10 Great Tank Mates for Silver Dollar Fish: Compatibility Guide (With Pictures)

Who knows, maybe you just want to have a school of silver dollar fish, or maybe you want to make a community tank. That said, silver dollar fish can be a bit aggressive towards much smaller fish.

Therefore, right now, we want to help you find the best silver dollar tank mates so you can create a beautiful, peaceful, and homogenous aquarium community.

The 10 Great Silver Dollar Fish Tank Mates

The most important thing to know here is that silver dollar fish are not the smallest of fish and they can grow to around 8 inches in length.

They are relatively peaceful fish when it comes to their own kind, as well as other fish of equal or larger size. However, when it comes to smaller and other peaceful fish, they can be a bit aggressive and territorial.

Smaller fish, especially the slower-moving ones, will most likely be attacked and bullied by silver dollar fish. Therefore, no fish that is much smaller and slower should be kept with a silver dollar.

Here is a rundown of what we feel are the 10 most compatible tank mates for silver dollars.

1. Other Silver Dollars

The number one best tank mate for the silver dollar fish is other silver dollar fish. These are community fish and schooling fish, which means that they greatly enjoy being with lots of their own kind, and benefit from it too. They feel much more comfortable in schools of their own kind, as there is safety in numbers, a natural survival mechanism.

Most would recommend keeping at least 4 or 5 silver dollar fish together to make them feel at home. Hands down, the best tank make for the silver dollar fish is the silver dollar fish. They tend to get along with each other very well and indeed have a craving to live with their own kind.

2. Bala Shark

Now, Bala sharks on their own are not overly aggressive and tend to be fairly peaceful, but they can bully slower swimming fish on occasion.

Let’s keep in mind that these fish are actually more closely related to minnows and other similar fish than sharks. It’s not actually a true shark, but it has large fins and a torpedo-shaped body which definitely gives it the appearance of a shark.

Bala sharks have some really amazing colors and patterns, so they definitely look quite nice. Moreover, they are really fast and active swimmers, which helps them avoid silver dollar fish.

Of course, there is also the fact that Bala sharks can grow to a whopping 14 inches in length, so almost twice as long as silver dollar fish. Therefore, you can rest assured that the silver dollars definitely won’t try to pick a fight with your Bala shark.

3. Giant Gourami

Giant gouramis can also be kept with silver dollar fish. These fish are known for having big and oddly shaped foreheads, with their heads almost resembling beluga whales.

These fish can come in many different colors, patterns, and color combinations, which helps keep things exciting. The giant gourami is mostly a peaceful fish and definitely won’t bully or attack fish that are similar or larger in size.

These fish only become aggressive when their tank is too small and they feel crowded, plus they can be a little aggressive towards much smaller fish.

However, when it comes to keeping giant gouramis with silver dollar fish, this should go just fine, as these guys can grow to 18 inches in length when raised in captivity. It’s a full 10 inches longer than the silver dollar fish, so your silver dollars definitely won’t pick on it.

Yet, be careful and ensure that the tank is more than large enough for both fish, because if the tank feels cramped, the giant gourami may actually become aggressive towards the silver dollars.

4. Corydoras

Corydoras are another decent silver dollar fish tank mate. These fish, also known as corydora catfish, are extremely peaceful bottom feeders and they usually don’t bother any other fish no matter the size.

These guys are very peaceful and their only real goal is to scavenge food from the bottom of the tank. There is also the fact that Corydoras come in many different color patterns and colorations, which can definitely help bring some color and liveliness to a tank.

Now, cory catfish do only grow to around 4 inches in length, which is about half as long as a silver dollar fish.

Although that said, this is where we would draw the line, as a cory catfish is generally large enough so that silver dollar fish won’t try to bully it, and moreover, it definitely won’t fit in the mouth of a silver dollar either.

The main point to keep in mind that is the corys are bottom-feeding scavengers, and even in the same tank, they won’t come into much contact with silver dollar fish.

5. Black Skirt Tetra

Black skirt tetras are actually fairly small fish, usually topping out at around 2.5 inches in length. Yes, silver dollar fish are over 3 times larger than black skirt tetras.

You might think that these little guys are too small for silver dollars and will be bullied by them, but history shows that this is not the case.

Although black skirt tetras are comparatively small, they are very speedy and agile swimmers, plus they are generally fairly aggressive.

Black skirt tetras are known to be fin nippers and bullies, and yes, given the right motivation, they will definitely defend themselves or even go on the offensive against silver dollar fish.

When kept in the same tank, silver dollar fish will usually leave these aggressive little fish alone, and if they try to start a fight, the fast and agile black skirt tetra is more than speedy enough to get out of the way, not to mention more than feisty enough to fend off a silver dollar fish and send it scrambling for cover.

Simply put, silver dollars usually won’t try to mess with black skirt tetras due to their aggressive nature, and due to the big size difference, for the most part, black skirt tetras also won’t both silver dollars.

6. Redtail Shark

Once again, just like with the Bala shark, the red tail shark has the appearance of a real shark, complete with those large fins and a torpedo-shaped body.

However, they are not real sharks. Redtail sharks are actually in the same family of fish as carps. People love red tail sharks due to their jet black bodies combined with their fiery red tails. These are definitely some very nice-looking fish.

Redtail sharks will grow to around 6 inches in length, sometimes even 7 inches long, and they can be quite thick too. This means that they are large enough to avoid being picked on, bullied, or even being eaten by silver dollar fish.

What is important to note is that red tail sharks, while they are peaceful when it comes to large fish like silver dollars, can be very aggressive towards smaller fish. Red tail sharks in themselves will bully much smaller fish. For the most part, red tail sharks and silver dollar fish will leave each other alone and won’t interact much at all.

7. Angelfish

Something to keep in mind right off the bat here is that angelfish are actually a type of Cichlid. What can be said is that for the most part, angelfish are fairly peaceful, more so than most other Cichlids.

However, they can still be a bit aggressive towards much smaller fish, and during mating season they can also become extremely hostile towards other angelfish. That said, they are great fish to keep with silver dollar fish.

For one, angelfish look very cool with big stripes, vivid colors, and those long, flowing fins. The good part about housing angelfish with silver dollar fish is that angels grow to around 10 inches in size.

While they tend to be peaceful with most other fish of similar sizes, they don’t much like fish that are far smaller, but they will leave fish that are similar in size alone. More or less, silver dollar fish and angelfish have similar temperaments and don’t tend to mess with other fish of similar size.

8. Blue Ram Cichlid

There is no denying the fact that the blue ram cichlid is by far one of the most beautiful and colorful cichlids around, and one of the most beautiful aquarium fish in general. With super vivid blues, reds, orange, yellow, and blacks all mixed in, these are some super bright fish indeed. Blue ram cichlids are mostly blue, but often have all of those other colors mixed in too.

Now, blue ram cichlids only grow to 3 inches in length at most. Based on size alone, they do not appear to be a good fit for silver dollar fish.

However, just like with black skirt tetra fish, blue ram cichlids are very fast swimmers, they are agile, and they are aggressive too. Blue ram cichlids have no qualms defending themselves if need be, and will on occasion attack fish much larger than themselves.

Due to their fairly aggressive temperament, silver dollar fish will generally leave them be.

9. Clown loaches

The clown loach is definitely a very nice-looking fish with orange and black stripes, making them very colorful additions to any aquarium. They are very nice looking no doubt, and moreover, they are bottom-feeding scavengers too, making them convenient little cleaners. Being bottom feeders also means that they stick to the substrate and generally won’t come into much contact with fish such as silver dollar fish.

Clown loaches will grow to around 5 inches in length, which should be large enough so that silver dollar fish won’t bother them too much. Moreover, even though they are a bit smaller than silver dollar fish, they are a bit aggressive, they can be territorial, and they will defend themselves when need be.

Due to these factors, they make for rather perfect silver dollar fish tank mates.

10. Black Ghost Knife

When it comes to unique-looking fish, the black ghost knife fish is definitely up there with the best of them.

These fish are jet black in color from front to back, and can sometimes have a bit of blue pigmentation thrown in the mix, thus giving them a dark appearance with a blue hue. They do actually look like knife blades too, another interesting trait.

Black ghost knife fish will grow to around 20 inches in size, making them more than large enough to ensure that silver dollar fish will not bother them. Also, black ghost knife fish tend to stick near the bottom of the tank and will stick to swimming through and hiding in the foliage.

Even though these fish are more than twice the size of silver dollars, they are very peaceful and shy, so they won’t bother the silver dollars.

Are Silver Dollars Aggressive Fish?

Silver dollar fish are semi-aggressive fish. They are not overly aggressive or territorial, but they do have their moments.

This is particularly true with fish that are much smaller than them. Silver dollar fish may bully or attack smaller fish but are generally fine with fish of similar or larger size.

Do Silver Dollars Eat Other Fish?

What is interesting to note is that silver dollar fish, while technically being omnivores, usually only eat plant matter and are more or less 100% herbivores.

So, while they may attack much smaller fish, they will not eat them.

Can Silver Dollar Fish Live With Goldfish?

No, you should not keep silver dollar fish with goldfish. Here, the issue really has nothing to do with size or temperament, but with water conditions.

Goldfish are cool water fish that prefer colder waters, whereas silver dollar fish are tropical fish that need the water temperature to be fairly high.

For this reason, because they are not built for the same waters, they cannot live together.

Are Silver Dollar Fish Compatible With Guppies?

Silver dollar fish should also not be kept with guppies. Guppies are very small and peaceful.

Your silver dollar fish will probably chase them around and may attack them too. They aren’t the worst tank mates ever, but certainly not overly compatible either.

Conclusion

As you can see, there is plenty of fish that can be kept with silver dollar fish. The most important thing to remember is that any silver dollar tank mates should not be much smaller.

As long as the other fish in the aquarium are roughly the same size or larger, they should all get along just fine. If you do plan on adding much smaller fish to the silver dollar tank, they need to be agile, quick, and partly aggressive.

Image Credit: Darko Cvetanoski, Shutterstock