A Helpful List of Aquarium Fish Species by Common Name

By Shirlie Sharpe

Updated 11/26/18

Tropical fish swimming in aquarium outside kitchen
Hoxton/Tom Merton / Getty Images

A complete alphabet of all the fish species in the world would have at least 27,300 items, and those are just the official names. Many fish—especially popular varieties for aquariums—also have any number of nicknames. For example, the Corydorus matae, or Bandit Cory, is also known as a Bandit Catfish, Masked Cory, Meta River Catfish, and Rio Meta Cory. The following—obviously partial— list includes many popular aquarium fish, from A to Z.

A

  • Adolfo's Cory
  • Adonis Tetra
  • African Peacock Cichlid
  • Angel Fish
  • Archerfish
  • Atlantic Mudskipper
  • Auratus
  • Australian Rainbowfish
  • Azureus Chiclid

B

C

D

E

  • Earth Eater
  • Eastern Mudminnow
  • Edible Gourami
  • Eduard's Mbuna
  • Ell Loach
  • Egyptian Mouthbrooder
  • Eight-Barb Loach
  • Electric Blue Hap
  • Electric Catfish
  • Electric Yellow Hap
  • Elegant Rasbora
  • Elephant-Nose Cichlid
  • Emperor Tetra

F

G

H

  • Harlequin
  • Haitian Cichlid
  • Half-Lined Pyrrhulina
  • Hampala Barb
  • Harlequin Rasbora
  • Harlequin Shark
  • Harrison's Pencilfish
  • Hatchetfish
  • Heterotis
  • Hi-Fin Banded Shark

J

  • Jack Dempsey
  • Jae Barb
  • Jaguar Catfish
  • Jelly Bean Tetra
  • Jewel Cichlid
  • Johanni Mbuna
  • Jordan's Catfish
  • Jumping Charcin

K

L

M

N

  • Nandus
  • Needle Fin Eater
  • Needlefish
  • Neon Tetra - Black
  • Nigerian Red Krib
  • Nile Puffer
  • Nyerere's Victoria Cichlid

O

  • Obese Syndontis
  • Obliquidens Hap
  • Obscure Snakehead
  • Ocellated Freshwater Stingray
  • Ocellated Shell-Dweller
  • Ocellated Synodontis
  • Opaline Gourami
  • Oxeye Herring
  • Ozola Barb

P

R

S

T

U

V

  • Vampire Pleco
  • Variegated Platy
  • Variegated Shark
  • Venustus
  • Violet Goby

W

Y

  • Yellow Banded Moenkhausia
  • Yellow Julie
  • Yellow King Piranha
  • Yellow Kribensis
  • Yellow Lab
  • Yellow Regal Peacock Cichlid
  • Yellow-Finned Xenotilapia
  • Yellow-Tailed Conga Tetra
  • Yo-Yo Loach

Z