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Encyclopedia / Tetras / Gold tetra
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Variations

1 kinds · tap one for a closer look

Gold tetra

Hemigrammus rodwayi · Brilliant tetra, Golden tetra

Peaceful schooler.

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5.5 cmBody length, without tail ✓
24–28 °CTemperature ✓
5.5–7pH ✓
68 LSmallest tank ✓
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Tank mates
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Not recommended
  • White cloud mountain minnow needs cool water and makes a lot of waste, while Gold tetra is tropical.
  • They need different temperatures (24–28 °C vs 14–22 °C). No setting suits both.
Not recommended
  • Giant gourami eats animals up to about 10 cm. Gold tetra only grows to 5.5 cm.
Not recommended
  • They need different temperatures (24–28 °C vs 10–22 °C). No setting suits both.
With conditions
  • Only a narrow temperature range suits both: 24–25 °C.
With conditions
  • Only a narrow temperature range suits both: exactly 24 °C.
Compatible
Compatible
Compatible
Compatible
Compatible

300 species in our list are a good match.

Facts checked against sources on 16 Oct 2026. ✓ means a source backs it; ? means no reliable source yet. See sources

Care and water

Hardness ✓1–12 dGH
Group size ✓6 or more
Temperament ✓Peaceful
Swims at ?Middle
Care level ✓Easy
Diet Omnivore
Lifespan ✓4 years
Size in shops 2.5–3.5 cm
Growth Medium

Behavior

Peaceful schooler.

Food

Flakes and small foods.

Tap a food to see what it is.

Male or female

Adult females are rounder in the belly. The male's anal fin has a white leading edge and more red than the female's.

Health

Common problems. Tap one to see the signs. This is a guide, not a diagnosis.

Breeding

Egg-scatterer · Easy

An egg scatterer bred like other Hemigrammus: a very dim tank about 45 x 25 x 25 cm with java moss, spawning mops or mesh, soft acidic water (pH 5.5-6.5, GH 1-5) at 26.5-29°C. Spawn a group of about six of each sex, or a conditioned pair moved in the evening; remove the adults once eggs appear. Eggs and fry are light-sensitive.

Pairing

Keep a group of 8-10 and move a well-conditioned trio or group to a spawning tank.

Setup

30-40 L tank with a spawning grid or dense java moss, soft to medium water (pH 6-7.5), a sponge filter and subdued light.

What starts it

Heavy live-food conditioning, then a water change with slightly cooler water in the morning.

Eggs

Eggs hatch in 24-36 hours and the fry are free-swimming 3-4 days later. No sourced egg count found.

Raising the fry

Start with infusoria or powdered fry food, then newly hatched brine shrimp; sort by size as they grow.

Common mistakes
  • Leaving adults with the eggs
  • Poor conditioning of the parents
  • Overfeeding the fry tank
Full breeding guide, day-by-day plan and simulator →

Where it lives in the wild

RegionSouth America – Guyana, Suriname, French Guiana & the lower Amazon
Rivers and lakesCoastal rivers of the Guianas and lower Amazon tributaries
HabitatCoastal rivers, including slightly brackish stretches
Native rangeAbout 800 km across
See it on the world map

The story of the gold tetra

A peaceful tetra from the Guianas and the Amazon basin. Its normal colour is a dull silvery grey: the famous gold sheen is the skin's reaction to a trematode parasite in some wild populations, and those gold fish were once described as a separate species, Hemigrammus armstrongi. Captive-bred fish never meet the parasite, so most 'golden tetras' on sale are not gold.

Marion Durbin described the gold tetra in 1909 from Guyana. Its golden sheen in wild fish is linked to a skin reaction against parasites, which deposits shiny guanine. Captive-bred fish often lack the gold and look plain silver.

First described by Marion Durbin in 1909.

  • Its gold sheen is caused by a skin reaction to parasites.
  • Captive-bred gold tetras are often silver instead of gold.
  • It can tolerate slightly brackish water.

Sources

16 facts checked with sources