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Encyclopedia / Goldfish & Coldwater / Fancy goldfish
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Variations

13 kinds · tap one for a closer look

Fancy goldfish

Carassius auratus · Goldfish, Fantail, Oranda, Ryukin, Ranchu, Telescope eye, Black moor, Gold fish, Lionhead, Pearlscale

A cool-water fish that grows big and messy. Best in a large tank or a garden pond, not a bowl.

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20 cmAdult size ✓
10–24 °CTemperature ✓
7–8pH ✓
150 LSmallest tank ✓
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Tank mates
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Not recommended
  • Fancy goldfish eats animals up to about 3 cm. Neon tetra only grows to 2.5 cm.
  • Only a narrow pH range suits both: exactly 7.
Not recommended
  • Fancy goldfish eats animals up to about 3 cm. Cardinal tetra only grows to 3 cm.
  • Fancy goldfish needs cool water and makes a lot of waste, while Cardinal tetra is tropical.
Not recommended
  • Black skirt tetra nips fins, and Fancy goldfish has long fins.
  • Only a narrow pH range suits both: exactly 7.
With conditions
  • Paradise fish may attack colorful long-finned fish like fancy goldfish.
With conditions
  • Only a narrow pH range suits both: exactly 7.
Compatible
Compatible
Compatible
Compatible
Compatible

142 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 ✓5–19 dGH
Group size ✓5 or more
Temperament ✓Peaceful
Swims at ?All levels
Care level ✓Easy
Diet Omnivore
Lifespan ✓10–15 years
Size in shops 4–6 cm
Growth Medium

Behavior

Peaceful, slow and greedy. Will eat small fish, shrimp and soft plants.

Food

Sinking goldfish pellets plus vegetables; avoid overfeeding.

Tap a food to see what it is.

Male or female

In breeding season males get small white bumps (breeding tubercles) on the gill covers and pectoral fins; females are rounder.

Health

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

Breeding

Egg-scatterer · Moderate

Spawns from late winter to early summer once water is above about 10 °C, scattering sticky eggs onto plants in shallow water. A female lays about 2,000-4,000 eggs at a time, and they hatch in 2-9 days depending on temperature.

Pairing

Pick healthy adults of the same type. Males show breeding tubercles.

Setup

A large tank or pond with spawning mops.

What starts it

Warming water in spring.

Eggs

Hundreds to thousands of eggs; hatch in 4-7 days.

Raising the fry

Infusoria then baby brine shrimp. Cull and grade heavily.

Common mistakes
  • Overfeeding
  • Not culling
  • Mixing varieties
Full breeding guide, day-by-day plan and simulator →

Where it lives in the wild

RegionMan-made – bred in captivity (ancestor from East Asia, mainly China)
Rivers and lakesYangtze basin (ancestral crucian carp)
HabitatAncestors lived in ponds, lakes and slow rivers
Native rangeAbout 1,500 km across
See it on the world map

Plants that suit it

AnubiasJava fernVallisneriaHornwortAnacharisDuckweedWater lettucePothos

The story of the fancy goldfish

Goldfish were bred from wild crucian carp in China over more than 1,000 years of domestication and selective breeding.

Goldfish were bred in China from wild, olive-coloured Carassius fish more than a thousand years ago, first in temple and garden ponds. They reached Japan in the 1500s and Europe by the late 1600s. Linnaeus described the species in 1758, and breeders have since created many fancy shapes.

First described by Carl Linnaeus in 1758.

  • Goldfish were first kept in ponds in China.
  • Fancy goldfish varieties number in the hundreds.
  • Well-kept goldfish can live for 20 years or more.

Sources

16 facts checked with sources