What Is the Best (Most Popular) Dwarf Gourami

Known for their bright colors and beautiful fins, dwarf gourami may just be the fish you’re looking for to build your perfect home aquarium. Dwarf gourami are freshwater fish native to Southeast Asia and are easy to care for because of their peaceful and shy nature. Dwarf gourami are especially cool because they’re what’s known as labyrinth fish. This means they breathe straight from the air and have labyrinth-like lungs.

Another thing that makes dwarf gourami so cool and the perfect pet is that they’re social and prefer being with other dwarf gourami. In fact, if you want a colorful tank, it’s recommended to get both male and female varieties. While the males are more colorful than the females, they tend to be the most colorful when they have a female to impress. So while female dwarf gourami may have duller colors, they’re essential to bringing out the male’s brilliant colors. In their original form, males have bright, red-orange bodies with vertical, turquoise stripes and females remain silvery-blue. But, because of selective breeding, there are now several variants of dwarf gourami that come in a variety of colors.

While there are many different types of dwarf gourami fish, there are six main dwarf gourami types that remain the most popular:

• Blue dwarf gourami
• Flame dwarf gourami
• Powder blue dwarf gourami
• Honey dwarf gourami
• Neon blue dwarf gourami
• Red dwarf gourami

Read on to learn more about these popular types of dwarf gourami to help you pick which ones are right for your own home aquarium.

Blue Dwarf Gourami

Blue dwarf gourami, also known as the blue dwarf gilthead, are almost iridescent and bright blue. They have a brown edge around their fins and reddish-brown stripes running down their sides and fins. They also have scales located close to each other, making them very recognizable and distinctive.

Flame Dwarf Gourami

As you might imagine, flame dwarf gourami get their name from their coloring. They have a bright and fiery red-orange color that fades near the top of their head and an electric blue, merged dorsal fin. This creates a gorgeous contrast of blue and red, adding a pop of color to the aquarium. Unlike other dwarf gourami, the flame dwarf gourami does not have stripes, just a solid red body.

Powder Blue Dwarf Gourami

Opposite the flame dwarf gourami are the powder blue dwarf gourami, who have electric blue bodies with red accents and fins. Powder blue dwarf gourami are especially small and never get too big, so they’re a nice choice for smaller tanks and aquariums. They’re also known to be quite shy and timid, so it is important to keep them with other peaceful fish. Female powder blue dwarf gourami are particularly peaceful and the best choice for community tanks. However, powder blue dwarf gourami can get stressed out easily, even by things outside their tank, so also remember to keep them in calm and peaceful environments.

Honey Dwarf Gourami

Honey dwarf gourami are one of the smallest types of dwarf gourami and slightly less common than the other types. They have a maximum size of one and a half to two inches. They have a dark, orange-red body with colorless, transparent fins. Some will have a brown stripe running down their body from their head. There are also multiple types of honey dwarf gourami such as sunset, red and gold, so you’ll find some variety in their coloring depending on the kind you get. Similar to most other dwarf gourami, honey dwarf gourami can be easily scared or intimidated by aggressive or swift-moving fish so it’s important to pair them with other calm fish and dwarf gourami.

Neon Blue Dwarf Gourami

As you’ve probably already guessed, neon blue dwarf gourami are bright, neon blue. They have a blueish-green color and are brighter than the other two blue varieties of dwarf gourami. In addition to their brilliant blue coloring, they have red stripes running across their body and a bright, iridescent sheen. Like the rest of the dwarf gourami, they tend to be shy and require peaceful swimming mates.

Red Dwarf Gourami

Red dwarf gourami are similar to flame dwarf gourami, but have a few important distinctions. They still have beautiful red bodies, but the overall sharpness and fiery red is much more subdued. Instead, the red is more of a brown-orange color. And unlike flame dwarf gourami, they don’t have blue dorsal fins.

In addition to dwarf gourami, there are many other types of gourami that are larger or have different coloring such as kissing, snakeskin, pearl and moon gourami. This means you have lots of options to choose from when it comes to these gentle and beautiful fish.

Once you’ve picked out the kind of dwarf gourami you want for your own tank, all that’s left to do is learn how to care for them, which is easy and fun. So, will you be getting some dwarf gourami?