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since bettas are one of my favoites ill be biased and suggest getting one lol. youcould do a beautiful community tank

or you could try your hand at gouramis, they are related to bettas and are just as playful and smart. plus some species are really peaceful so you can keep them together

As Nilla said, just about every fish they sell at WalMart is insuitable for anything under 55 gallons, and thats even pushing it with some of them lol Their fish either get 2-4 inches (Guppies, Tetras, ect), or 10+ inches (goldfish, Plecos, Oscars, catfish-shark-things). And besides that, I wouldnt buy anything from there, its only supporting a bad cause, and encouraging the abuse and neglect those fish go through.

I would go 30 gallons or bigger. It'll save you an upgrade later because you saw this "really cool, huge tank" that you "just had to have" LOL I'm getting ready to get some Black Neon Tetras, hopefully, for my 30 gallon, and if I wasnt moving in a few months 10 hours away (and I had the money), I would buy a bigger tank, like 55 or so lol

Gouramis are alot of fun! Depending on what size tank you get, you can have Dwarves, Honeys, Blues, Golds, Three Spots, Opalines, Sparkling, Croaking, Pearl, Moonlight (check me on that one lol), and a few others. These will all be happy in 15-30+ gallon tanks (oviously, do your home work for what ever tank size you get). For larger tanks, you can do Kissers, Snakeskins, ect. Just stay away from Giants. They need several hundred gallons @_@

I have a Bristlenose Pleco, and I love him to death! They are great for 20 longs or bigger (I say long because I feel a standard wouldnt give enough swimming room) tanks, and are not very picky about their algae.

Once you get the tank, if you do, or know what size you are getting, just look around at what the stores around you have, and then go home a research them. A good starting point (but not 100% good) is aqadvisor.com. You put in your tank size, filter(s), and your stock, and it'll give you some basic info back. Just dont listen to how big of water changes you should do. I do atleast 50% every week, which is going untill the gravel syphons clean, and a little bit extra water taken out.

How many Plecos, and of what kind, depends on your tank size. Its its 4-6 inches, you would do 1 in a 30 gallon tank, or 2 in a 55 gallon tank, and so on. Some males of different species are territorial, like the Bristlenoses, so you would have to drop a bunch of money to buy them as adults, or buy then young and take a chance.

You could do smaller Tetras, some times Guppies, Platies, things like that. Nothing too nippy, though, that'll drive the Betta nuts LOL I have one of my Bettas in a 30 gallon with two male Guppies, and a 3-ish inch Bristlenose pleco, and will be adding those Black Neons soon, hopefully, but if that doesnt work out with Ayame (the Betta), he will be moved out into his own tank. Just make sure you have some where for the Betta to go if he/she doesnt like sharing their tank, like a smaller tank, or a friend. It might work better if you add the Betta last =3

Unless you go with a group of Pygmy cories, choose either a pleco or cories. They're all bottom dwellers and they won't be happy to share the space. If you opt for a pleco, make sure you get a smaller species. Bristlenose are a guild favorite, most of the fish people here (myself included) have at least one. They're easy to find, cheap, and hardy. They also come in at least 3 fun colors (brown, albino, calico). Two more "dwarf" plecos that are easy to find are bulldog or 'rubberlip' plecos and clown plecos. Just be very careful you get a pleco that doesn't grow too big, many of them can max out at 2'.

When I'm setting up a small community, I like to do it this way: A bottom dweller (or school), a mid level school, a centerpiece fish, and then for some extra fun some shrimp and/or a snail.

If you were to do it this way, your centerpiece fish would be something like (depending on the size) a betta, a gourami, or maybe even a pair of small cichlids.
Then your mid-level schoolers (5-6): some type of tetra or barb
And bottom level: either a pleco, or a group of cories or loaches. You have to be careful with the loaches though, because a lot of the ones you find grow too big. Off hand the only ones I can think of that stay smaller are kuhli loaches, but I know there are a few other types. Stay away from Clown loaches, beautiful fish but they grow absolutely ginormous.

Cichlids are a lot of fun, and there are a few that you can even breed pretty easily in smaller tanks like these. There are German Blue Rams, Kribs, Keyholes, Bolivian Rams, and a ton of different dwarf cichlids, the most recognizable and easily available being the "cockatoo" cichlid. Also, I don't know much about them, but I've been told there are a number of different shell dwelling types that do well in smaller tanks.

These are just some common and readily available options for a community of 10-30g. There are SO many more fish, but a lot of them are hard to come by, or require species only tanks, specialized equipment, etc.

Lol, yeah, not only that, but puffers in general need species only tanks. They're vicious and they tend to go after all other fish, oftentimes even their own kind. They are really awesome pets to have though, they're ery intelligent.

Tiger barbs might not go well with a betta, they can be aggressive.

This is why most people who keep fishend up with multiple tanks. There's so many options and not everyone is compatible, so when you fall in love with a new fish, it's time to go set up another tank, lol.

Cherry Barbs should be good. Not too big, and not very nippy and crazy lol

Corries, unless you find Pygmies, cannot live in a 10 gallon. A 20 long or larger is best for them (again, floor space lol). Stay away from "Emeral" Corries, as those are not acutally Corries, but their evil, look-a-like cousins that get close to 5 inches long. Green Corries, however, should be fine lol My personal favorite are Panda's, and the High-fin Panda Corries are soooo cute! heart Peppered's are also cute too lol

Like I said, just go around and see what stores around you have to offer, and look up what ever catches your eye. That way you dont get all excited for one type of fish and then get your hopes and dreams crushed when you cant find it anywhere *speaking from experience* lol

You can if you go for a 30g. I've done it in a 20g, but I wouldn't recommend it. The small plecos that will be easier to find are Rubberlip, Bristlenoes, and Clown. There are a lot of others, but I don't pay too much attention to the L numbers since I can't afford anything that I can't find locally. Another fish you might like are otocinclus. They're like plecos only really tiny and they need to be in groups. You should also always buy more of them than you want because the majority are w/c and due to the stresses of transport etc. a few of them usually die right off the bat.

The bets thing you can do is google fish stores in your area and check those out. You will find a much better assortment of fish than looking at walmart or a pet store. WHat I like to do is go there, study every single tank twice or three times, then if I like something but I don't know about it, go home, research it, then go back and buy it if it's compatible with my tanks. This thread needs more pictures.

These are bristlenose plecos:




As ugly as they look at first, you definitely grow to love the males.

My favorite pleco, the Zebra pleco:


They stay small, but BOY are they expensive.


These are cherry barbs, the males are the bright red ones.


German Blue Rams are an easy to find dwarf cichlid. If you went with a 30g and kept your schools small, you could even do a pair of these AND a betta. I've done that in several different tanks and never had a problem, even when the pair was breeding. The betta kept out of their way.

You're also gonna want to get yourself a nice piece of driftwood. The cories and/or pleco will love it, and it helps plecos to have the fiber from rasping on it. The tannins are also good for your water with south american fish.