Best aquarium heaters
Which heater is right for your tank by physics, not the box — and how hot each one cooks the tank if it sticks on.
Read the comparison Size for your tank Heater Wattage
The equipment behind your aquarium
Buy the right
size, once.
Start with what your tank needs. Then compare the equipment that fits, with the specs, running costs, and tradeoffs that help you choose.
Find your equipment6 equipment comparisons Each paired with a calculator
Every choice starts with your tank
- 01 Size it
- 02 Compare it
- 03 Choose it
Some links in our comparisons earn us a commission at no cost to you. Picks are based on specs, never on commission. How that works.
01 / Everyday equipment
The quiet work behind a healthy tank.
Heating and filtration, chosen around the tank you have and the way you run it.
Temperature & control
02 / Reef equipment
Build around the reef you keep.
Flow, filtration, and light. See how the equipment compares before deciding what belongs above your tank or below it.
From the sump to the surface.
Best return pumps
What each pump really delivers at a real head, from its curve — and the watts it draws to do it, DC against AC.
Read the comparisonSize for your tank Return Pump SizingBest protein skimmers
The box's "up to 150 gallons" against the two numbers that decide it: the water a reef actually holds with its sump, and the air the skimmer pulls through it — plus the sump depth each body needs.
Read the comparisonSize for your tank True Water VolumeBest reef LED lights
Gallons are the wrong unit for a light: the fixtures each line takes to cover your tank's footprint for LPS and for SPS, what that really costs with the mounts, and which makers publish a PAR figure at all.
Read the comparisonSize for your tank Tank Volume
Follow the water, stage by stage.
03 / Source water
Start with the water going in.
Look beyond the unit itself to the cartridges, resin, and water it takes to keep it running.
Behind the comparisons
What makes a useful recommendation?
- 01
Size for your tank.
Each comparison starts with the matching calculator. Work out the size your setup needs, then compare the options.
- 02
Look past the headline.
Compare the specs that matter in use: delivered flow, coverage, running costs, and the limitations behind the rating.
- 03
Know the tradeoffs.
Failure modes and cheaper alternatives belong in the comparison. The right choice needs a reason beyond the price tag.