Having your own saltwater aquarium can be a fun and rewarding hobby. Some of the most beautiful animals in the world live on coral reefs. Where should you get started, there are so many options? Here are the best reef aquarium fish for a saltwater tank.
Clownfishes: best reef aquarium fish options
The clownfishes are the most popular saltwater fish in the world, and for good reason. They are gorgeous to look at and relatively easy to care for, which is what makes them some of the best reef aquarium fish.
All clownfish start their lives as male fish, but they are capable of switching genders to female to ensure continued reproductive success. So nearly any two clownfish could potentially create a bonded/breeding pair.
Here are the 4 most popular clownfish types that make for the best reef aquarium fish
1. Ocellaris clownfish
The Ocellaris clownfish is a centerpiece in most saltwater tanks.
- Scientific name: Amphiprion ocellaris
- Care difficulty: Easy
- Aggressiveness: Mild, peaceful except for other clownfish, damselfish, or when spawning
- Food: Omnivorous, varied, include plant and meaty foods in diet
- Adult size: ~ 3 inches
- Minimum tank size: 10 gallons
- Safe with corals: Yes, reef safe
2. Snowflake clownfish
The Snowflake clownfish is one of the most popular ‘designer’ clownfishes, that gets its name from the unique pattern of the white stripes. They are technically not their own species, they are still amphiprion ocellaris, but they are a premium priced fish due to the desirable nature of the stripes.
- Scientific name: Amphiprion ocellaris, Snowflake designer type
- Care difficulty: Easy
- Aggressiveness: Mild, peaceful except for other clownfish, damselfish, or when spawning
- Food: Omnivorous, varied, include plant and meaty foods in the diet
- Adult size: ~ 3 inches
- Minimum tank size: 10 gallons
- Safe with corals: Yes, reef safe
3. Percula clownfish
The Percula clownfish is another orange, black and white clownfish that is very similar looking to the Ocellaris. They are a little less common that Ocellaris and are very slightly more finicky, but are still a good option for most fish tanks.
- Scientific name: Amphiprion percula
- Care difficulty: Easy
- Aggressiveness: Mild, peaceful except for other clownfish, damselfish, or when spawning
- Food: Omnivorous, varied, include plant and meaty foods in the diet
- Adult size: ~ 3 inches
- Minimum tank size: 10 gallons
- Safe with corals: Yes, reef safe
4. Picasso clownfish
The Picasso clownfish is a Premium “designer” variety of Percula clownfish.
- Scientific name: Amphiprion percula, Picasso designer type
- Care difficulty: Easy
- Aggressiveness: Mild, peaceful except for other clownfish, damselfish, or when spawning
- Food: Omnivorous, varied, include plant and meaty foods in the diet
- Adult size: ~ 3 inches
- Minimum tank size: 10 gallons
- Safe with corals: Yes, reef safe
5. Maroon clownfish
The Maroon clownfish is the largest, and most aggressive of the best reef aquarium fish on this list. They are very hardy and require a minimum tank size of 30-gallons.
- Scientific name: Amphiprion biaculeatus
- Care difficulty: Easy
- Aggressiveness: Semi-aggressive: with clownfish, damselfish, and in defense of territory. May bite hands
- Food: Omnivorous, varied, include plant and meaty foods in the diet
- Adult size: ~ 6 inches
- Minimum tank size: 30 gallons
- Safe with corals: Yes, reef safe
6. Tomato clownfish
The Tomato clownfish is another one of the best reef aquarium fish, because they are quite hardy, popular and readily available.
- Scientific name: Amphiprion frenatus
- Care difficulty: Easy
- Aggressiveness: Semi-aggressive: with clownfish, damselfish, and in defense of territory. May bite hands
- Food: Omnivorous, varied, include plant and meaty foods in the diet
- Adult size: ~ 5 inches
- Minimum tank size: 30 gallons
- Safe with corals: Yes, reef safe
Surgeonfish and Tangs: best reef aquarium fish options
Another extremely popular group of the best reef aquarium fish are the Surgeonfish and Tangs. The not to a ‘Surgeon’ is given to these fish because they each have a small, sharp scalpel-like body part on their tails that they flick as a threat in occasional aggressive displays and in self-defense.
Tangs are open-water swimmers that graze algae all day. Due to their relatively large size and need for a lot of swimming room, these larger fish require larger tanks to meet their care requirements.
7. Yellow tang
- Scientific name: Zebrasoma flavescens
- Care difficulty: Easy
- Aggressiveness: Semi-aggressive: to other tangs and some broad territorial aggression. Will slash other fish with tail spine
- Food: Algae-based, varied, will eat meaty foods if offered
- Adult size: ~8 inches
- Minimum tank size: 90 gallons
- Safe with corals: Yes, reef safe
8. Blue tang
- Scientific name: Paracanthurus hepatus
- Care difficulty: Between easy and difficult
- Aggressiveness: Semi-aggressive: to other tangs and some broad territorial aggression. Will slash other fish with tail spine
- Food: Algae-based, varied, will eat meaty foods if offered
- Adult size: ~ 12 inches
- Minimum tank size: 180 gallons
- Safe with corals: Yes, reef safe
9. Purple tang
- Scientific name: Zebrasoma xanthurum
- Care difficulty: Between easy and difficult
- Aggressiveness: Semi-aggressive: to other tangs and some broad territorial aggression. Will slash other fish with tail spine
- Food: Algae-based, varied, will eat meaty foods if offered
- Adult size: ~ 10 inches
- Minimum tank size: 125 gallons
- Safe with corals: Yes, reef safe
10. Kole tang
- Scientific name: Ctenochaetus strigosus
- Care difficulty: Easy
- Aggressiveness: Semi-aggressive: to other tangs and some broad territorial aggression. Will slash other fish with tail spine
- Food: Algae-based, varied, will eat meaty foods if offered
- Adult size: ~ 7 inches
- Minimum tank size: 75 gallons
- Safe with corals: Yes, reef safe
11. Powder blue tang
- Scientific name: Acanthurus leucosternons
- Care difficulty: Between easy and difficult
- Aggressiveness: Semi-aggressive: to other tangs and some broad territorial aggression. Will slash other fish with tail spine
- Food: Algae-based, varied, will eat meaty foods if offered
- Adult size: ~9 inches
- Minimum tank size: 125 gallons
- Safe with corals: Yes, reef safe
12. Orange shoulder tang
- Scientific name: Acanthurus olivaceus
- Care difficulty: Between easy and difficult
- Aggressiveness: Semi-aggressive: to other tangs and some broad territorial aggression. Will slash other fish with tail spine
- Food: Algae-based, varied, will eat meaty foods if offered
- Adult size: ~14 inches
- Minimum tank size: 125 gallons
- Safe with corals: Yes, reef safe
13. Sailfin tang
- Scientific name: Zebrasoma velifer
- Care difficulty: Between easy and difficult
- Aggressiveness: Semi-aggressive: to other tangs and some broad territorial aggression. Will slash other fish with tail spine
- Food: Algae-based, varied, will eat meaty foods if offered
- Adult size: ~15 inches
- Minimum tank size: 180 gallons
- Safe with corals: Yes, reef safe
14. Mimic tang (Lemonpeel angelfish mimic)
- Scientific name: Acanthurus pyroferus
- Care difficulty: Between easy and difficult
- Aggressiveness: Semi-aggressive: to other tangs and some broad territorial aggression. Will slash other fish with tail spine
- Food: Algae-based, varied, will eat meaty foods if offered
- Adult size: ~8 inches
- Minimum tank size: 125 gallons
- Safe with corals: Yes, reef safe
15. Powder brown tang
- Scientific name: Acanthurus japonicus
- Care difficulty: Between easy and difficult
- Aggressiveness: Semi-aggressive: to other tangs and some broad territorial aggression. Will slash other fish with tail spine
- Food: Algae-based, varied, will eat meaty foods if offered
- Adult size: ~8 inches
- Minimum tank size: 125 gallons
- Safe with corals: Yes, reef safe
Saltwater Angelfish: best reef aquarium fish options
Saltwater angelfishes are another group of open-water swimming fish that rival the Tangs in terms of popularity. These beautiful fish do require ample swimming room, but many of the best reef aquarium angel fish are small species (still referred to as Dwarf species, although I suspect that name may appropriately need to be updated) that grow to around 4-6 inches in length as adults.
That smaller size makes these colorful fish some of the best reef aquarium fish for tanks for a 70 gallon tank.
16. Coral beauty angelfish
- Scientific name: Centropyge bispinosa
- Care difficulty: Between easy and difficult
- Aggressiveness: Semi-aggressive: to other angelfish and some broad territorial aggression
- Food: Omnivorous, varied, include plant and meaty foods in the diet
- Adult size: ~4 inches
- Minimum tank size: 70 gallons
- Safe with corals: Most of the time, occasionally problematic
17. Flame angelfish
- Scientific name: Centropyge loricula
- Care difficulty: Between easy and difficult
- Aggressiveness: Semi-aggressive: to other angelfish and some broad territorial aggression
- Food: Omnivorous, varied, include plant and meaty foods in the diet
- Adult size: ~4 inches
- Minimum tank size: 70 gallons
- Safe with corals: Most of the time, occasionally problematic
18. Bicolor angelfish
- Scientific name: Centropyge bicolor
- Care difficulty: Between easy and difficult
- Aggressiveness: Semi-aggressive: to other angelfish and some broad territorial aggression
- Food: Omnivorous, varied, include plant and meaty foods in the diet
- Adult size: ~ 6 inches
- Minimum tank size: 70 gallons
- Safe with corals: Most of the time, occasionally problematic
19. Majestic angelfish
- Scientific name: Pomacanthus navarchus
- Care difficulty: Between easy and difficult
- Aggressiveness: Semi-aggressive: to other angelfish and some broad territorial aggression
- Food: Omnivorous, varied, include plant and meaty foods in the diet
- Adult size: ~12 inches
- Minimum tank size: 180 gallons
- Safe with corals: No, will likely eat certain corals
Wrasses: best reef aquarium fish options
In a 2022 Saltwater Aquarium Blog Survey, the Wrasses were reported as some of the most popular fish, as well as one of the groups that people had the most success with. Wrasses are some of the best reef aquarium fish because they tend to be active and bold, not shy, slow or skittish.
That boldness is important in a community reef tank, because calm or skittish behaviors are a bit contagious between fish. They look to each other to confirm safety and danger, so having some bod and confident fish in the tank exerts a calming effect on the rest, making them a great addition to most tanks beyond their own individual contributions alone.
Many species also eat bristle worms or other tiny invertebrates that are seen as undesirable by some.
If you do decide to start shopping for a wrasse, be sure to confirm the species you want is REEF SAFE. There are a lot of wrasse species that will eat corals, the reef safe ones will not. All of the wrasse species on this list are reef safe, which is an important component of why they are some of the best reef aquarium fish.
20. Six line wrasse
- Scientific name: Pseudocheilinus hexataenia
- Care difficulty: Easy
- Aggressiveness: Semi-aggressive: likely to chase and nip at peaceful fish
- Food: Meaty foods
- Adult size: ~3 inches
- Minimum tank size: 55 gallons
- Safe with corals: Yes, reef safe
21. Melanurus wrasse
- Scientific name: Halichoeres melanurus
- Care difficulty: Easy
- Aggressiveness: Mild, peaceful
- Food: Meaty foods
- Adult size: ~4.5 inches
- Minimum tank size: 55 gallons
- Safe with corals: Yes, reef safe
22. Yellow coris wrasse
- Scientific name: Halichoeres chrysus
- Care difficulty: Easy
- Aggressiveness: Mild, peaceful
- Food: Meaty foods
- Adult size: ~5 inches
- Minimum tank size: 55 gallons
- Safe with corals: Yes, reef safe
23. Fairy wrasses
- Scientific name: Cirrhilabrus spp. (which means multiple species in the genus)
- Care difficulty: Easy
- Aggressiveness: Mild, peaceful
- Food: Meaty foods
- Adult size: ~5 inches
- Minimum tank size: 55 gallons
- Safe with corals: Yes, reef safe
24. Christmas wrasse
- Scientific name: Halichoeres claudia
- Care difficulty: Easy
- Aggressiveness: Semi-aggressive; may pester timid fish
- Food: Meaty foods
- Adult size: ~5 inches
- Minimum tank size: 55 gallons
- Safe with corals: Yes, mostly reef safe; will eat invertebrates
25. Red coris wrasse
- Scientific name: Coris gaimard
- Care difficulty: Between easy and difficult
- Aggressiveness: Semi-aggressive: gets more aggressive with age
- Food: Meaty foods
- Adult size: ~15 inches
- Minimum tank size: 125 gallons
- Safe with corals: Yes, mostly reef safe; will eat invertebrates
Gobies: best reef aquarium fish options
I don’t know much about our Maker, but judging by the number of species, I’m pretty sure He or She is extraordinarily fond of beetles and gobies, because there are a lot of them. Gobies are great marine fish. They are generally small fish, hardy, colorful, quirky, and peaceful fish.
Their small size makes the gobies also a great choice for those with nano and other smaller tanks.
Here are a few interesting options that are some of the best reef aquarium fish:
26. Diamond goby
- Scientific name: Valenciennea puellaris
- Care difficulty: Easy
- Aggressiveness: Mild, peaceful
- Food: Meaty foods
- Adult size: ~ 6 inches
- Minimum tank size: 30 gallons
- Safe with corals: Yes, reef safe
27. Yellow watchman goby
- Scientific name: Cryptocentrus cinctus
- Care difficulty: Easy
- Aggressiveness: Mild, peaceful
- Food: Meaty foods
- Adult size: ~ 4 inches
- Minimum tank size: 10 gallons
- Safe with corals: Yes, reef safe
28. Clown goby
- Scientific name: Gobiodon citrinus
- Care difficulty: Easy
- Aggressiveness: Mild, peaceful
- Food: Meaty foods
- Adult size: ~ 2 inches
- Minimum tank size: 10 gallons
- Safe with corals: Yes, reef safe
29. Neon goby
- Scientific name: Elactinus oceanops
- Care difficulty: Easy
- Aggressiveness: Mild, peaceful
- Food: Meaty foods
- Adult size: ~2 inches
- Minimum tank size: 10 gallons
- Safe with corals: Yes, reef safe
There are way more gobies than this. In fact, it’s probably worth another article specifically dedicated to them, but for now, let’s see what other great fish the ocean has for us.
Blennies: best reef aquarium fish options
The Blennies are another large and diverse group of fish that are also a good choice for more reef tank aquariums. Within the Blenny family, there are two main ‘types’:
- Algae-eating blennies that spend their time perching on rocks and ‘kissing’ the glass and rocks to get to the tasty layers of algae
- Omnivorous “Fang” blennies that boldly swim in the open water column.
Here are a few of the most popular blennies that are also some of the best reef aquarium fish.
30. Bicolor blenny
- Scientific name: Ecsenius bicolor
- Care difficulty: Easy
- Aggressiveness: Generally mild, peaceful; may nip/chase other Blennies, Dartfish, and Gobies
- Food: Algae-based, varied
- Adult size: ~ 4 inches
- Minimum tank size: 30 gallons
- Safe with corals: Yes, generally reef safe, may nip at corals, clams
31. Midas blenny
- Scientific name: Ecsenius midas
- Care difficulty: Easy
- Aggressiveness: Generally mild, peaceful; may nip/chase Dartfish and Gobies
- Food: Omnivorous, varied, include plant and meaty foods in the diet
- Adult size: ~ 6 inches
- Minimum tank size: 30 gallons
- Safe with corals: Yes, reef safe
32. Tailspot blenny
- Scientific name: Ecsenius stigmatura
- Care difficulty: Easy
- Aggressiveness: Mild, peaceful, shy, and prone to being bullied
- Food: Algae-based, varied
- Adult size: ~2.5 inches
- Minimum tank size: 10 gallons
- Safe with corals: Yes, reef safe
33. Lawnmower blenny
- Scientific name: Salarias fasciatus
- Care difficulty: Easy most of the time; sometimes starvation/acclimation is challenging
- Aggressiveness: Mild, peaceful
- Food: Algae-based, varied
- Adult size: ~ 5 inches
- Minimum tank size: ~30 gallons
- Safe with corals: Yes, generally reef safe, may nip at corals, clams
34. Starry blenny
- Scientific name: Salarias ramosus
- Care difficulty: Easy most of the time; sometimes starvation/acclimation is challenging
- Aggressiveness: Mild, peaceful
- Food: Algae-based, varied
- Adult size: ~ 5 inches
- Minimum tank size: ~30 gallons
- Safe with corals: Yes, generally reef safe, may nip at corals, clams
Hawkfish: best reef aquarium fish options
Hawkfish are a bucket list fish for me. I’ve never kept one, because I always have small invertebrates as part of my clean up crew, but as you will see in the images below, they are gorgeous fish.
What you can’t tell from the images is that they’re also, somehow, adorable. Something about their body shapes and colors, combined with they way they perch on the rocks or other structures, looking around for prey makes them irresistible to many.
Their small size and relatively small swimming area also makes the a great option for small tanks.
35. Flame hawkfish
- Scientific name: Neocirrhites armatus
- Care difficulty: Easy
- Aggressiveness: Semi-aggressive: may squabble with other hawkfish or gobies and blennies
- Food: Eats, snails, crabs, shrimp; feed meaty foods
- Adult size: ~ 4 inches
- Minimum tank size: 20 gallons
- Safe with corals: Yes, reef safe, but not safe with shrimp or small invertebrates
36. Longnose hawkfish
- Scientific name: Oxycirrhites typus
- Care difficulty: Easy
- Aggressiveness: Semi-aggressive: may squabble with other hawkfish or gobies and blennies
- Food: Eats, snails, crabs, shrimp; feed meaty foods
- Adult size: ~5 inches
- Minimum tank size: 20 gallons
- Safe with corals: Yes, reef safe, but not safe with shrimp or small invertebrates
Anthias: best reef aquarium options
Anthias are beautifully colored, graceful saltwater fish that display vibrant oranges, reds, pinks, purples, with elegant finnage. It is certainly not hard to understand their popularity.
Anthias fish are moderately difficult fish to care for. They are a bit more delicate and subject to travel stress and establishing themselves in their new environment (your tank). But once established, they are hardy open water swimmers.
Anthias are hermaphroditic fish. In the absence of a male, the largest, most dominant female will generally change genders and take over the role of male in the group. While this is not an uncommon survival adaptation in fish, it is particularly interesting in Anthias because of the dramatic color differences and sexual dimorphism.
Here are two great options as some of the best reef aquarium fish:
37. Ignitus anthias
- Scientific name: Pseudanthias ignitus
- Care difficulty: Between easy and difficult
- Aggressiveness: Mild, peaceful
- Food: Meaty foods: mysis shrimp, brine shrimp, etc.
- Adult size: ~3.5 inches
- Minimum tank size: 70 gallons
- Safe with corals: Yes, reef safe
38. Lyretail anthias
- Scientific name: Pseudanthias squamipinnis
- Care difficulty: Between easy and difficult
- Aggressiveness: Semi-aggressive: in smaller tanks, fighting for food and territory
- Food: Meaty foods: mysis shrimp, brine shrimp, etc.
- Adult size: ~5 inches
- Minimum tank size: 125 gallons
- Safe with corals: Yes, reef safe
Butterflyfish: best reef aquarium fish options
The Butterflyfishes are gorgeous, delicate and exceedingly popular saltwater fish. But unfortunately, most are notoriously bad reef aquarium fishes, due to their delicate constitutions, special diets, propensity for eating corals and other reef invertebrates and fussy eating habits, often choosing to starve in captivity, rather than acquiesce to prepared foods.
To take on a Butterflyfish is often, to take on a project. But here are two great reef aquarium fish options in the butterfly family:
39. Yellow longnose butterflyfish
- Scientific name: Forcipiger flavissimus
- Care difficulty: Between easy and difficult
- Aggressiveness: Mild, Peaceful
- Food: Meaty foods: mysis shrimp, brine shrimp, shellfish
- Adult size: ~9 inches
- Minimum tank size: 125 gallons
- Safe with corals: No, not reef safe. Likely to pick at corals and non-moving invertebrates
40. Bannerfin heniochus butterflyfish
- Scientific name: Heniochus acuminatus
- Care difficulty: Easy
- Aggressiveness: Mild, Peaceful
- Food: Omnivorous: needs both plant-based and meaty foods. May eat corals
- Adult size: ~8.5 inches
- Minimum tank size: 125 gallons
- Safe with corals: No, not reef safe. Likely to pick at corals and non-moving invertebrates
Cardinalfish: best reef aquarium fish options
The large eyed cardinalfish family is a good choice for a community tank. They can sometimes be kept successfully in small groups. Males and females will also frequently pair off and spawn in saltwater tank.
The Banggai cardinalfish, in fact, is one of the easiest marine fish species to breed in an aquarium. Unlike most (all?) other saltwater fish species, BC’s don’t have a larval phase. Instead, the male fish in the pair will hold the eggs and larvae in his mouth for a full month, eventually releasing a perfect, miniature cardinalfish.
41. Banggai cardinalfish
- Scientific name: Pterapogon kauderni
- Care difficulty: Easy
- Aggressiveness: Semi-aggressive: Will be aggressive with other Banggais and some other cardinals
- Food: Meaty foods
- Adult size: ~3 inches
- Minimum tank size: 10 Gallons
- Safe with corals: Yes, reef safe
Learn more about breeding Banggai cardinalfish or Banggai cardinalfish care here.
42. Pajama cardinalfish
- Scientific name: Sphaeramia nematoptera
- Care difficulty: Easy
- Aggressiveness: Mild, mostly peaceful, may be mildly aggressive with other cardinalfish
- Food: Meaty foods
- Adult size: ~3.5 inches
- Minimum tank size: 30 gallons
- Safe with corals: Yes, reef safe
Dartfish: best reef aquarium fish options
The Dartfish family is popular because of the peaceful nature of the fish and their elegant colors and fins. They are such peaceful fish that they may be ‘taken advantage of’ by the other fish, who may bully it.
43. Firefish
- Scientific name: Nemateleotris magnifica
- Care difficulty: Easy
- Aggressiveness: Mild, peaceful, prone to being bullied
- Food: Meaty foods
- Adult size: ~3.5 inches
- Minimum tank size: 20 gallons
- Safe with corals: Yes, reef safe
44. Purple firefish
- Scientific name: Nemateleotris decora
- Care difficulty: Easy
- Aggressiveness: Mild, peaceful, prone to being bullied
- Food: Meaty foods
- Adult size: ~3.5 inches
- Minimum tank size: 20 gallons
- Safe with corals: Yes, reef safe
Basslets/Grammas: best reef aquarium fish options
45. Royal gramma
- Scientific name: Gramma loreto
- Care difficulty: Easy
- Aggressiveness: Mild, mostly peaceful, will be aggressive towards similar-looking grammas, dottybacks
- Food: Meaty foods
- Adult size: ~ 3 inches
- Minimum tank size: 10 gallons
- Safe with corals: Yes, reef safe
46. Chalk basslet
- Scientific name: Serranus tortugarum
- Care difficulty: Easy
- Aggressiveness: Mild, mostly peaceful, can be kept in shoals, may eat shrimp when larger
- Food: Meaty
- Adult size: ~3 inches
- Minimum tank size: 30 gallons
- Safe with corals: Yes
Assessors/Bettas: best reef aquarium fish options
47. Marine betta
- Scientific name: Calloplesiops altivelis
- Care difficulty: Easy
- Aggressiveness: Mild, peaceful, may get bullied
- Food: Meaty, will also take algae-based pellets
- Adult size: ~8 inches
- Minimum tank size: 55 gallons
- Safe with corals: Yes, reef safe
Filefish
48. Aiptasia-eating filefish
- Scientific name: Acreichthys tomentosus
- Care difficulty: Between easy and difficult
- Aggressiveness: Mild, mostly peaceful, may be aggressive with other filefish
- Food: Omnivorous, varied diet, both meaty and algae-based, will eat aiptasia
- Adult size: ~ 3.5 inches
- Minimum tank size: 20 gallons
- Safe with corals: Mostly, may nip corals and clams. My personal experience was totally reef safe, twice
Rabbitfish: best reef aquarium fish options
49. Foxface rabbitfish
- Scientific name: Siganus vulpinus
- Care difficulty: Easy
- Aggressiveness: Mild, mostly peaceful
- Food: Algae-based
- Adult size: ~9 inches
- Minimum tank size: 125 gallons
- Safe with corals: Somewhat reef safe, may nip at corals and clams
Dottybacks: overview of best reef aquarium fish options
50. Orchid dottyback
- Scientific name: Pseudochromis fridmani
- Care difficulty: Easy
- Aggressiveness: Semi-aggressive: aggressive with other dottybacks, grammas, may pick on mild-mannered fish, may chase fish away from the territory (mostly without damage)
- Food: Meaty foods
- Adult size: ~ 3 inches
- Minimum tank size: 20 gallons
- Safe with corals: Yes, reef safe
Squirrelfish best reef aquarium fish options
51. Blackbar soldierfish
- Scientific name: Myripristis spp.
- Care difficulty: Easy
- Aggressiveness: Mild, peaceful, may get bullied
- Food: Live shrimp, bristle worms, crustaceans, starfish, and other meaty foods
- Adult size: ~8 inches
- Minimum tank size: 70 gallons
- Safe with corals: Yes, reef safe; will eat moving invertebrates
Chromis and Damselfish: a few of the best reef aquarium options
52. Blue green chromis
- Scientific name: Chromis viridis
- Care difficulty: Easy
- Aggressiveness: Semi-aggressive; will fight with other chromis and clownfishes, otherwise peaceful
- Food: Omnivorous, varied diet, both meaty and algae-based
- Adult size: ~4 inches
- Minimum tank size: 30 gallons
- Safe with corals: Yes, reef safe
53. Blue damselfish
- Scientific name: Chrysiptera cyanea
- Care difficulty: Easy
- Aggressiveness: Semi-aggressive
- Food: Omnivorous, varied diet, both meaty and algae-based
- Adult size: ~3 inches
- Minimum tank size: 10 gallons
- Safe with corals: Yes, reef safe
54. Yellowtail damselfish
- Scientific name: Chrysiptera parasema
- Care difficulty: Easy
- Aggressiveness: Semi-aggressive
- Food: Omnivorous, varied diet, both meaty and algae-based
- Adult size: ~3 inches
- Minimum tank size: 10 gallons
- Safe with corals: Yes, reef safe
55. Domino damselfish
- Scientific name: Dascyllus trimaculatus
- Care difficulty: Easy
- Aggressiveness: Semi-aggressive
- Food: Omnivorous, varied diet, both meaty and algae-based
- Adult size: ~5.5 inches
- Minimum tank size: 30 gallons
- Safe with corals: Yes, reef safe
Deep sand bed fish: best reef aquarium fish options
56. Engineer goby (blenny)
- Scientific name: Pholidichthys leucotaenia
- Care difficulty: Between easy and difficult
- Aggressiveness: Mild, peaceful, even shy
- Food: Meaty foods
- Adult size: ~12 inches
- Minimum tank size: 55 gallons
- Safe with corals: Yes, reef safe: may cause rock slides from digging
57. Bluespot jawfish
- Scientific name: Opistognathus rosenblatti
- Care difficulty: Between easy and difficult
- Aggressiveness: Mostly peaceful, likely to fight with other jawfish
- Food: Meaty foods
- Adult size: ~ 3.5 inches
- Minimum tank size: 30 gallons
- Safe with corals: Yes, reef safe
58. Yellowhead jawfish
- Scientific name: Opistognathus aurifrons
- Care difficulty: Between easy and difficult
- Aggressiveness: Mild, peaceful, even shy
- Food: Meaty foods
- Adult size: ~ 4 inches
- Minimum tank size: 30 gallons
- Safe with corals: Yes, reef safe
Aggressive fish: best reef aquarium fish
59. Dwarf Lionfish
- Scientific name: Dendrochirus spp.
- Care difficulty: Between easy and difficult; may struggle to accept aquarium foods
- Aggressiveness: Aggressive; Fish and shrimp predator
- Food: Live saltwater shrimp and small fish
- Adult size: ~ 7 inches
- Minimum tank size: 55 gallons
- Safe with corals: Yes, reef safe, but not compatible with other small fish
60. Clown triggerfish
- Scientific name: Balistoides conspicillum
- Care difficulty: Easy
- Aggressiveness: Aggressive
- Food: Meaty foods, varied diet
- Adult size: ~ 20 inches
- Minimum tank size: 300 gallons
- Safe with corals: No, not reef safe
61. Picasso triggerfish (Humu humu)
- Scientific name: Rhinecanthus aculeatus
- Care difficulty: Easy
- Aggressiveness: Aggressive
- Food: Meaty foods, varied diet
- Adult size: ~ 10 inches
- Minimum tank size: 180 gallons
- Safe with corals: No, not reef safe
62. Queen triggerfish
- Scientific name: Balistes vetula
- Care difficulty: Easy
- Aggressiveness: Aggressive
- Food: Meaty foods, varied diet
- Adult size: ~24 inches
- Minimum tank size: 300 gallons
- Safe with corals: No, not reef safe
63. Niger triggerfish
- Scientific name: Odonus niger
- Care difficulty: Easy
- Aggressiveness: Aggressive
- Food: Meaty foods, varied diet
- Adult size: ~12 inches
- Minimum tank size: 180 gallons
- Safe with corals: No, not reef safe
64. Snowflake eel
- Scientific name: Echidna nebulosa
- Care difficulty: Easy
- Aggressiveness: Aggressive
- Food: Meaty foods, small fish and shrimp predator
- Adult size: ~ 24 inches
- Minimum tank size: 55 gallons
- Safe with corals: Yes, safe with corals but not crabs & shrimp
65. Dogface pufferfish
- Scientific name: Arothron nigropunctatus
- Care difficulty: Between easy and difficult; challenging diet and tooth care
- Aggressiveness: Semi-aggressive; will eat shellfish and crustaceans, can be kept with aggressive fish
- Food: Meaty seafood; varied diet including shellfish, crustaceans
- Adult size: ~13 inches
- Minimum tank size: 75 gallons or larger
- Safe with corals: No, may chew corals and rocks to wear down teeth
Conclusions
The saltwater fish families and individual species represent some of the most popular, hardy, easy-to-care-for and best reef aquarium fish options. Hopefully, you found some inspiration here and ideas to incorporate into your own tank build plans.
There is a lot more you can and hopefully will learn about the specific care needs. Be sure to review the species-specific care guides before bringing them home.
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