Aquariumtetra · freshwater
Buenos Aires Tetra: adult size, tank size & tankmates
The Buenos Aires Tetra (Psalidodon anisitsi) grows to about 2.8 in (6 cm SL). It needs a tank at least 35 inches long and about 21 gallons. Keep at least 8 together, at 61–82°F.
How big it really gets
Drawn to scale against common tank lengths. Green bars meet the minimum tank length from our sources.
Needs special care. Fin-nips long-finned community fish and eats live plants, yet often sold as a hardy beginner fish for planted community tanks.
Will it fit your tank?
Quick facts
- Adult size
- 2.8 in (6 cm SL)
- Minimum tank
- 35 inches long and about 21 gallons
- Temperature
- 61–82°F
- pH
- 5.5–8.5
- Hardness
- 1–20 dGH
- Group size
- 8+
- With other fish
- semi-aggressive
- With its own kind
- peaceful
- Swims
- middle of the tank
- Diet
- omnivore
- Care level
- beginner
- Lifespan
- not stated in sources
Watch for: nips fins · eats shrimp · eats live plants
Buenos Aires Tetra tankmates
Checked with the same rules as our tank builder: temperature overlap, pH and hardness, predation and mouth size, fin-nipping and temperament. Tank size is left out here; check it in the builder.
Good tankmates
- Harlequin RasboraAdult ~2.1 in · 70–82°F
- Cherry BarbAdult ~2.4 in · 68–81°F
- Rummy-nose TetraAdult ~2.4 in · 73–79°F
- PlatyAdult ~2.4 in · 68–79°F
- Bolivian RamAdult ~3.8 in · 75–82°F
- KribensisAdult ~4.7 in · 75–81°F
- Bronze CoryAdult ~3.5 in · 70–81°F
- Panda CoryAdult ~2.4 in · 72–77°F
- Julii CoryAdult ~2.6 in · 72–79°F
- Sterbai CoryAdult ~3.2 in · 75–82°F
Use caution
- Neon TetraBuenos Aires Tetra can bully smaller, peaceful Neon Tetra.
- Cardinal TetraBuenos Aires Tetra can bully smaller, peaceful Cardinal Tetra.
- Ember TetraBuenos Aires Tetra can bully smaller, peaceful Ember Tetra.
- Chili RasboraBuenos Aires Tetra can bully smaller, peaceful Chili Rasbora.
- Celestial Pearl DanioBuenos Aires Tetra can bully smaller, peaceful Celestial Pearl Danio.
- Black Neon TetraBuenos Aires Tetra can bully smaller, peaceful Black Neon Tetra.
- Glowlight TetraBuenos Aires Tetra can bully smaller, peaceful Glowlight Tetra.
- Lemon TetraBuenos Aires Tetra can bully smaller, peaceful Lemon Tetra.
Avoid
- BettaNeeds careBuenos Aires Tetra nips fins, and Betta has long fins.
- Cherry ShrimpBuenos Aires Tetra will eat Cherry Shrimp.
- Amano ShrimpBuenos Aires Tetra will eat Amano Shrimp.
- Bamboo ShrimpBuenos Aires Tetra will eat Bamboo Shrimp.
- Crystal Red ShrimpBuenos Aires Tetra will eat Crystal Red Shrimp.
- Ghost ShrimpBuenos Aires Tetra will eat Ghost Shrimp.
- Iridescent SharkOutgrows tanksIridescent Shark eats small fish, and Buenos Aires Tetra only grows to about 2.8 in.
- OscarOutgrows tanksOscar eats small fish, and Buenos Aires Tetra only grows to about 2.8 in.
All 105 species we checked against the Buenos Aires Tetra
| Species | Verdict | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Assassin Snail | Compatible | No conflicts found |
| Bala Shark | Compatible | No conflicts found |
| Black Skirt Tetra | Compatible | No conflicts found |
| Bleeding Heart Tetra | Compatible | No conflicts found |
| Blood Parrot Cichlid | Compatible | No conflicts found |
| Bolivian Ram | Compatible | No conflicts found |
| Bristlenose Pleco | Compatible | No conflicts found |
| Bronze Cory | Compatible | No conflicts found |
| Cherry Barb | Compatible | No conflicts found |
| Clown Loach | Compatible | No conflicts found |
| Clown Pleco | Compatible | No conflicts found |
| Cockatoo Dwarf Cichlid | Compatible | No conflicts found |
| Common / Comet Goldfish | Compatible | No conflicts found |
| Common Pleco | Compatible | No conflicts found |
| Convict Cichlid | Compatible | No conflicts found |
| Denison Barb | Compatible | No conflicts found |
| Diamond Tetra | Compatible | No conflicts found |
| Discus | Compatible | No conflicts found |
| Dwarf Neon Rainbowfish | Compatible | No conflicts found |
| Electric Blue Acara | Compatible | No conflicts found |
| Electric Yellow Lab | Compatible | No conflicts found |
| Firemouth Cichlid | Compatible | No conflicts found |
| Forktail Blue-eye | Compatible | No conflicts found |
| Giant Danio | Compatible | No conflicts found |
| Glass Catfish | Compatible | No conflicts found |
| Gold Barb | Compatible | No conflicts found |
| Harlequin Rasbora | Compatible | No conflicts found |
| Head-and-tail-light Tetra | Compatible | No conflicts found |
| Hillstream Loach | Compatible | No conflicts found |
| Japanese Trapdoor Snail | Compatible | No conflicts found |
| Julii Cory | Compatible | No conflicts found |
| Kribensis | Compatible | No conflicts found |
| Kuhli Loach | Compatible | No conflicts found |
| Malaysian Trumpet Snail | Compatible | No conflicts found |
| Molly | Compatible | No conflicts found |
| Nerite Snail | Compatible | No conflicts found |
| Odessa Barb | Compatible | No conflicts found |
| Panda Cory | Compatible | No conflicts found |
| Paradise Fish | Compatible | No conflicts found |
| Pea Puffer | Compatible | No conflicts found |
| Pearl Danio | Compatible | No conflicts found |
| Peppered Cory | Compatible | No conflicts found |
| Pictus Catfish | Compatible | No conflicts found |
| Platy | Compatible | No conflicts found |
| Pristella Tetra | Compatible | No conflicts found |
| Rainbow Shark | Compatible | No conflicts found |
| Ramshorn Snail | Compatible | No conflicts found |
| Red-Tail Shark | Compatible | No conflicts found |
| Rosy Barb | Compatible | No conflicts found |
| Rummy-nose Tetra | Compatible | No conflicts found |
| Scissortail Rasbora | Compatible | No conflicts found |
| Serpae Tetra | Compatible | No conflicts found |
| Siamese Algae Eater | Compatible | No conflicts found |
| Silver Tip Tetra | Compatible | No conflicts found |
| Sterbai Cory | Compatible | No conflicts found |
| Swordtail | Compatible | No conflicts found |
| Three-spot Gourami | Compatible | No conflicts found |
| Tiger Barb | Compatible | No conflicts found |
| Tinfoil Barb | Compatible | No conflicts found |
| Upside-down Catfish | Compatible | No conflicts found |
| Variatus Platy | Compatible | No conflicts found |
| Weather Loach | Compatible | No conflicts found |
| Yoyo Loach | Compatible | No conflicts found |
| Zebra Danio | Compatible | No conflicts found |
| African Dwarf Frog | Caution | Buenos Aires Tetra can bully smaller, peaceful African Dwarf Frog. |
| Angelfish | Caution | Buenos Aires Tetra nips fins, and Angelfish has long fins. |
| Black Neon Tetra | Caution | Buenos Aires Tetra can bully smaller, peaceful Black Neon Tetra. |
| Boesemani Rainbowfish | Caution | Buenos Aires Tetra and Boesemani Rainbowfish only share 81–82°F. That's a tight window. |
| Bumblebee Goby | Caution | Buenos Aires Tetra can bully smaller, peaceful Bumblebee Goby. |
| Cardinal Tetra | Caution | Buenos Aires Tetra can bully smaller, peaceful Cardinal Tetra. |
| Celestial Pearl Danio | Caution | Buenos Aires Tetra can bully smaller, peaceful Celestial Pearl Danio. |
| Chili Rasbora | Caution | Buenos Aires Tetra can bully smaller, peaceful Chili Rasbora. |
| Chinese Algae Eater | Caution | Chinese Algae Eater grows 5× longer than Buenos Aires Tetra and may treat it as food. |
| Clown Killifish | Caution | Buenos Aires Tetra can bully smaller, peaceful Clown Killifish. |
| Congo Tetra | Caution | Buenos Aires Tetra nips fins, and Congo Tetra has long fins. |
| Dwarf Gourami | Caution | Buenos Aires Tetra nips fins, and Dwarf Gourami has long fins. |
| Ember Tetra | Caution | Buenos Aires Tetra can bully smaller, peaceful Ember Tetra. |
| Endler's Livebearer | Caution | Buenos Aires Tetra can bully smaller, peaceful Endler's Livebearer. |
| Fancy Goldfish | Caution | Buenos Aires Tetra nips fins, and Fancy Goldfish has long fins. |
| German Blue Ram | Caution | Buenos Aires Tetra and German Blue Ram only share 81–82°F. That's a tight window.; Buenos Aires Tetra can bully smaller, peaceful German Blue Ram. |
| Glowlight Tetra | Caution | Buenos Aires Tetra can bully smaller, peaceful Glowlight Tetra. |
| Guppy | Caution | Buenos Aires Tetra nips fins, and Guppy has long fins. |
| Honey Gourami | Caution | Buenos Aires Tetra nips fins, and Honey Gourami has long fins. |
| Kissing Gourami | Caution | Kissing Gourami grows 4× longer than Buenos Aires Tetra and may treat it as food. |
| Lambchop Rasbora | Caution | Buenos Aires Tetra can bully smaller, peaceful Lambchop Rasbora. |
| Lemon Tetra | Caution | Buenos Aires Tetra can bully smaller, peaceful Lemon Tetra. |
| Marbled Hatchetfish | Caution | Buenos Aires Tetra can bully smaller, peaceful Marbled Hatchetfish. |
| Moonlight Gourami | Caution | Buenos Aires Tetra nips fins, and Moonlight Gourami has long fins. |
| Mystery Snail | Caution | Buenos Aires Tetra (pH 5.5–8.5) and Mystery Snail (pH unknown) prefer different pH.; Buenos Aires Tetra (1–20 dGH) and Mystery Snail (unknown dGH) prefer different water hardness. |
| Neon Tetra | Caution | Buenos Aires Tetra can bully smaller, peaceful Neon Tetra. |
| Otocinclus | Caution | Buenos Aires Tetra can bully smaller, peaceful Otocinclus. |
| Pearl Gourami | Caution | Buenos Aires Tetra nips fins, and Pearl Gourami has long fins. |
| Penguin Tetra | Caution | Buenos Aires Tetra can bully smaller, peaceful Penguin Tetra. |
| Pygmy Cory | Caution | Buenos Aires Tetra can bully smaller, peaceful Pygmy Cory. |
| Silver Hatchetfish | Caution | Buenos Aires Tetra can bully smaller, peaceful Silver Hatchetfish. |
| Sparkling Gourami | Caution | Buenos Aires Tetra can bully smaller, peaceful Sparkling Gourami. |
| White Cloud Mountain Minnow | Caution | Buenos Aires Tetra can bully smaller, peaceful White Cloud Mountain Minnow. |
| Amano Shrimp | Avoid | Buenos Aires Tetra will eat Amano Shrimp. |
| Bamboo Shrimp | Avoid | Buenos Aires Tetra will eat Bamboo Shrimp. |
| Betta | Avoid | Buenos Aires Tetra nips fins, and Betta has long fins. |
| Cherry Shrimp | Avoid | Buenos Aires Tetra will eat Cherry Shrimp. |
| Crystal Red Shrimp | Avoid | Buenos Aires Tetra will eat Crystal Red Shrimp. |
| Ghost Shrimp | Avoid | Buenos Aires Tetra will eat Ghost Shrimp. |
| Iridescent Shark | Avoid | Iridescent Shark eats small fish, and Buenos Aires Tetra only grows to about 2.8 in. |
| Oscar | Avoid | Oscar eats small fish, and Buenos Aires Tetra only grows to about 2.8 in. |
Care notes
Needs: Boisterous fin nipper; avoid long-finned, slow or shy tankmates; eats live plants; subtropical, should not be kept near the top of its temperature range long term.
Group: SF says at least 8-10 is the minimum; forms loose hierarchies; nipping worse in small groups or cramped tanks.
Temperament: semi-aggressive toward other fish, peaceful toward its own kind. Lives in the middle of the tank.
Common questions
How big does a Buenos Aires Tetra get?
About 2.8 inches (6 cm SL) as an adult, according to seriouslyfish.com.
What size tank does a Buenos Aires Tetra need?
At least 35 inches long and about 21 gallons. The smallest standard tank that meets that is a 40 gallon breeder.
How many Buenos Aires Tetras should be kept together?
At least 8. SF says at least 8-10 is the minimum; forms loose hierarchies; nipping worse in small groups or cramped tanks.
What fish can live with a Buenos Aires Tetra?
Species that passed every check include Harlequin Rasbora, Cherry Barb, Rummy-nose Tetra, Platy, Bolivian Ram, Kribensis.
Gear for a Buenos Aires Tetra setup
TankSmallest standard tank that meets its minimum: 40 gallon breeder (36 in long).Find on Amazon →HeaterAbout 200 W for 40 gallons, holding 61–82°F.Find on Amazon →FoodA quality flake or micro-pellet as a staple.Find on Amazon →Test kitCheck ammonia, nitrite and pH. Cycle the tank before adding fish.Find on Amazon →
As an Amazon Associate, AquariumSetup earns from qualifying purchases. Links open Amazon search results so you can compare current options.
Related guides
Sources
Values come from these pages, in our own words. Status: researched from source pages. Last reviewed 2026-10-12.
- seriouslyfish.com /species/hyphessobrycon-anisitsi/
- fishbase.se /summary/Psalidodon-anisitsi.html
- seriouslyfish.com /species/hyphessobrycon-anisitsi