Scarlet badis care guide

Plan a tank with scarlet badisSee all tank mates

Scarlet badis quick facts

Tank setup

A 10-gallon (38 L) tank suits one male with two or three females. Plant it densely, add leaf litter, wood and small caves, and keep the flow gentle. More than one male needs a bigger tank with separate territories screened by plants.

How many scarlet badis in a tank?

The smallest common tank that suits scarlet badis is a 10 gallon. Here is roughly how many fit in each size when they are the only fish, based on adult size and waste output. Leave room if you want tank mates.

Numbers are bioload limits only. Males fight, so keep one male, alone or with several females.

Water parameters

Keep them at 22–26 °C (72–79 °F), pH 6.5–7.5 and about 5–15 dGH. They adapt to a fairly wide range but need clean, stable water in a mature tank. Do small, regular water changes rather than big, sudden ones.

Best tank mates for scarlet badis

These popular species share scarlet badis' water needs and temperament. See the full list of 84 good matches.

• Cherry shrimp

  3 cm (1.2 in) · 20–27°C (68–81°F)

• Nerite snail

  2.5 cm (1 in) · 22–27°C (72–81°F)

• Guppy

  5 cm (2 in) · 22–27°C (72–81°F)

• Dwarf gourami

  7.5 cm (3 in) · 24–28°C (75–82°F)

• Neon tetra

  3.5 cm (1.4 in) · 21–25°C (70–77°F)

• Panda corydoras

  4.5 cm (1.8 in) · 21–25°C (70–77°F)

• Bronze corydoras

  7 cm (2.8 in) · 21–26°C (70–79°F)

• Zebra danio

  5 cm (2 in) · 18–25°C (64–77°F)

Avoid keeping scarlet badis with

• Angelfish: Angelfish can eat scarlet badis: they're small enough to fit in its mouth once it's grown.
• Common goldfish: Common goldfish can eat scarlet badis: they're small enough to fit in its mouth once it's grown.
• Fancy goldfish: Fancy goldfish can eat scarlet badis: they're small enough to fit in its mouth once it's grown.
• Oscar: Oscar can eat scarlet badis: they're small enough to fit in its mouth once it's grown.
• Bala shark: Bala shark can eat scarlet badis: they're small enough to fit in its mouth once it's grown.
• Blood parrot cichlid: Blood parrot cichlid can eat scarlet badis: they're small enough to fit in its mouth once it's grown.

Feeding

Scarlet badis are micropredators that pick tiny live animals off plants and the bottom. Feed baby brine shrimp, daphnia, microworms or grindal worms, live or frozen. Some learn to take very small pellets, but many ignore dry food. Skip bloodworms and tubifex, which are too rich for such a tiny fish.

Behavior

They are slow, shy and easily beaten to food, so choose tankmates with care. Males are bright red with pale blue bars and defend a small patch, and two males in a small tank will fight. Females are gray-brown and much plainer. Good companions are tiny, calm fish such as chili rasboras or ember tetras, or keep them in a species-only tank.

Breeding

They breed readily in a mature planted tank. The male leads a female into his patch and they spawn among plants or moss, after which he chases her off. The eggs hatch in two to three days with no parental care. The fry need infusoria or other very fine food at first and survive best with no other fish in the tank.

Tips from experienced keepers

• Try to buy females as well as males. Shops often stock mostly males, and females are plain gray with clear fins.
• Start a live food culture, such as microworms or baby brine shrimp, before you buy them.
• Feed slowly and watch that the badis actually eat. Faster fish often take the food first.
• Keep only one male in a 10-gallon (38 L) tank.
• Newborn shrimp and tiny snails may be eaten, so expect a shrimp colony to grow slowly.

Sources

We checked these references when writing this page. Values are for healthy long-term keeping, not survival limits. Last reviewed 2026-10-13. See our editorial policy.

• seriouslyfish.com
• fishbase.se
• shrimpybusiness.com