Why Are Discus So Pricey?

[Maxerith]

I went for a stroll through Pisces (LFS) the other day, and they had some less-than-pretty looking Discus on for nearly $300. Granted these were adult or near-adult sized fish, but it still seemed a bit insane when their prices for more fragile and/or bigger species were lower by nearly half.

So what is it that drives the Discus price?
Breeders? Supply vs. Demand? Magical excrement?

[cm12setx]

their are other who will answer more but a few factors are size, color, wild caught or breed. and yes supply and demand.

[JudiJetson]

Well....could be many things, discus from a lfs could be more expensive due to them wanting to make a large profit from someone who may not know what a discus should cost depending on size and shape. If you had snapped a photo we could really judge.

Good online breeders & suppliers will post actual photos of the fish and many will actually snap a shot of the fish with a tape measure to prove size. The price is a compilation of strain, shape and size. The larger adult discus are generally more expensive due to the time, effort, water changes and feeding that went into raising the discus. If it's a wild discus they are very expensive due to the fact they are wild caught, not an inexpensive process.

Personally my most expensive discus purchase was for a 5" Albino Pearl Diamond for $ 188.00 plus $ 89.00 shipping...and it is the furthest thing from questionable :D

[Surfdog]

+1 to what JJ said. I also think it's the specialized environment they need that makes their tanks more labor intensive. It's why I don't have Discus even though I love them (for fresh that is 😀)

[Crispy]

maybe they were a breeding pair? that sounds awfully expensive for discus.

[talldutchie]

Drifting off slightly, why are hypancistrus zebra so much more expensive than other hypancistrus?

[Sandz]

300 for a breeding pair is actually a good price, 500-1k is more like it because of the potential return in fry that it could return.

Discus price is based on purity of the breed, difficulty/rarity/quality as well... Wilds get collected, sold 3 times before they hit the fish store and fish stores make about 300% profit margine... A 6in discus also takes some serious care to get it to 6in so that takes into effect as well.

Here for a POOR seagrest farm fish in a fish store you are getting 60-80 prices... stupid owner too... no idea what they are doing.

[rebecca_finny]

I've seen beautiful looking discus at lfs for $80 a piece.

[discuspaul]

Adult sized discus ( 5" -6" or more) can take up to a year to get to that size.
At that point they have a well-developed immune system, are hardy & can fight off most if not all harmful pathogens, therefore they will usually thrive in hobbyists' tanks if reasonably well cared for.

Young discus on the other hand - babies & up to 2"-3" are readily prone to health issues, require a good deal of additional care and attention, and many are quickly lost by hobbyists, particularly newcomers to discus.

If you had raised young discus successfully to maturity you would realize and appreciate how much time, effort, and special care it takes to raise them to hardy adult size.

That's why the smallest discus are the least costly, whereas adults command much higher prices due to the amount of work that breeders & exporters put in to get them to a decent size.

The market norm today calls for prices of around $50. to $60. for good quality, healthy, well-shaped 3 " discus - $80.up to $100. for 4" fish, and around $125.+ for 5" or larger fish - which is fair under current conditions.

On the other hand, I've seen many LFS' sell small, 3" or less, poorly shaped or stunted fish, in questionable health, for $80. or more, which is highway robbery for the new to discus hobbyist who doesn't know any better.

[aquariumlover10]

No clue about discus but I am going to answer talldutchies question the zebra pleco only comes from one river in brazil and the world really and they almost went extinct in the wilsd from exporting them for aquarium trade so they are illegal to catch so they are tank breed and only eat live inverts and driftwood I'm sure they eat wafers but won't eat algae at all so that's why they are so expensive oh and hard to get to lay eggs.