common in Asia, where they are used to control mosquito larvae populations by introducing them to still waters around the home.
Behavior/Compatibility for Guppies
Guppies are a confident, mid-water fish that should be out in the open during the day. Guppies that spend all day hiding are usually stressed or unwell, so keep an eye on any guppies exhibiting this behaviour. They show no aggression between males, though males will chase females around as part of the breeding dance. Obviously, you should avoid mixing guppies with large carnivorous fish due to their small size. Similarly, avoid red tail sharks and aggressive barbs as they will enjoy nipping your guppies’ fins. Other than that, just about all docile species will cohabit just fine with your guppies, but the best tank mates include Mollies, Platys, Corydoras, and Gouramis.
Housing Guppies and Aquarium Fish Tank Set-up Tips
Tank
As they require little space between fish, guppies make some of the best fish for small tanks. Individuals can be housed in tanks as little as 10 gallons, though 15 gallons is the usual minimum for small groups. Please note that breeding tanks require slightly different setups compared to show tanks. For breeding tanks, you should use floating plants, avoid substrates, and avoid mixing with other fish species. Please consider the remainder of this section as advice for show tanks.
Recommended Max Fish Count Tank Volume 2 Guppies 40 Litres (10 gallons) 10 Guppies 52 Litres (14 gallons) 15 Guppies 110 Litres (30 gallons) 30 Guppies 150 Litres (40 gallons) Base
As a mid-water swimmer, guppies are fairly unconcerned about which substrate you use in your home aquarium, so you should choose this based either on the needs of your other fish species or purely on an aesthetic basis.
Foliage
Guppies enjoy a fairly well-decorated aquarium, though you will have more freedom to decorate to a more aesthetic goal than you will with other species. Aquarium supplies such as driftwood is always a nice option both practically and aesthetically and you might consider hornwort for your plant life as this will also offer a place for new born fry to hide when your Guppies reproduce.
Water
Although guppies hail from the warm climate of South America, they are remarkably resilient in their water conditioning. They thrive in temperatures between 18 – 28 C (64.4 - 82.4 F). Depending on your local climate, you may need to install a water heater to ensure the temperature stays within this range throughout the year.
Guppies enjoy a pH of around 5.5 to 7.8 and a hardness of 1-15 dH. To ensure your pH and hardness are suitable investing in a testing kit is always recommended. A slow to moderate water flow suits them well, and the water should be aerated with a fish tank pump.
Always ensure your water is properly filtered, and regularly change the water (10% weekly or 25% every other week). You should also filter the substrate regularly and adjust the chemistry of any tap water you use to top your tank. You may do this with one of our many water conditioning products.
Feeding and Care
Guppies are omnivorous fish, meaning they require both meats and plants in their diet. Good quality fish flakes high in protein are a great base diet, but this should also be subsidised with live, frozen or freeze-dried food. Mosquito larvae are a good low-cost choice but may result in mosquitoes if any survive. Bloodworms, brine shrimp and vegetables such as cucumber are great options. You should only feed your guppies twice a day and only an amount that can be cleared within a couple of minutes. Guppies are not fussy feeders, so one of the flake or micro pellet preparations will ensure they receive both plant and meat requirements. Please see our wide selection of tropical fish food options to find something suitable for your guppies.
Great reasons to keep Guppies in your tropical fish tank
- • They are very low maintenance fish to keep and aren’t fussy about their water conditioning and aquarium set-up, making them a great choice for beginners setting up a tropical fish tank for the first time.
- • They get along very well with other fish species and can help relax your other more skittish fish.
- • They come in a wide range of vibrant colours and spend most of their swimming out in open at the mid to surface level of your aquarium.
You can pick a particular guppy variety you want like the Red Dragon Guppy or Cobra Leopard Tail Guppy or if you can't decide which variety of guppy you think is the cutest fish then why not go for one of our assortment of male and female guppy bundles to ensure that you have a variety of different combinations in your guppy aquarium.
