Fantail Goldfish
Carassius auratus
Cyprinidae
FishDifficulty: ●●●○○Data: verified
About
The fantail is the plainest of the egg-bodied fancy goldfish: a deep, evenly rounded body, a high dorsal fin and a properly divided double tail, with no hood, no telescope eyes and no shoulder hump. That restraint makes it the hardiest of the fancies and the sensible one to start with, but it is still a goldfish - roughly 15-18 cm including the tail, a decade or more of life, and the appetite and waste output that come with it. The short body still crowds the internal organs, so buoyancy trouble shows up as a fish resting head-up or head-down, and it tolerates prolonged cold less well than a single-tail.
Care
The entry-level fancy, not a bowl fish: one adult wants 100 L on a 90 cm footprint, unheated at 16–21 °C, over sand it can sift safely. Add roughly 50 L per extra fish and keep fast single-tails out of the tank.
Diet
Omnivore that sifts sand and grazes plants; soaked sinking food twice daily plus blanched vegetables, with peas and daphnia used to settle buoyancy problems.
Tankmate compatibility
Possible with care (38)
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Avoid (233)
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Computed by the AquaSage engine for a spacious reference tank — always check the full verdict for your exact setup in the calculator.
Telling males from females
What works for this species, most reliable first.
- Breeding tuberclesStrong · only in breeding condition — they vanish out of season
Goldfish and their cyprinid relatives grow small white bumps on the gill covers and leading pectoral rays when they come into breeding condition.
Frequently asked questions
- What tank size does a Fantail Goldfish need?
- A Fantail Goldfish needs an aquarium of at least 150 litres (39.6 US gallons) with a footprint at least 110 cm (43.3 in) long — for this species, swimming length matters as much as raw volume.
- What water parameters does a Fantail Goldfish need?
- Fantail Goldfish does best at 10–26 °C (50–78.8 °F), pH 6–8 and a general hardness of 6–25 °dGH.
- What group size does a Fantail Goldfish need?
- Fantail Goldfish is a social species — keep a group of at least 2 so natural behaviour emerges and stress stays low.
- Is the Fantail Goldfish suitable for beginners?
- Fantail Goldfish sits in the middle of the difficulty scale — manageable for a careful beginner who has done the reading, but it has specific needs worth researching first.
Sources
Water & tank
Temperature10–26°C
Optimal temp.16–21°C
pH6–8
Hardness (GH)6–25°d
Carbonate (KH)4–15°d
Adult size18 cm
Min. volume≥ 150 L
Min. tank length≥ 110 cm
Group size≥ 2
Swimming zoneAll levels
TemperamentPeaceful
Water typeFreshwater
FlowLow
Lifespan~12 yrs
Try in the calculator