How often should I feed my fish?

Beginner guide · About 5 minutes to read

Overfeeding is one of the most common beginner mistakes. Uneaten food rots, pollutes the water and feeds algae. The good news: fish need much less food than most people think.

The short answer

Most adult fish: once or twice a day.
How much: only what they finish in about two minutes.
A day off: skipping one day a week is fine for most healthy adult fish, and it helps their digestion.
Baby fish (fry): tiny meals several times a day.

Signs you're feeding too much

Food left on the gravel after a few minutes
Cloudy water, or ammonia showing up on your tests
More algae than usual
Bloated fish, or long strings of waste

If you see these, cut back for a week and do a water change.

Feeding different kinds of fish

Top and middle swimmers such as tetras, rasboras, guppies and platies do well on small floating or slow-sinking pellets or flakes.
Bottom feeders such as corydoras and plecos need food that sinks. Drop a sinking wafer in after the lights go out, because many of them feed at night.
Bettas eat 2–4 betta pellets once or twice a day. Their stomach is only about the size of their eye.
Treats like frozen or freeze-dried bloodworms and brine shrimp are great once or twice a week.

What about vacations?

Healthy adult fish in an established tank can usually handle a long weekend without food, and many manage a week. For longer trips, use an automatic feeder, and test it for a few days before you leave so you know how much it drops. If a friend feeds them, give them pre-measured portions so they don't overfeed.

Skip the "vacation feeder" blocks that dissolve in the tank. They often go uneaten and can foul the water.

Food and feeding picks

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Planning your first tank? Your First Aquarium has a feeding guide and care cards for 15 beginner fish, with what each one eats. Get the guide for $12