Is it a good idea to buy fish online?

My last fish order was from California and I live on the east coast (4,368km) haha. Most of my amazon orders tend to be from California too. I will admit though, I’m lucky that Aquatic Arts (870km) and That Fish Place (130km) are much closer. For comparison though, Aquatic Arts is only about a fifth of the coast to coast length across the US.

I have purchased frequently from That Fish Place but it’s only an hour drive for me so I just enjoy the drive there. And I’m curious, how are you in MD and PA. Unless you have one of those weird properties that straddle the Mason-Dixon?
OP, my first online fish purchase was horrible as all the fish arrived dead.
My second purchase was from Aquatic Arts and not only did they all arrive perfectly fine, they even sent me an extra! And 2 months later, all are doing great!

 

this site might be helpful if you're in SoCal, I found it while looking for some otos just now. FishGuy4563

 

I have purchased frequently from That Fish Place but it’s only an hour drive for me so I just enjoy the drive there. And I’m curious, how are you in MD and PA. Unless you have one of those weird properties that straddle the Mason-Dixon?

I’m in PA for college most of the year, but my family lives in MD about 25 minutes from the Mason-Dixon. So I figured I’d put both because although I spend more time in PA, I technically live in MD.

 

I’m in PA for college most of the year, but my family lives in MD about 25 minutes from the Mason-Dixon. So I figured I’d put both because although I spend more time in PA, I technically live in MD.

Ah, that makes sense! I’m about 5 minutes from the line.

 

conreality thanks I'll check it out!

 

I’ve also looked into buying ship on line but back out when I see the shipping cost lol! Thankfully I live close enough to drive to the Wet Spot whenever I get the chance or need something

 

I’ve also looked into buying ship on line but back out when I see the shipping cost lol! Thankfully I live close enough to drive to the Wet Spot whenever I get the chance or need something

Lucky!

 

Eh, that looks to be free shipping in name only. The price of shipping is definitely rolled into the cost of the fish and the number of fish you have to buy. I recommend aquabids, eBay, and Imperial tropicals if you want lower shipping costs. It's never going to really be free through.

I agree that many places do that. However, if you do look at the price per fish for 50 male blue moscows they come out to $159 which is $3.18 per fish on Living Artwork. On eBay, a seller had 2 for $40, AZ gardens had them at $19 a piece, $39.99 for 2 at another place, and the cheapest I found in a quick search was Trin's Fish at $5 each with only 4 available and not free shipping. So I'd say do the research and then do it again and again as with buying fish, there is always someone out there that can score you a deal. Shoot, I was looking to import wholesale from overseas, but after many months of looking, found a guy in New Jersey that got me the fish I wanted at 1/3 the price and 1/3 the shipping cost. He does all the importing and then keeps fish at least a month before shipping. He also sends videos of the fish before bagging them or does a live video with me so I know exactly what I am getting. No surprises!

 

The only LFS I have near me is a petsmart and their stock has been awful lately. I currently have a pending order with aquarium fish sale. Based in the last email I received from them it should be shipping out Monday or Tuesday. Shipping is a flat $39.99 unless you spend $140 then it is "free". I was between them and live aquaria. LA's shipping is advertised at $29.99 but they have a boxing fee if $9.99 added on once you get to checkout. No boxing fee for AFS. I can let everyone know how it turns out.

 

My fish arrived from aquarium fish sale. Got my shipping notifications around 9pm last night they were delivered to Michigan at 11:30am today. They were packaged nicely in a Styrofoam cooler with heat packs. All arrived alive, warm and looking healthy. Acclimated them for about an hour and 15 min and now they are swimming about in the tank. I also ordered some plants, those arrived looking super healthy compared to other aquarium plants i've received. They did have snails, cleaned the best I could and did a bleach dip. Fingers crossed that everything stays healthy!

 

My fish arrived from aquarium fish sale. Got my shipping notifications around 9pm last night they were delivered to Michigan at 11:30am today. They were packaged nicely in a Styrofoam cooler with heat packs. All arrived alive, warm and looking healthy. Acclimated them for about an hour and 15 min and now they are swimming about in the tank. I also ordered some plants, those arrived looking super healthy compared to other aquarium plants i've received. They did have snails, cleaned the best I could and did a bleach dip. Fingers crossed that everything stays healthy!

How did you acclimate? Just curious because usually with shipped fish you want them in the tank as soon as the bag is opened because the oxygen makes I ammonia toxic i think. I could be wrong though

 

First time buying online so I just did my normal routine for acclimation. Floated the bags til temp matched, added a few ounces of my tank water, let them sit for 10min, and repeated until the water in their bags was double what they came in. Then I used a net to transfer them to the tank. They seem to be doing well. 1 pearl gourami and 6 dwarf neon rainbows. More than I wanted to put in at one time but I couldnt validate shipping for a few. Ill just be monitoring my water morning and evening to be sure i dont have any spikes.

 

I didn't read anything above, but IMO going in person is better because you can spot and disease in the fish, you're going to feel better about the fish because you're the one who chose it, and you can choose the fish with the personality you like. Also, let's say for example you live in New York a and you want to order a fish from California, which is a long-distance and will increase the risk of the fish being DAO.