When you look into owning koi fish, there are a lot of differing opinions concerning almost every aspect of koi care.
From types of food and feeding practices to pond decor, it seems everything about owning koi fish drums up quite the opinionated response.
One thing everyone can agree on is that owning koi fish is certainly not an affordable hobby.
Koi fish food, filtration, and maintenance can get very expensive, especially if you have multiple fish. Even the fish themselves can cost a pretty penny for some colorations.
Let’s take at what is a good koi fish baby price that you can expect to pay without outright overpaying or breaking the bank.
Are Baby Koi Cheaper?
In general, baby koi fish are going to be a lot cheaper to use in stocking your pond.
This is because less effort and money have gone into raising them at that point in their life and they are not being put through traditional curated growth for specific colorations.
This means they are sold for less since it is uncertain how big and what color the koi baby will exactly be when it is an adult.
Let’s see how much you can expect to pay for baby koi fish.
Some Pricing Samples
Let’s explore some of the average range priced options to better understand what you can expect to pay when you are looking at buying koi fish baby listings from reputable breeders.
You can, of course, find baby koi even cheaper in pet stores but these are generally mass-bred fish that will not be of the same quality of a reputable breeder’s fish, meaning you really get what you pay for when purchasing koi fish babies outside of breeding facilities.
This is a specialty koi breeder that is found online. They offer a ton of stunning individual koi fish, including some of the more highly sought out breeds of koi fish.
This brand does only sell koi that are seven inches in length or larger since this is when they are out of the woods considering initial growth, meaning they do sell at a larger size than actual, true baby koi.
Still, they are nowhere near fully grown, with tons of growth and color potential for you to experience.
Generally, Edge Water Pond koi fish cost between ten dollars and four hundred dollars, depending on the coloration and size since they are considered a traditionalist style breeder.
If you have a specific koi fish sub-variety in mind, this is an excellent shop to source them out, even the more rare variations.
One of the most popular koi breeders in the world, Blackwater Creek Koi Farm Inc carved out a niche for themselves within the industry very early on in their existence, where they have remained since the brand’s first formation.
They consistently provide a wide range of absolutely stunning koi fish, including batches of koi fry and babies.
These babies, also known as peanuts, are sold in large batches, allowing the owner to raise them from infancy into maturity, experiencing a legitimate koi growth process with the opportunity to find some incredible colorations in the mix.
Depending on how many baby koi you want, you are looking at spending between one hundred and fifty dollars and three hundred dollars and receiving around fifty to two hundred baby koi fish in a single order.
Similar to Blackwater Creek Koi Farms Inc, Kloubec Koi Farm is a high-quality breeding entity that works to create stunning, healthy koi for both professional and hobbyist pond enclosures.
This has resulted in some of the most beautiful koi fish to exist in the modern arena to be bred from this facility.
Currently, Kloubec offers both seven-inch individual koi and bulk peanut purchasing options.
Depending on the sizes you go for, you are looking at spending between ten and one hundred dollars for individual koi and between one hundred and one thousand for bulk packages of koi fish.
These bulk koi packages offer a ton of variation and can contribute to an overall beautiful pond due to the chances of absolutely beautiful koi appearing in the mix.
Kodama is a high-end koi breeder that offers a lot of stunning fish, including several showcases winning options.
These koi are considered some of the best of the best and can vary widely in price, from just twenty or so dollars all the way to several thousand.
The price entirely depends on the fish you are looking at and the overall value of the individual fish, contributing to a larger overall industry since Kodama is regarded as a traditional style koi breeder that treats breeding like a form of art instead of an industrial money-making tool.
This means that while you will likely pay more for your koi if you purchase through Kodama, you are paying for quality, experience, craftsmanship, and traditionalist art.
It is all in what you are looking for in your koi to decide if this is the right fit for you and your pond.
Pet Stores and Local Breeders
If you are not picky, pet stores and local small breeders can have some very nice koi fish baby options.
These fish are usually bred for sale purposes and will not have a wide range of traditionalist colorations that come from more artisanal breeding practices but will still look very nice in your pond and contribute to an overall pretty, aesthetically pleasing environment.
A Wide Price Variance
All of this is to say that the price range within the koi fish industry varies massively. You can get stunning koi for very cheap or rather basic ones that are of a higher breeding quality for much higher prices.
It all depends on your preferences and what you are looking for, along with what breeder you end up going with.
Regardless, purchasing koi babies is a great way to stock your pond in an enjoyable and interactive way!
