Gold Barb

 Quick Care Facts

• Care Level: Easy   • Temperament: Peaceful   • Maximum Size: 3"
• Minimum Tank Size: 20 gallons   • Water Conditions: 74-84° F, KH 5-20, pH 6.0-7.5
• Diet: Omnivore   • Origin: Southeast Asia   • Family: Cyprinidae
• Species: Barbs   • Aquarium Type: Community

Help Support AquariumDomain!      

• Your support keeps AquariumDomain advertisement free, lightning fast and fully optimized for both mobile and desktop browsing.

• Visit our Patreon page to learn about the exclusive benefits our Patrons receive!

Gold Barbs (Puntius sachsii) have been a popular mainstay within the freshwater aquarium hobby for decades. The combination of their bright gold / orange coloration, ease of care and peaceful disposition make them the perfect addition to any community or planted aquarium. In their native tropical stream habitat in the jungles of southeast Asia, the Gold Barb is found living in large schools of individuals that group together for protection from larger predators.

Being that they are accustomed to living in this manner, the Gold Barb should be kept in a group of 4 or more individuals in the aquarium environment. While they can live as a single specimen, they will do much better and live longer when kept with others of their own kind. Gold Barbs make an excellent fish for beginning hobbyists and for hobbyists with smaller aquariums or aquariums containing delicate plants species.

Gold Barbs do well in a variety of tropical freshwater aquarium setups and with a wide range of tank mates. It is recommended that they are kept in groups of 4 or more individuals in order to replicate their natural schooling behavior. Tank mates should consist of other peaceful or semi-aggressive community fish species. Gold Barbs prefer aquariums with plants, driftwood and rocks, which will provide them a sense of security.

While they do not have specific substrate requirements, they will exhibit bolder colors if kept in an aquarium with a darker substrate and medium to dense vegetation. They are not known for being jumpers and will typically reside in the middle to lower regions of the aquarium. Gold Barbs are one of the more peaceful species of Barb fish and do not exhibit the fin nipping behavior associated with many Barb species.

In their natural habitat, Gold Barbs consume both vegetable and meaty foods ranging from plant matter to insects and small worms. Omnivores like the Gold Barb should be fed a varied diet containing both plant and meaty foods in order to provide them all the nutrients that they need to support a healthy immune system and slime coat.

Hobbyists should feed the Gold Barb a quality flake food designed for tropical omnivores mixed with algae or plant based flaked foods. In addition to quality flaked foods, Gold Barbs should be offered quality frozen foods, blood worms, tubifex worms, brine shrimp and similar fair to mix up their diet and provide them a wide range of nutritional foodstuffs. They should be fed 2 to 3 times per day an amount of food that will consume within a few minutes.