How Long Will My Fish Live?

[timmystood]

Working in an aquatic shop, one of the most common questions I get is 'how long will these live?' or 'My Neon Tetra died of old age, it was 2 years old'. Yet, there is very little resource on the interweb in terms of how long the common tropical freshwater fish can expect to live in captivity under the right conditions. It's for this reason I have compiled the following list of expected live spans in common tropical fish. It's still a working piece of information and some people may disagree with the information but here we go!


Angelfish - 10+ years
Apistogramma - 3 to 5 years
Archer Fish - 5 years
Arowana - 60 years
Bala Shark - 10 years
Black Neon Tetra - 5 years
Black Phantom Tetra - 5 years
Black Shark - 7 years
Black Tetra - 5 years
Black Widow Tetra - 5 years
Bleeding Heart Tetra - 5 years
Blindcave Fish - 5+ years
Bloodfin Tetra - 10+ years
Blue Gourami - 4 years
Boesman Rainbow - 5 years
Bumble Bee Catfish - 5 to 8 years
Cardinal Tetra - 4 years
Cherry Barb - 5 to 7 years
Chocolate Gourami - 4 years
Clown Loach - 15+ years
Columbian Tetra - 5 years
Congo Tetra - 5 years
Convict - 10 to 18 years
Corydoras Catfish - 5 years
Diamond Tetra - 5 years
Discus - 10 to 18 years
Dojo Loach - 10 years
Dwarf Gourami - 4 years
Emperor Tetra - 6 years
Fancy Goldfish - 15+ Years
Festivum - 10+ years
Figure 8 Puffer - 5 years
Firemouth - 10 to 15 years
Frontosa - 8 to 15 years
Giant Danio - 5 to 7 years
Glass Catfish - 8 years
Glassfish - 8 years
Glowlight Tetra - 5 years
Goldfish - 10 to 30 years
Guppy - 3 to 5 years
Harlequin - 6 years
Hatchetfish - 5 years
Hog Nose Brochis - 10 years
Honey Gourami - 4 years
Jack Dempsey - 10 to 18 years
Jordan's Catfish - 10+ years
Killifish - 1 to 2 years
Kissing Gourami - 5 years
Koi Carp - 200+ years
Kribensis - 5 years
Lemon Tetra - 5 years
Leopard Danio - 5 to 7 years
Leporinus - 5+ years
Livingstoni - 10+ years
Midas Cichlid - 15+ years
Mollie - 4 years
Moonlight Gourami - 4 years
Neon Rainbow - 3 to 4 years
Neon Tetra - 5 to 10 years
Oscar - 10 to 18 years
Otocinclus - 5 years
Pacu - 10 years
Pearl Danio - 5 years
Pearl Gourami - 4 years
Pictus Catfish - 8 years
Piranha - 10 years
Platy - 3 to 5 years
Pleco - 7 to 15 years
Rafael Catfish - 7 to 15 years
Rainbow Shark - 7 years
Rams - 4 years
Rasboras - 5 to 10 years
Red Eye Tetra - 5 years
Red Rainbow - 5 years
Red Tailed Catfish - 15 years
Redtail Shark - 8 years
Rosy Barb - 5 years
Royal Pleco - 10+ years
Rummy Nose Tetra - 5 to 10 years
Severum - 10 to 18 years
Silver Dollar - 10+ years
Silvertip Tetra - 5 years
Simease Fighting Fish - 2 years
Swordtails - 3 to 5 years
Texas Cichlid - 10+ years
Tiger Barb - 6 years
Tigerfish - 5 years
Tinfoild Barb - 10 years
Upside Down Catfish - 5 years
Weather Loach - 10 years
Whiptail - 10+ years
White Cloud Mountain Minnow - 5 to 7 years
Zebra Cichlid - 10+ years
Zebra Danio - 5 years

 

[kribensis12]

YOU FORGOT KRIBENSIS CICHLIDS!!!!!!!!!!!HOW DARE YOU! That was a very good list and it will help lots of newbies!

 

[WILDER]

Good idea and if the list gets really long could get it pinned.

 

[timmystood]

YOU FORGOT KRIBENSIS CICHLIDS!!!!!!!!!!!HOW DARE YOU! That was a very good list and it will help lots of newbies!

Added

 

[WILDER]

Fancy goldfish live up to 15 years.
The black tailed shark and rainbow shark did a search the other week 7 years.

 

[timmystood]

Fancy goldfish live up to 15 years.
The black tailed shark and rainbow shark did a search the other week 7 years.

Edited

 

[fishboy619]

you missed bettas!
live for about 3-4 years i think
and red phantoms

 

[Murray]

THIS IS VERY HELPFUL, I AM ALL FOR PINNING IT AT ALL COSTS! AND I MEAN ALL COSTS!!!!!!!!!!!!!! :

 

[DarkEntity]

you missed bettas!
live for about 3-4 years i think
and red phantoms

With Betta you really need to differentiate between the interbred rubbish LFS's sell and the well bred ones. LFS's Betta rarely last 2 years, where ive had Betta from good stock last 5.

 

[demonmagus]

nice list, why do fancy goldies live for about a 1/2 of a normal goldies lifespan? Is it becuase they have 'problems'?

 

[WILDER]

Messed around with then to much, prone to swim bladder.

 

[timmystood]

I was kinda torn with bettas... problem is they are kinda mature when they get stocked at aquatic shops. I'm gonna go for 2 years. It's the average kinda age.

 

[WILDER]

Betta's and livebeares day one to 2 years if your'e lucky.

 

[Captain Retardo]

Nice list, I was thinking about doing something like this, but you beat me to it!

Some fish to add - Other Loaches (especially Kuhlis) and some oddballs too (even though the title says its a list of common fish lifetimes...)

 

[Dorkhedeos]

koi can live up to 226 years, arowana average is 60 years