Samurai Gourami Tank Mates

Samurai Gourami is peaceful, so its tank mates need choosing with care. Here are the 121 freshwater species that pair well with a samurai gourami — plus the 71 to avoid — with a live checker you can tune to your own tank.

By The Aquarium DB Team • Updated June 8, 2026 • Full Samurai Gourami care guide →
Best matches

The best tank mates for a samurai gourami

  • Ember Tetra ✅ Compatible
    Easy care · Peaceful · 2 cm · 24–28 °C (75–82 °F)
    Both are peaceful; temperature, pH and hardness ranges all overlap and neither outsizes the other enough to be a threat.
  • Neon Green Rasbora ✅ Compatible
    Easy care · Peaceful · 2 cm · 22–26 °C (72–79 °F)
    Compatible on the things that matter: shared water near 24–26 °C, workable temperaments, and no predator-and-prey size gap.
  • Dawn Tetra ✅ Compatible
    Easy care · Peaceful · 2.5 cm · 22–28 °C (72–82 °F)
    Compatible on the things that matter: shared water near 24–28 °C, workable temperaments, and no predator-and-prey size gap.
  • Glowlight Danio ✅ Compatible
    Easy care · Peaceful · 3 cm · 22–26 °C (72–79 °F)
    Compatible on the things that matter: shared water near 24–26 °C, workable temperaments, and no predator-and-prey size gap.
  • Gold Ring Danio ✅ Compatible
    Easy care · Peaceful · 3 cm · 18–26 °C (64–79 °F)
    Both are peaceful, and their water overlaps around 24–26 °C — no size, zone or temperament conflicts.
  • Neon Tetra ✅ Compatible
    Easy care · Peaceful · 3 cm · 20–26 °C (68–79 °F)
    Both are peaceful; temperature, pH and hardness ranges all overlap and neither outsizes the other enough to be a threat.
  • Tail-spot Corydoras ✅ Compatible
    Easy care · Peaceful · 3 cm · 22–28 °C (72–82 °F)
    Compatible on the things that matter: shared water near 24–28 °C, workable temperaments, and no predator-and-prey size gap.
  • Pygmy Corydoras ✅ Compatible
    Easy care · Peaceful · 3.2 cm · 22–26 °C (72–79 °F)
    Both are peaceful, and their water overlaps around 24–26 °C — no size, zone or temperament conflicts.
  • Glowlight Rasbora ✅ Compatible
    Easy care · Peaceful · 3.5 cm · 23–28 °C (73–82 °F)
    Compatible on the things that matter: shared water near 24–28 °C, workable temperaments, and no predator-and-prey size gap.
  • Blue Danio ✅ Compatible
    Easy care · Peaceful · 4 cm · 21–26 °C (70–79 °F)
    Both are peaceful; temperature, pH and hardness ranges all overlap and neither outsizes the other enough to be a threat.
  • Emperor Tetra ✅ Compatible
    Easy care · Peaceful · 4 cm · 23–27 °C (73–81 °F)
    Both are peaceful; temperature, pH and hardness ranges all overlap and neither outsizes the other enough to be a threat.
  • Flame Tetra ✅ Compatible
    Easy care · Peaceful · 4 cm · 22–28 °C (72–82 °F)
    Both are peaceful; temperature, pH and hardness ranges all overlap and neither outsizes the other enough to be a threat.
  • Glowlight Tetra ✅ Compatible
    Easy care · Peaceful · 4 cm · 22–28 °C (72–82 °F)
    Both are peaceful, and their water overlaps around 24–28 °C — no size, zone or temperament conflicts.
  • Golden Dwarf Barb ✅ Compatible
    Easy care · Peaceful · 4 cm · 18–24 °C (64–75 °F)
    Compatible on the things that matter: shared water near 24–24 °C, workable temperaments, and no predator-and-prey size gap.
  • Phoenix Tetra ✅ Compatible
    Easy care · Peaceful · 4 cm · 23–28 °C (73–82 °F)
    Both are peaceful, and their water overlaps around 24–28 °C — no size, zone or temperament conflicts.
  • Red Phantom Tetra ✅ Compatible
    Easy care · Peaceful · 4 cm · 22–28 °C (72–82 °F)
    Compatible on the things that matter: shared water near 24–28 °C, workable temperaments, and no predator-and-prey size gap.
  • Rosy Tetra ✅ Compatible
    Easy care · Peaceful · 4 cm · 22–28 °C (72–82 °F)
    Both are peaceful, and their water overlaps around 24–28 °C — no size, zone or temperament conflicts.
  • Serpae Tetra ✅ Compatible
    Easy care · Semi-aggressive · 4 cm · 23–28 °C (73–82 °F)
    Compatible on the things that matter: shared water near 24–28 °C, workable temperaments, and no predator-and-prey size gap.
  • Yellow Phantom Tetra ✅ Compatible
    Easy care · Peaceful · 4 cm · 23–27 °C (73–81 °F)
    Both are peaceful; temperature, pH and hardness ranges all overlap and neither outsizes the other enough to be a threat.
  • Black Phantom Tetra ✅ Compatible
    Easy care · Peaceful · 4.5 cm · 22–28 °C (72–82 °F)
    Compatible on the things that matter: shared water near 24–28 °C, workable temperaments, and no predator-and-prey size gap.
  • Gold Tetra ✅ Compatible
    Easy care · Peaceful · 4.5 cm · 23–28 °C (73–82 °F)
    Compatible on the things that matter: shared water near 24–28 °C, workable temperaments, and no predator-and-prey size gap.
  • Lemon Tetra ✅ Compatible
    Easy care · Peaceful · 4.5 cm · 23–28 °C (73–82 °F)
    Both are peaceful, and their water overlaps around 24–28 °C — no size, zone or temperament conflicts.
  • X-ray Tetra ✅ Compatible
    Easy care · Peaceful · 4.5 cm · 22–28 °C (72–82 °F)
    Compatible on the things that matter: shared water near 24–28 °C, workable temperaments, and no predator-and-prey size gap.
  • Yellow Tetra ✅ Compatible
    Easy care · Peaceful · 4.5 cm · 20–25 °C (68–77 °F)
    Both are peaceful; temperature, pH and hardness ranges all overlap and neither outsizes the other enough to be a threat.
With caution

Samurai Gourami tank mates that can work with care

  • Afra Cichlid ⚠️ With caution
    Medium care · Semi-aggressive · 10 cm · 24–28 °C (75–82 °F)
    Different pH ranges (4–6.5 vs 7.8–8.6); doable if you sit in the shared band, but not ideal long-term.
  • African Butterfly Cichlid ⚠️ With caution
    Medium care · Semi-aggressive · 8 cm · 22–28 °C (72–82 °F)
    African Butterfly Cichlid and Samurai Gourami are close in size, but the semi-aggressive one tends to dominate — add samurai gourami in a group to spread the pressure.
  • African Dwarf Frog ⚠️ With caution
    Medium care · Peaceful · 4 cm · 22–26 °C (72–79 °F)
    pH preferences only just meet (Samurai Gourami 4–6.5 vs African Dwarf Frog 6.8–7.8) — target the overlap and acclimate slowly.
  • Agassiz's Dwarf Cichlid ⚠️ With caution
    Medium care · Semi-aggressive · 9 cm · 24–30 °C (75–86 °F)
    Agassiz's Dwarf Cichlid and Samurai Gourami are close in size, but the semi-aggressive one tends to dominate — add samurai gourami in a group to spread the pressure.
  • Amano Shrimp ⚠️ With caution
    Easy care · Peaceful · 5 cm · 18–28 °C (64–82 °F)
    One likes softer water and the other harder (0–5 vs 6–15 dGH) — a compromise, not a perfect match.
  • Amazon Puffer ⚠️ With caution
    Medium care · Peaceful · 8 cm · 23–28 °C (73–82 °F)
    Your 75 L tank is below the ~120 L this pairing really wants — crowding raises aggression.
  • Angelfish ⚠️ With caution
    Medium care · Semi-aggressive · 15 cm · 24–30 °C (75–86 °F)
    Angelfish clearly outsizes Samurai Gourami and is semi-aggressive; risky unless the tank is big and well-planted.
  • Arrowhead Puffer ⚠️ With caution
    Hard care · Aggressive · 12 cm · 23–28 °C (73–82 °F)
    pH preferences only just meet (Samurai Gourami 4–6.5 vs Arrowhead Puffer 6.7–7.7) — target the overlap and acclimate slowly.

+ 140 more “with caution” pairings — see the interactive checker above.

Avoid

Fish to avoid keeping with a samurai gourami

  • Wels Catfish ⛔ Avoid
    Hard care · Aggressive · 300 cm · 15–25 °C (59–77 °F)
    Wels Catfish (300 cm) is big enough to swallow the 6 cm Samurai Gourami whole.
  • Alligator Gar ⛔ Avoid
    Hard care · Aggressive · 250 cm · 24–28 °C (75–82 °F)
    Samurai Gourami is bite-sized to a 250 cm predatory alligator gar — it will be eaten.
  • Redtail Catfish ⛔ Avoid
    Hard care · Aggressive · 120 cm · 24–27 °C (75–81 °F)
    Redtail Catfish (120 cm) is big enough to swallow the 6 cm Samurai Gourami whole.
  • Fire Eel ⛔ Avoid
    Medium care · Semi-aggressive · 100 cm · 24–28 °C (75–82 °F)
    Size gap is too large (100 vs 6 cm): Fire Eel will treat Samurai Gourami as food.
  • Clown Knifefish ⛔ Avoid
    Hard care · Aggressive · 90 cm · 24–28 °C (75–82 °F)
    Size gap is too large (90 vs 6 cm): Clown Knifefish will treat Samurai Gourami as food.
  • Koi ⛔ Avoid
    Medium care · Peaceful · 90 cm · 4–28 °C (39–82 °F)
    Samurai Gourami is bite-sized to a 90 cm koi — it will be eaten.
  • Spotted Gar ⛔ Avoid
    Hard care · Aggressive · 90 cm · 18–26 °C (64–79 °F)
    Size gap is too large (90 vs 6 cm): Spotted Gar will treat Samurai Gourami as food.
  • Wolf Cichlid ⛔ Avoid
    Hard care · Aggressive · 72 cm · 24–30 °C (75–86 °F)
    Samurai Gourami is bite-sized to a 72 cm predatory wolf cichlid — it will be eaten.

+ 63 more to avoid — the checker above flags every one.

Interactive tool

Check any fish against a samurai gourami

Dial in your exact tank size and filter by result — the checker scores every species in our database against a samurai gourami, with the reasoning for each verdict.

Tank-mate checker

Will it live with a Samurai Gourami?

We compare each fish against your samurai gourami on temperament, size, water parameters and swimming zone. Set your tank size and filter the results.

  • Adolf's Cory✅ Compatible
    Peaceful · 5.5 cm · Medium care · 22–26 °C (72–79 °F)
    • Both are peaceful; temperature, pH and hardness ranges all overlap and neither outsizes the other enough to be a threat.
    • Keep Adolf's Cory in a shoal of 6+ or it gets stressed and nippy.
  • Agassiz's Corydoras✅ Compatible
    Peaceful · 6 cm · Easy care · 22–28 °C (72–82 °F)
    • Compatible on the things that matter: shared water near 24–28 °C, workable temperaments, and no predator-and-prey size gap.
    • Keep Agassiz's Corydoras in a shoal of 6+ or it gets stressed and nippy.
  • Blackline Rasbora✅ Compatible
    Peaceful · 6 cm · Easy care · 22–28 °C (72–82 °F)
    • Compatible on the things that matter: shared water near 24–28 °C, workable temperaments, and no predator-and-prey size gap.
    • Both favour the middle of the tank — offer enough cover so they aren't always in each other's space.
    • Keep Blackline Rasbora in a shoal of 6+ or it gets stressed and nippy.
  • Blood Red Tiger Pleco✅ Compatible
    Peaceful · 6 cm · Medium care · 24–29 °C (75–84 °F)
    • Both are peaceful; temperature, pH and hardness ranges all overlap and neither outsizes the other enough to be a threat.
  • Bloodfin Tetra✅ Compatible
    Peaceful · 5.5 cm · Easy care · 18–28 °C (64–82 °F)
    • Compatible on the things that matter: shared water near 24–28 °C, workable temperaments, and no predator-and-prey size gap.
    • Both favour the middle of the tank — offer enough cover so they aren't always in each other's space.
    • Keep Bloodfin Tetra in a shoal of 6+ or it gets stressed and nippy.
  • Butterfly Hillstream Loach✅ Compatible
    Peaceful · 6 cm · Hard care · 18–24 °C (64–75 °F)
    • Both are peaceful; temperature, pH and hardness ranges all overlap and neither outsizes the other enough to be a threat.
  • Corydoras Catfish✅ Compatible
    Peaceful · 6.5 cm · Easy care · 22–26 °C (72–79 °F)
    • Both are peaceful; temperature, pH and hardness ranges all overlap and neither outsizes the other enough to be a threat.
    • Keep Corydoras Catfish in a shoal of 6+ or it gets stressed and nippy.
  • Costa's Tetra✅ Compatible
    Peaceful · 7 cm · Easy care · 22–28 °C (72–82 °F)
    • Both are peaceful, and their water overlaps around 24–28 °C — no size, zone or temperament conflicts.
    • Both favour the middle of the tank — offer enough cover so they aren't always in each other's space.
    • Keep Costa's Tetra in a shoal of 6+ or it gets stressed and nippy.
  • Croaking Gourami✅ Compatible
    Peaceful · 7 cm · Easy care · 24–28 °C (75–82 °F)
    • Compatible on the things that matter: shared water near 24–28 °C, workable temperaments, and no predator-and-prey size gap.
    • Both favour the middle of the tank — offer enough cover so they aren't always in each other's space.
  • Diamond Tetra✅ Compatible
    Peaceful · 6 cm · Easy care · 22–28 °C (72–82 °F)
    • Both are peaceful, and their water overlaps around 24–28 °C — no size, zone or temperament conflicts.
    • Both favour the middle of the tank — offer enough cover so they aren't always in each other's space.
    • Keep Diamond Tetra in a shoal of 6+ or it gets stressed and nippy.
  • Duplicareus Corydoras✅ Compatible
    Peaceful · 5.5 cm · Medium care · 23–27 °C (73–81 °F)
    • Both are peaceful; temperature, pH and hardness ranges all overlap and neither outsizes the other enough to be a threat.
    • Keep Duplicareus Corydoras in a shoal of 6+ or it gets stressed and nippy.
  • Elegant Cory✅ Compatible
    Peaceful · 6 cm · Easy care · 22–28 °C (72–82 °F)
    • Compatible on the things that matter: shared water near 24–28 °C, workable temperaments, and no predator-and-prey size gap.
    • Keep Elegant Cory in a shoal of 6+ or it gets stressed and nippy.
  • False Julii Corydoras✅ Compatible
    Peaceful · 6 cm · Easy care · 22–26 °C (72–79 °F)
    • Both are peaceful, and their water overlaps around 24–26 °C — no size, zone or temperament conflicts.
    • Keep False Julii Corydoras in a shoal of 6+ or it gets stressed and nippy.
  • German Blue Ram✅ Compatible
    Peaceful · 6 cm · Hard care · 27–30 °C (81–86 °F)
    • Both are peaceful, and their water overlaps around 27–28 °C — no size, zone or temperament conflicts.
  • Glass Bloodfin Tetra✅ Compatible
    Peaceful · 6 cm · Easy care · 22–28 °C (72–82 °F)
    • Compatible on the things that matter: shared water near 24–28 °C, workable temperaments, and no predator-and-prey size gap.
    • Both favour the middle of the tank — offer enough cover so they aren't always in each other's space.
    • Keep Glass Bloodfin Tetra in a shoal of 6+ or it gets stressed and nippy.
  • Hillstream Loach✅ Compatible
    Peaceful · 6 cm · Hard care · 20–24 °C (68–75 °F)
    • Both are peaceful, and their water overlaps around 24–24 °C — no size, zone or temperament conflicts.
  • Narcissus II Cory✅ Compatible
    Peaceful · 5.5 cm · Medium care · 22–26 °C (72–79 °F)
    • Both are peaceful, and their water overlaps around 24–26 °C — no size, zone or temperament conflicts.
    • Keep Narcissus II Cory in a shoal of 6+ or it gets stressed and nippy.
  • Neon Dwarf Rainbowfish✅ Compatible
    Peaceful · 6 cm · Easy care · 23–27 °C (73–81 °F)
    • Both are peaceful, and their water overlaps around 24–27 °C — no size, zone or temperament conflicts.
    • Both favour the middle of the tank — offer enough cover so they aren't always in each other's space.
    • Keep Neon Dwarf Rainbowfish in a shoal of 6+ or it gets stressed and nippy.
  • Peacock Gudgeon✅ Compatible
    Peaceful · 7 cm · Medium care · 22–28 °C (72–82 °F)
    • Both are peaceful, and their water overlaps around 24–28 °C — no size, zone or temperament conflicts.
    • Both favour the middle of the tank — offer enough cover so they aren't always in each other's space.
  • Pearl Danio✅ Compatible
    Peaceful · 6 cm · Easy care · 20–25 °C (68–77 °F)
    • Compatible on the things that matter: shared water near 24–25 °C, workable temperaments, and no predator-and-prey size gap.
    • Keep Pearl Danio in a shoal of 6+ or it gets stressed and nippy.
  • Rust Corydoras✅ Compatible
    Peaceful · 5.5 cm · Easy care · 23–27 °C (73–81 °F)
    • Both are peaceful; temperature, pH and hardness ranges all overlap and neither outsizes the other enough to be a threat.
    • Keep Rust Corydoras in a shoal of 6+ or it gets stressed and nippy.
  • Slate Corydoras✅ Compatible
    Peaceful · 6 cm · Medium care · 23–28 °C (73–82 °F)
    • Compatible on the things that matter: shared water near 24–28 °C, workable temperaments, and no predator-and-prey size gap.
    • Keep Slate Corydoras in a shoal of 6+ or it gets stressed and nippy.
  • Spotfin Corydoras✅ Compatible
    Peaceful · 6.5 cm · Easy care · 22–26 °C (72–79 °F)
    • Both are peaceful; temperature, pH and hardness ranges all overlap and neither outsizes the other enough to be a threat.
    • Keep Spotfin Corydoras in a shoal of 6+ or it gets stressed and nippy.
  • Sterbai Corydoras✅ Compatible
    Peaceful · 6.5 cm · Medium care · 24–30 °C (75–86 °F)
    • Both are peaceful; temperature, pH and hardness ranges all overlap and neither outsizes the other enough to be a threat.
    • Keep Sterbai Corydoras in a shoal of 6+ or it gets stressed and nippy.
  • Ash Lipped Apisto⚠️ With caution
    Semi-aggressive · 7 cm · Hard care · 24–29 °C (75–84 °F)
    • Ash Lipped Apisto and Samurai Gourami are close in size, but the semi-aggressive one tends to dominate — add samurai gourami in a group to spread the pressure.
    • Your 75 L tank is below the ~80 L this pairing really wants — crowding raises aggression.
  • Banded Dwarf Cichlid⚠️ With caution
    Semi-aggressive · 7 cm · Medium care · 24–30 °C (75–86 °F)
    • Banded Dwarf Cichlid is semi-aggressive and may chase or nip the smaller Samurai Gourami — plant heavily and break up sight lines.
  • Betta⚠️ With caution
    Semi-aggressive · 6.5 cm · Easy care · 24–28 °C (75–82 °F)
    • Expect Betta to harass Samurai Gourami at times; give dense cover and watch them at feeding.
    • Samurai Gourami and Betta are both labyrinth fish and often treat each other as rivals — give a large, broken-up tank and be ready to separate them.
  • Black Ruby Barb⚠️ With caution
    Semi-aggressive · 6 cm · Easy care · 22–26 °C (72–79 °F)
    • Black Ruby Barb is semi-aggressive and may chase or nip the smaller Samurai Gourami — plant heavily and break up sight lines.
    • Your 75 L tank is below the ~100 L this pairing really wants — crowding raises aggression.
    • Keep Black Ruby Barb in a shoal of 6+ or it gets stressed and nippy.
  • Black Skirt Tetra⚠️ With caution
    Semi-aggressive · 6 cm · Easy care · 20–26 °C (68–79 °F)
    • Black Skirt Tetra is semi-aggressive and may chase or nip the smaller Samurai Gourami — plant heavily and break up sight lines.
    • Keep Black Skirt Tetra in a shoal of 6+ or it gets stressed and nippy.
  • Colombian Tetra⚠️ With caution
    Semi-aggressive · 6.5 cm · Easy care · 24–28 °C (75–82 °F)
    • Colombian Tetra and Samurai Gourami are close in size, but the semi-aggressive one tends to dominate — add samurai gourami in a group to spread the pressure.
    • Your 75 L tank is below the ~114 L this pairing really wants — crowding raises aggression.
    • Keep Colombian Tetra in a shoal of 6+ or it gets stressed and nippy.
  • Desert Goby⚠️ With caution
    Semi-aggressive · 6 cm · Easy care · 18–28 °C (64–82 °F)
    • Different pH ranges (4–6.5 vs 7–8.5); doable if you sit in the shared band, but not ideal long-term.
    • Water hardness preferences differ (Samurai Gourami 0–5 vs Desert Goby 8–20 dGH).
    • Expect Desert Goby to harass Samurai Gourami at times; give dense cover and watch them at feeding.
  • Dwarf Chain Loach⚠️ With caution
    Peaceful · 6 cm · Medium care · 24–29 °C (75–84 °F)
    • Your 75 L tank is below the ~80 L this pairing really wants — crowding raises aggression.
    • Keep Dwarf Chain Loach in a shoal of 6+ or it gets stressed and nippy.
  • Eastern Betta⚠️ With caution
    Semi-aggressive · 6 cm · Medium care · 24–28 °C (75–82 °F)
    • Eastern Betta and Samurai Gourami are close in size, but the semi-aggressive one tends to dominate — add samurai gourami in a group to spread the pressure.
    • Samurai Gourami and Eastern Betta are both labyrinth fish and often treat each other as rivals — give a large, broken-up tank and be ready to separate them.
  • GloFish Tetra⚠️ With caution
    Semi-aggressive · 6 cm · Easy care · 21–28 °C (70–82 °F)
    • Expect GloFish Tetra to harass Samurai Gourami at times; give dense cover and watch them at feeding.
    • Keep GloFish Tetra in a shoal of 6+ or it gets stressed and nippy.
  • Guppy⚠️ With caution
    Peaceful · 6 cm · Easy care · 22–28 °C (72–82 °F)
    • Different pH ranges (4–6.5 vs 6.8–7.8); doable if you sit in the shared band, but not ideal long-term.
    • Water hardness preferences differ (Samurai Gourami 0–5 vs Guppy 8–12 dGH).
  • Odessa Barb⚠️ With caution
    Semi-aggressive · 6 cm · Easy care · 20–26 °C (68–79 °F)
    • Expect Odessa Barb to harass Samurai Gourami at times; give dense cover and watch them at feeding.
    • Keep Odessa Barb in a shoal of 6+ or it gets stressed and nippy.
  • Peaceful Betta⚠️ With caution
    Semi-aggressive · 6 cm · Medium care · 24–28 °C (75–82 °F)
    • Expect Peaceful Betta to harass Samurai Gourami at times; give dense cover and watch them at feeding.
    • Samurai Gourami and Peaceful Betta are both labyrinth fish and often treat each other as rivals — give a large, broken-up tank and be ready to separate them.
  • Platy⚠️ With caution
    Peaceful · 6 cm · Easy care · 21–28 °C (70–82 °F)
    • pH preferences only just meet (Samurai Gourami 4–6.5 vs Platy 7–8.2) — target the overlap and acclimate slowly.
    • One likes softer water and the other harder (0–5 vs 10–28 dGH) — a compromise, not a perfect match.
  • Smaragd Betta⚠️ With caution
    Aggressive · 6 cm · Medium care · 23–28 °C (73–82 °F)
    • Expect Smaragd Betta to harass Samurai Gourami at times; give dense cover and watch them at feeding.
    • Samurai Gourami and Smaragd Betta are both labyrinth fish and often treat each other as rivals — give a large, broken-up tank and be ready to separate them.
  • Three-striped Dwarf Cichlid⚠️ With caution
    Semi-aggressive · 6 cm · Medium care · 23–29 °C (73–84 °F)
    • Three-striped Dwarf Cichlid is semi-aggressive and may chase or nip the smaller Samurai Gourami — plant heavily and break up sight lines.
  • Alligator Gar⛔ Not recommended
    Aggressive · 250 cm · Hard care · 24–28 °C (75–82 °F)
    • Samurai Gourami is bite-sized to a 250 cm predatory alligator gar — it will be eaten.
    • pH preferences only just meet (Samurai Gourami 4–6.5 vs Alligator Gar 6.8–7.8) — target the overlap and acclimate slowly.
    • Alligator Gar is aggressive and may chase or nip the smaller Samurai Gourami — plant heavily and break up sight lines.
    • Your 75 L tank is below the ~3785 L this pairing really wants — crowding raises aggression.
  • Clown Knifefish⛔ Not recommended
    Aggressive · 90 cm · Hard care · 24–28 °C (75–82 °F)
    • Size gap is too large (90 vs 6 cm): Clown Knifefish will treat Samurai Gourami as food.
    • Clown Knifefish clearly outsizes Samurai Gourami and is aggressive; risky unless the tank is big and well-planted.
    • Your 75 L tank is below the ~750 L this pairing really wants — crowding raises aggression.
  • Fire Eel⛔ Not recommended
    Semi-aggressive · 100 cm · Medium care · 24–28 °C (75–82 °F)
    • Size gap is too large (100 vs 6 cm): Fire Eel will treat Samurai Gourami as food.
    • Fire Eel clearly outsizes Samurai Gourami and is semi-aggressive; risky unless the tank is big and well-planted.
    • Your 75 L tank is below the ~380 L this pairing really wants — crowding raises aggression.
  • Koi⛔ Not recommended
    Peaceful · 90 cm · Medium care · 4–28 °C (39–82 °F)
    • Samurai Gourami is bite-sized to a 90 cm koi — it will be eaten.
    • Water hardness preferences differ (Samurai Gourami 0–5 vs Koi 9–18 dGH).
    • Your 75 L tank is below the ~3800 L this pairing really wants — crowding raises aggression.
  • Redtail Catfish⛔ Not recommended
    Aggressive · 120 cm · Hard care · 24–27 °C (75–81 °F)
    • Redtail Catfish (120 cm) is big enough to swallow the 6 cm Samurai Gourami whole.
    • Redtail Catfish clearly outsizes Samurai Gourami and is aggressive; risky unless the tank is big and well-planted.
    • Your 75 L tank is below the ~5700 L this pairing really wants — crowding raises aggression.
  • Spotted Gar⛔ Not recommended
    Aggressive · 90 cm · Hard care · 18–26 °C (64–79 °F)
    • Size gap is too large (90 vs 6 cm): Spotted Gar will treat Samurai Gourami as food.
    • Expect Spotted Gar to harass Samurai Gourami at times; give dense cover and watch them at feeding.
    • Your 75 L tank is below the ~600 L this pairing really wants — crowding raises aggression.
  • Wels Catfish⛔ Not recommended
    Aggressive · 300 cm · Hard care · 15–25 °C (59–77 °F)
    • Wels Catfish (300 cm) is big enough to swallow the 6 cm Samurai Gourami whole.
    • Wels Catfish clearly outsizes Samurai Gourami and is aggressive; risky unless the tank is big and well-planted.
    • Your 75 L tank is below the ~20000 L this pairing really wants — crowding raises aggression.
  • Wolf Cichlid⛔ Not recommended
    Aggressive · 72 cm · Hard care · 24–30 °C (75–86 °F)
    • Samurai Gourami is bite-sized to a 72 cm predatory wolf cichlid — it will be eaten.
    • Different pH ranges (4–6.5 vs 7–8); doable if you sit in the shared band, but not ideal long-term.
    • Water hardness preferences differ (Samurai Gourami 0–5 vs Wolf Cichlid 8–20 dGH).
    • Wolf Cichlid is aggressive and may chase or nip the smaller Samurai Gourami — plant heavily and break up sight lines.
    • Your 75 L tank is below the ~760 L this pairing really wants — crowding raises aggression.

Compatibility is computed from each species' care data — a strong starting point, not a guarantee. Individual temperament varies, so always introduce new fish slowly and watch them.

Setting up a samurai gourami community tank

Give the group a stable, planted 75 L+ tank with a gentle filter, a reliable heater and plenty of cover — broken sight lines and hiding spots let mid-water and bottom dwellers keep out of each other's way. Cycle it fully and stock gradually.

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How to choose

How to choose the right tank mates for a samurai gourami

As a peaceful species, samurai gourami is easily bullied — favour other calm, non-nippy fish and steer clear of boisterous or aggressive tank mates. It mostly occupies the middle of the tank, so it pairs naturally with species that use the other levels.

Samurai Gourami grows to about 6 cm, so avoid tank mates small enough to be seen as food — as a rule of thumb, skip anything under roughly 3 cm. Match its water, too: aim for 24–28 °C (75–82 °F), pH 4–6.5 and 0–5 dGH. Fish needing very different conditions — coldwater species, or hard-water lovers against a soft-water fish — rarely thrive side by side.

Samurai Gourami is a shoaling fish — stock a group of 4+ of its own kind first, then build compatible tank mates around them. Whatever you add, introduce new fish slowly, watch for bullying in the first days, and have a backup plan if temperaments clash.

FAQ

Frequently asked questions

Can a samurai gourami live with other fish?

Yes — with the right companions. Our checker finds 121 compatible freshwater species for samurai gourami. Pick calm, similarly-sized fish that share its water needs and add them to a mature, well-planted tank.

What is the best tank mate for a samurai gourami?

Easy, peaceful, similarly-sized species top the list — for example Ember Tetra, Neon Green Rasbora, Dawn Tetra. Use the checker above to match against your own tank size.

What fish should you avoid keeping with a samurai gourami?

Avoid Wels Catfish, Alligator Gar, Redtail Catfish and similar — usually a temperature, size or temperament clash. The full "avoid" list below gives the reason for each.

How big a tank do samurai gourami tank mates need?

Start from Samurai Gourami's own minimum and scale up with every addition. The checker above defaults to a 75 L community tank and flags pairings that need more room — drag the slider to match your setup.

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