Have you been thinking about buying tiger barbs as of late? You might have seen some of these pretty fish in one of your friends’ aquariums.
They can be a lot of fun to own overall. They’re considered to be hardy fish and they aren’t overly tough for beginners to get used to.
Of course, one of the most important factors for many people is how much everything will cost. Are these fish affordable to own?
Read on to learn about how much tiger barbs cost to own. You’ll learn about the cost of many things such as the necessary equipment as well as the fish.
How Much Do Tiger Barbs Cost?
The cost of tiger barbs will vary depending on where you go to purchase them. Some pet stores might sell the fish for more or less than others.
Knowing this, it makes sense to look for a deal. You might be able to save a few bucks by shopping around and comparing prices.
Of course, it’s important to buy fish from a trusted retailer. You want the fish to be healthy so that you won’t have problems introducing them to your tank.
Standard tiger barbs will often cost between $4 and $6 per fish. This price can vary, but you should expect to spend around this amount of cash on just one fish.
You should buy five fish at once when you plan to keep tiger barbs in your home. They’re schooling fish that need to be kept in groups of at least five.
If you try to keep fewer than five fish in the fish tank, it’ll be detrimental. Tiger barbs are known for being fin nippers and they can even be aggressive toward each other.
Being kept in groups that are large enough will make things better. It helps to keep the tiger barbs focused on each other and they will be less aggressive in the tank overall.
So the amount of cash that you’ll spend on tiger barbs will depend on how many you buy. You might find tiger barbs being sold in groups at slightly lower prices.
The maximum number of tiger barbs that you should keep in one fish tank is 12. So expect to purchase between 5 and 12 tiger barbs depending on how you want to set things up.
What About Different Types of Tiger Barbs?
There are a few different tiger barb types that you can buy as well. Tiger barbs are generally the same no matter what type you buy, but they will look different.
The different types of tiger barbs are going to have special colors. For example, you can find green tiger barbs being sold at pet stores.
There are also longfin tiger barbs that many people enjoy. These fish are very pretty and have proven to be popular aquarium options.
As you might expect, different types of tiger barbs will have different prices. Green tiger barbs pretty much cost the same price as standard tiger barbs.
Longfin tiger barbs are a bit pricier. You might have to pay as much as $28 per fish if you want longfin tiger barbs for your aquarium.
You’ll also find glo-barbs which are brightly colored variations of tiger barbs. They’re slightly more expensive than normal tiger barbs.
If you wish to keep your costs low, it’s likely best to stick with normal tiger barbs. Otherwise, it wouldn’t be too pricey to buy five green tiger barbs for your fish tank.
How Much Will the Fish Tank Cost?
The cost of the fish tank will be another factor to keep in mind. This will be one of the most expensive parts of getting the tiger barb aquarium set up.
Since you need to keep at least five tiger barbs in the tank, you’ll have to purchase a 20-gallon fish tank or something larger. A 20-gallon fish tank should fit five tiger barbs well enough.
Many enthusiasts recommend going with a 30-gallon fish tank instead. You should be able to comfortably fit six tiger barbs in a fish tank of that size.
If you want to keep the maximum number of tiger barbs in a fish tank, you’ll need a 55-gallon aquarium. Of course, buying a larger aquarium is going to be a bit more expensive.
It’s hard to say exactly how much money you’ll spend on a fish tank. The price of aquariums will vary depending on where you buy them from.
You should probably expect to spend at least $140 on a 20-gallon fish tank. It’s possible that you might find a good deal and get a fish tank at a lower price, though.
A 55-gallon fish tank might cost $200 or more depending on what you get. It’s really just best to look around and price things out at local pet stores or respected online retailers.
How Much Will Accessories Cost?
The cost of accessories will also be something to remember. You see, you’re going to have to buy various things to keep the fish safe.
For instance, you’ll need to buy a filter for the tank. It’s also necessary to buy a heater, an air pump, substrate material, aquatic plants, lights, a thermometer, chemicals, and more.
There are a lot of things that you should buy for a new freshwater fish tank. If you exclude the cost of the fish and the fish tank, it’s likely that you’ll spend $300 or $400 before all is said and done.
As usual, you might be able to save money by searching for deals. Just remember that you want to buy high-quality equipment to keep the fish safe.
Sometimes you can buy second-hand fish equipment and accessories. This can be a good move when you don’t have a lot of cash.
It’ll simply be a gamble when compared to buying new accessories from a retail store. It’s up to you to decide how you wish to approach the situation.
How Much Will the Food Cost?
You need to feed the fish, too. This is going to cost you money each month.
Tiger barbs eat lots of different things. They aren’t picky eaters overall.
Since they’re omnivores, they’re going to be able to eat many different types of fish food. You’re still going to need to feed them the right things to keep them healthy.
Generally, people feed tiger barbs fish flakes on a regular basis. Feeding them standard tropical fish flakes should be a good way to keep them healthy.
They will need different types of food to get the right nutrients. You should supplement the diet of these fish with protein-rich foods.
For instance, you can feed tiger barbs freeze-dried brine shrimp or beef hearts. They also love eating freeze-dried bloodworms.
It’s fine to give these fish live food on occasion as well. If you find feeding the fish live food to be inconvenient, sticking with freeze-dried options is acceptable.
The cost of the food per month shouldn’t be too bad. You can get fish flakes for under $10.
You’ll find freeze-dried foods for tiger barbs at pet stores being sold at reasonable prices as well. It’s unlikely that you’ll spend more than $20 or $30 to feed tiger barbs each month.
Of course, the more fish you have in the tank the faster you’ll go through the fish food that you buy. It makes sense that it’d cost more to feed 12 tiger barbs than it would to feed five of them.
How Much Will Maintenance Cost?
Generally, maintenance costs won’t be too much to worry about. Even so, you should factor the cost of maintenance into your overall budget.
Taking care of a freshwater aquarium is likely to cost you a few hundred dollars per year. Depending on the size of the aquarium and other factors, you might spend between $100 and $200 on tank maintenance.
For most, this is going to be a very affordable figure. You should be able to feel that keeping a fish tank in your home is affordable enough.
If you’re worried about a few hundred extra dollars of expenses adding up each year, it might be best to hold back. You don’t want to put yourself in a bad spot financially.
So long as you have enough money to buy what you need and to keep the tank in good shape, it’ll be an easy prospect. Simply be honest about your personal budget.
Should You Buy Tiger Barbs?
Buying tiger barbs can be a very good experience for many people. However, it might not be a good idea depending on what you want.
These fish are actually sort of aggressive. They have a reputation for being fin nippers that will bother their tank mates.
Issues with aggression can be kept in check by keeping them in large enough groups. However, they still aren’t considered to be amazing community tank fish.
If you’re interested in adding tiger barbs to an existing community tank, you might want to hit pause. It’s imperative to research the compatibility of these fish with any fish that you already own.
Tiger barbs might wind up becoming bullies in the community aquarium. You want to protect all of your fish, and this means you must approach things carefully.
These fish can be kept in community fish tanks. You just have to pick appropriate tank mates that can withstand them such as clown loaches.
Are Tiger Barbs Easy to Care for?
Yes, tiger barbs are generally considered to be hardy fish that are easy to care for. Aside from potential aggression issues, these fish shouldn’t be hard for beginners to get used to.
They’re hardy enough that they can tolerate it if you make a few beginner mistakes. This means that they won’t die as easily as some types of fish.
Even so, you do need to commit to caring for these fish properly. They won’t stay healthy for long if you don’t take care of the water in the aquarium.
It’s important to clean the fish tank on a regular basis. It’s also necessary to change the water each week to avoid issues with dirty water due to too much fish poop.
Change out 15% of the water each week and things should be fine. So long as you keep this in mind, it should be easy enough to care for tiger barbs.
They’re also easy to feed because they aren’t picky. You want to avoid overfeeding the fish so they don’t become constipated, though.
When feeding tiger barbs, it’s best to give them as much food as they can eat in five minutes. This is assuming that you feed them once per day.
Some people feed them twice per day. When going this route, you should feed the fish as much as they can eat in two and a half minutes each time.
Final Thoughts
Now you should have a much better idea of how much it costs to keep tiger barbs in your home aquarium. Assuming that you need to buy everything that you need to keep tiger barbs in a home fish tank, it’s going to cost hundreds of dollars.
Expect to spend at least $500 when you want to get tiger barbs and all of the necessary equipment. You could wind up spending hundreds of dollars more than that depending on what you choose to buy.
You could buy more expensive types of tiger barbs such as longfin tiger barbs. There are also filters and other pieces of equipment that will cost more money than average.
Some people might want to buy a larger fish tank so they can potentially put more fish in the tank. Perhaps you even want to create a community fish tank with tiger barbs as one of the main fish.
Make sure that you have enough money to afford everything that you need before getting started. If you need more cash, it’ll be better to hold off and save up for a little while.
It’s also important to remember that you’ll be spending money on tank maintenance each year. On average, you should expect to spend between $100 and $200 each year to maintain the tank.
Monthly food costs will likely be no more than $30. This can vary slightly depending on what types of food you buy and how many tiger barbs you’re caring for.
So long as you factor everything in, it’ll be easy to make a decision that makes sense for you. If you think that owning tiger barbs sounds fun and you have the cash to make it happen, you can move forward with confidence.
Jeff has always enjoyed having pets, but as a child, he was drawn to his family’s fish tank. Being able to maintain a small ecosystem and observe the behaviors and interactions in the underwater world peaked his interest early on and has kept him hooked until this day. On Avid Aquarist, Jeff shares everything he’s learned about helping aquatic life survive and thrive in a home aquarium.