Fish ponds turn one good catch into steady income: roe, Aged Roe and Caviar every day, plus the odd rare item. Which fish to put in them is the big decision, and the answer depends on whether you run Preserves Jars and how full the pond is.
Fishing itself pays off through levels: higher Fishing makes the bar bigger, unlocks better rods and tackle, and leads to the Fisher and Angler professions that raise fish prices.
Start here
- Which fish to put in a pond? Read Best Fish for Fish Ponds.
- Check any fish at your pond's population with the Fish Pond Calculator.
- Wondering how long until level 10? The XP Calculator counts the catches.
What a full pond earns
We worked out the daily income of all 73 fish that can live in a pond, using the game's own rules for how often a pond produces something and what it makes. The numbers below are for a full pond of 10 fish, averaged over the lucky and unlucky days.
- Selling straight from the pond: Lava Eel earns about 543g a day and Blobfish about 496g. Everything below them is under 237g.
- With roe turned into Aged Roe or Caviar (and the Artisan profession): Blobfish earns about 1,301g a day and Lava Eel about 1,298g, with Sturgeon third at 998g.
Put another way, processing the roe more than doubles what the best fish earns, but only if you own enough Preserves Jars to keep up. The best processed pond needs 4 jars working on it, and the third needs 6, so count your jars before you count your fish.
| Fish | Processed | Jars to keep up | Sold raw |
|---|---|---|---|
| Blobfish | 1,301g | 4 | 496g |
| Lava Eel | 1,298g | 3 | 543g |
| Sturgeon | 998g | 6 | lower |
| Tiger Trout | 595g | 6 | 212g |
| Scorpion Carp | 538g | 5 | 192g |
A pond takes weeks to fill
Most pond fish start with room for only one and need quest items from you at each step to grow. Blobfish adds a new fish every 4 days, and filling the pond to 10 takes at least 36 days if you hand over each quest item the day it is asked for. Lava Eel takes about 45. That is why a pond should be built early in a season, not the week before you need the money.
The first quest for Blobfish asks for one of 3 Coral, 2 Frozen Tear, 2 Sea Urchin, and the last asks for one of Rainbow Shell, Rice Pudding. The Fish Pond Calculator lists the quest items for every fish.
Three questions before you build
- Raw or processed? The best fish changes with the answer, so decide how many Preserves Jars you will run first.
- Can you catch it? Some top fish are rare or live in one place. A slightly lower earner you can catch ten of beats a better one you cannot.
- How soon do you need the income? Ponds fill slowly, so fish that start with a larger population, or that you can restock from a catch, pay off sooner.
Fishing levels
Fishing level 10 takes 15,000 XP in total. A single Octopus gives 34 XP, or 81 with a perfect catch, which is among the best of any fish.