The 5 Best Betta Fish Foods You Need to Try

All betta fishes are not created equal. Some are born with bottomless stomachs like a miniature shark, and others are picky eaters who turn their noses up to everything you offer. The refusal to eat can cause stress if you are the latter. You can feed them high-quality, high protein foods to satiate their cravings.

#1 Frozen Bloodworms

Since betta fish are able to eat small insects and crustaceans in the wild, frozen bloodworms (the brightly colored larvae of midge flies), is one of the best food options you can give them. They are available at most pet shops in the form of individual foil-sealed cubes, or a frozen slab which you can cut into pieces. Hikari is our favorite brand in the United States. Their bloodworms are high quality and produce clean results.

One betta fish can usually finish a whole cube in one go. Therefore, you will need to freeze the cube in a container and then feed some bloodworms with a pipette, tweezers, or a pipette. Although most betta fish can live on only bloodworms for their nutrition, many fish require a varied diet. To ensure that your fish have all the nutrients and vitamins they need to live a healthy and long life, rotate at least two to three foods.

Blackworms Live

Because they closely match their natural diet, live foods are the best option for betta fish food. We recommend live blackworms because as a true freshwater species, they can live for quite a while in your aquarium without fouling the water. As they burrow into the substrate, your betta fish can enjoy hours of enrichment while he hunts them down.

This disadvantage of live blackworms is that they are not always available at local fish stores and they have the possibility of bringing in parasites. We still recommend them because they are so nutritious and mentally stimulating for bettas. Blackworms should only be purchased from a trusted fish store that has clean, odorless water.

#3 Betta Pellets

While pellets may not be the most natural-looking choice, they combine the most important nutrients a betta fish needs into a bite-sized package. They don’t dissolve quickly in the water, and they float on the surface which is a nice feature for betta fish that have upturned faces and are used to eating directly from the water surface.

Xtreme Betta Pellets

Xtreme betta pellets are a good choice. They have high-quality protein like krill, come in a handy scoop to avoid feeding too many fish, and they come in a small, compact container that can be used for one betta fish. It is not a good idea to buy large quantities of fish food and keep it in the same jar for several years. Although the expiration date is still valid, the food can become stale due to repeated exposure to oxygen and moisture. This could potentially lead to health problems for your betta fish.

Freeze-Dried Foods

Freeze drying is a way to preserve food in a lightweight and dry form factor, while still retaining all of the original nutrients. We love brine shrimp and freeze-dried bloodworms as an alternative to frozen food. They can be kept in the water without freezing, unlike frozen foods. They are easy to portion for the right amount of food and can be removed from the tank easily if they don’t finish all.

Hikari Freeze-Dried Bloodworms

Insect-Based Pellets

Fluval Bug Bites Betta Formula is another kind of betta food pellet that is primarily made of black soldier fly larvae to mostly closely simulate a betta fish’s insectivore diet. It contains high amounts of quality protein, as well as other essential vitamins and minerals to boost your betta’s health. This slow sinking granule is not something that some bettas will want to eat, but it’s something they will happily finish if you have tank mates such as corydoras and tetras.

Fluval Bug Bites – Betta Formula

In our experience, most bettas are not too picky and, if kept in a community tank with other fish, may even choose to snack on other foods you feed the aquarium. If you want to give your betta more variety in their meals, try these top five favorite foods. Your fish will love them!