These reviews feature different brands of fish food that are specially formulated for goldfish. We go over the pros and cons of each, and there’s also a buyer’s guide that discusses what makes a goldfish food high quality.
A Quick Comparison of Our Favorites in 2024
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Best Overall
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Repashy Superfoods SuperGold Gel Premix Fish Food |
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Best Value
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Cobalt Aquatics Select Goldfish & Koi Fish Food |
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Microbe-Lift Legacy Growth & Energy Floating Pellets |
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Aqueon PRO Goldfish Formula Fish Food |
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Zoo Med Spirulina 20 |
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The 5 Best Goldfish Foods
1. Repashy Superfoods SuperGold Gel Premix Fish Food — Best Overall
The best overall goldfish food is Repashy Superfoods SuperGold Gel Premix Fish Food, which is a powdered food that you mix yourself at home with hot water. It’s made with lots of high-quality ingredients, including krill meal, spirulina algae, and black soldier fly larvae meal. It’s high in protein at 40%, with the fat at 6%.
This food can be kept in the refrigerator once opened for a few months. Once mixed, it can be stored in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks and the freezer for up to 6 months. This food is made in the U.S.A. and is designed to support nutrition and healthy digestion for goldfish and koi.
This food can be a little tricky to master at first, since too much or too little water or water that isn’t hot enough can alter the final texture of the product, potentially leaving it rubbery or causing it to dissolve as soon as it hits the water. There is some leeway for creating the texture of your preference, though, allowing you to serve this food as pellets, flakes, or chunks.
2. Cobalt Aquatics Select Goldfish & Koi Fish Food — Best Value
The Cobalt Aquatics Select Goldfish & Koi Fish Food is the best goldfish food for the money. Although wheat is the first ingredient, this food is very high quality and dense in nutrients, with 42% protein and 6% fat content. This food floats and is easy to digest, so it will not cause cloudy water unless overfed.
It’s made in the U.S. with all of the nutrients that your goldfish and koi need to thrive, and the pellets are large enough for even the biggest koi and goldfish. The resealable bag uses less plastic than traditional fish food containers, making it an eco-friendlier option.
3. Microbe-Lift Legacy Growth & Energy Floating Pellets With Color Enhancer Koi & Goldfish Food
If you have a larger budget or a pond full of goldfish and koi to feed, the top pick is the Microbe-Lift Legacy Growth & Energy Floating Pellets With Color Enhancer Koi & Goldfish Food. This pellet food is available in four package sizes, up to 14.5 pounds. It contains probiotics to support healthy digestion and vitamin C to support the health of your fish’s immune system. It also contains color enhancers and high-quality proteins to support growth and energy, especially when extra support is needed near the end of spring.
To better support growth, it contains 40% protein and 7% fat. This food is only available in one pellet size currently, which may be too large for fry and young juvenile goldfish.
4. Aqueon PRO Goldfish Formula Fish Food
The Aqueon PRO Goldfish Formula Fish Food was designed by expert fish nutritionists specifically for the metabolism and digestive system of goldfish. It’s a sinking pellet in a small size that is suitable for goldfish of almost any size. This food contains a special blend of vitamins, algae, and probiotics to support immune system function, as well as color enhancers to support bright coloration. At 47% protein and 8% fat, this food is great for supporting growth.
Although high in quality and nutrients, the first ingredient is wheat, and the first animal protein is fish meal, which is the third ingredient, which may deter some people from trying this food.
5. Zoo Med Spirulina 20
The Zoo Med Spirulina 20 contains multiple high-quality ingredients, but the star of the show is nutrient-dense spirulina algae. This food is a good source of vitamin B12, vitamin C, and vitamin E, and it contains 45% protein but only 4% fat. It contains natural color enhancers and is suitable for multiple types of fish, including goldfish.
This is also a budget-friendly food pick. It is not designed specifically to meet the needs of goldfish, though. Also, this is a flake food, which may have a tendency to cloud your water, especially if allowed to sit for too long in your tank, so make sure to only serve as much as your fish can eat in a few minutes.
Buyer’s Guide: Selecting the Best Goldfish Food
Let’s take a look at what’s important for your fish food to provide in order for your goldfish to remain healthy and happy.
Floating vs. Non-floating Food
You can break fish food into two categories, floating and non-floating. In most cases, you want the non-floating type because floating fish food causes your goldfish to gulp air as it tries to grab flakes of food. Gulping air can cause bloating in your goldfish, which can lead to other health problems. It’s best to let them pick the food off the ground if necessary.
The downside to non-floating food is that it tends to sit on the bottom, where it breaks up and makes your water cloudy.
Ingredients
As we would for any of our pets, we want our fish food to contain high-quality ingredients. It should have a good source of protein, which usually comes from peas or other types of fish, but it can come from several sources, and one brand on this list uses fly larvae.
Probiotics in omega fatty acids can also benefit your goldfish, and you should seek out foods that include these nutrients. Your goldfish will also benefit from some vitamins, primarily vitamin C, and you should seek out food that supplies this nutrient as well.
Color Enhancement
Most people like to enhance the color of their goldfish, and you can usually improve color by modifying the ingredients in their food. Most color-enhancing foods use carotenoids to enhance the orange color of goldfish, and this chemical is in carrots, peas, and several other vegetables. If you want to enhance the color of your goldfish, we recommend looking for food that contains carotenoids.
Conclusion
When it comes to feeding your goldfish a food among these reviews, the best overall food is Repashy Superfoods SuperGold Gel premix, which is a powdered food, but it can be made into any shape and size your fish prefers, including pellets and flakes. For a budget-friendly option, the top pick is the Cobalt Aquatics Goldfish & Koi food, which is easy to digest and has pellets large enough for large goldfish and koi. If you have lots of fish to feed, the premium option is the Microbe-Lift Growth & Energy food, which is ideal for supporting the increased metabolic needs of your fish as they are growing during late spring and early summer.
Featured Image Credit: Rabbitmindphoto, Shutterstock
