Know a fair price before you buy.
We track every public listing at four major online reef vendors, every day. 200 species and coral types compared as of September 4, 2026.
The Reef Price Index reads the complete public catalogs of four well-known online reef livestock vendors once a day, groups every listing by species or species group (for corals, by genus-level type), and shows you what the market actually charges. Before you spend money on a fish, coral, or invert, you can see in one place whether a price is a deal, typical, or high.
For each species we show the low (cheapest current listing), the median (the middle of the market — a better "typical price" than an average, because a single show piece can't skew it), the high (top end, often premium grades or named strains), and the listing count. More listings means the numbers rest on more data points, so treat thin counts with a little more caution.
Numbers refresh once daily from in-stock listings, and each species page keeps a running price history. Honest scope note: the index currently covers four vendors — a consistent daily sample of the online market, not every store in the hobby — and prices exclude shipping. Details on how the index works.
The index in numbers
Counted at build time from the 410,129 priced livestock listings recorded across 54 daily snapshots, July 13, 2026 to September 4, 2026:
- 200 species and coral types have enough listings to carry their own price page. The median of their own median prices is $100.87.
- Of the 200 tracked for more than one day, 12 (6%) have never posted a different daily median price.
- Across every individual listing seen on two consecutive days, the price changed in 8341 of 392,048 comparisons — 2.13% (the full study).
Cite: Reef Price Index, "The index in numbers," data through September 4, 2026. https://reefpriceindex.com/
Most-listed right now
| Species / type | Category | Low | Median | High | Listings |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Acropora | coral | $14.99 | $119.99 | $2,499.99 | 1002 |
| Zoanthids | coral | $19.00 | $44.99 | $349.99 | 606 |
| Montipora | coral | $14.99 | $39.99 | $999.99 | 274 |
| Chalice Coral | coral | $19.99 | $79.99 | $2,499.99 | 247 |
| Fairy Wrasse (all species) | fish | $59.99 | $149.99 | $1,119.99 | 216 |
| Mushroom Coral | coral | $19.99 | $149.50 | $599.99 | 176 |
| Favia / Favites | coral | $19.00 | $49.99 | $199.99 | 170 |
| Goniopora | coral | $24.99 | $129.99 | $999.99 | 148 |
| Micromussa / Acan Lords | coral | $29.00 | $99.00 | $1,799.99 | 143 |
| Anthias (all species) | fish | $38.99 | $73.99 | $643.99 | 120 |
| Cyphastrea | coral | $19.00 | $34.99 | $79.99 | 93 |
| Naso Tang | fish | $143.99 | $258.37 | $379.99 | 89 |
| Torch Coral (Euphyllia) | coral | $99.99 | $249.99 | $1,299.00 | 80 |
| Plate Coral (Fungia/Diaseris) | coral | $39.99 | $199.50 | $699.00 | 79 |
| Blastomussa | coral | $39.99 | $79.99 | $349.99 | 70 |
| Sailfin / Desjardini Tang | fish | $68.99 | $131.99 | $341.24 | 68 |
| Blue Hippo Tang | fish | $44.99 | $101.24 | $239.99 | 67 |
| Hammer Coral (Fimbriaphyllia, formerly Euphyllia) | coral | $59.99 | $127.49 | $399.99 | 66 |
| Ocellaris Clownfish | fish | $24.99 | $54.49 | $210.99 | 65 |
| Emperor / Imperator Angelfish | fish | $134.99 | $209.99 | $599.99 | 60 |
| Scolymia / Master Scoly | coral | $179.00 | $249.00 | $5,499.00 | 52 |
| Birdsnest Coral (Seriatopora) | coral | $19.99 | $39.99 | $324.99 | 49 |
| Leptoseris | coral | $14.99 | $29.49 | $149.99 | 48 |
| Scopas Tang | fish | $86.99 | $104.99 | $129.99 | 45 |
| Blue Face Angelfish | fish | $314.99 | $419.99 | $479.99 | 43 |
| French Angelfish | fish | $269.99 | $299.99 | $419.99 | 43 |
| Toadstool / Leather Coral | coral | $29.00 | $79.99 | $324.99 | 42 |
| Acanthophyllia (Meat Coral) | coral | $199.00 | $599.00 | $1,349.99 | 42 |
| Lemonpeel Dwarf Angelfish | fish | $59.99 | $104.99 | $209.99 | 41 |
| Unicorn Tang | fish | $74.99 | $134.99 | $274.99 | 38 |
From our data
Original analysis computed from the index's own daily tracking — all insights.
- Do Reef Livestock Prices Actually Move? We Measured.
128,000+ listing-day observations say online reef prices are far stickier than hobby folklore suggests — and when they do move, it's an event, not a drift. - Sale Tags vs. Real Price Drops: How to Read a Reef 'Discount'
Thousands of listings are marked down against a compare-at price on any given day. Our day-by-day tracking shows how rarely those tags coincide with an actual repricing. - Captive-Bred vs. Wild-Caught: What the Price Data Shows
The assumed captive-bred premium doesn't survive contact with listings data — for one marquee tang, captive-bred is dramatically cheaper. - Stocking a First Reef Tank: A Priced-Out Livestock Budget
A realistic first-year livestock list priced at today's actual market medians, not forum guesses.
Browse all: corals · fish · invertebrates — see today's price drops or read how the index works.