Sometimes it’s just easier to look at a chart and move on.  For more detail about a compatibility component visit the compatibility discussions.  These charts are for freshwater and saltwater fish providing a summary of the compatibility information and more.

Each chart can be enlarged and zoomed into to see a specific fish or compatibility value.

The compatibility chart identifies compatibility in two ways.  The first is that of similarity.  If the fish have similar traits then it is assumed they would be compatible.  The other is when combining different types of fish and different traits.  Two fish can be termed compatible if they have dissimilar traits and will not compete for resources in the aquarium.

The scoring method below will help to understand the chart.

The four compatibility traits are: Aggressive, Calm, Social/Schooling, Reclusive/Hiding.  They are more fully understood as:

• Aggressive: May not get along well with other aggressive or reclusive fish.
• Calm: Generally gets along with all types of fish.
• Social/Schooling: Prefers to be with other social/schooling fish, but can get along with calm and reclusive fish.
• Reclusive/Hiding: Prefers to be alone or with other reclusive/hiding fish, may not get along with aggressive fish.

The scoring method looks at these traits and uses the following values in scoring a trait:

• 3: Highly Compatible
• 2: Compatible
• 1: Slightly Compatible
• 0: Not Compatible

Using the traits and scoring method, the following matrix show them in use.