About
Aqua SD is a coral-focused saltwater specialist and one of San Diego's most talked-about reef destinations, drawing local hobbyists to its physical storefront for a rotating wall of LPS, SPS, and soft corals. Walk in and you'll find tanks lined with vibrant torch corals, hammer corals, large zoanthid colonies, acans, duncans, cyphastrea, and Dragon Soul favia, plus bubble tip anemones, emerald crabs, and a selection of marine fish. For San Diego reef builders who want to inspect livestock with their own eyes before buying, there are few better places in the city to do it.
The in-store experience earns the warmest praise. Staff members like Ian and Evan get called out by name for expediting last-minute requests and offering genuinely useful reefing advice — the kind of hands-on guidance that helps newer hobbyists choose frags that will actually thrive. Reviewers describe the tanks as clean and well-maintained, the coral healthy and vibrant, and the colors true to life.
One local regular calls it 'one of the best reef stores in San Diego — hands down,' praising the knowledgeable, friendly team and the fair pricing. Value is a recurring theme. Customers regularly note prices that undercut what they'd pay elsewhere for comparable coral, and serious reefers think nothing of leaving with twenty, thirty, or more frags at a time.
A military discount adds a community-minded touch that resonates in a Navy town like San Diego, and several visitors mention small freebies tucked in with a purchase. If you're after healthy LPS frags, colorful zoanthid rocks, or torch corals for sale in San Diego, CA, Aqua SD is worth setting aside time for. Come in, linger at the tanks, and lean on the staff's reefing knowledge — this is an aquarium store built around the coral hobby, where the livestock and the people caring for it are the real draw.
What they offer
Fish & livestock for sale at Aqua SD in San Diego, CA
Aqua SD stocks corals, reef fish, anemones, live rock, invertebrates and saltwater fish for sale in San Diego, CA. As an aquarium store serving San Diego, CA, it also offers aquarium consultations and fish boarding.
- Livestock & products
- Services
- Specializes in
Highlights
What makes them special
- Coral-focused reef store with a deep in-store selection of LPS, SPS, and soft corals — torches, hammers, zoanthids, acans, duncans, and cyphastrea
- Bubble tip anemones, emerald crabs, and marine fish stocked alongside the coral wall
- Knowledgeable staff (Ian, Evan) known for expediting requests and sharing solid reefing advice
- Competitive coral pricing — regulars leave with 20–40+ frags at a time
- Military discount for San Diego's large service community
From keepers
Customer reviews
“I couldn't be happier with my experience with Aqua SD! My order was shipped promptly, packaged exceptionally well, and every coral arrived alive, healthy, and in excellent condition. The colors were vibrant, the tissue was fully intact, and the corals looked even better than I expected. It's clear that Aqua SD takes great care in both their livestock and their shipping process. Receiving healthy corals is always a top concern when ordering online, and Aqua SD exceeded my expectations from start to finish. The entire process was smooth, professional, and stress-free. I will definitely be ordering from them again and would highly recommend Aqua SD to anyone looking for high-quality corals and outstanding customer service. Thank you for a fantastic experience!”
— Greg Clayton5.0a week ago“First off...fantastic coral. Healthy, pest free. I've ordered a handful of times from here online and everything was packaged well and with the exception of 1 anemone, everything handled shipping well. I knocked a star off for some issues regarding items being taken off my invoice by the store (stocking issues?) without communication from the store on 2 orders. The store did, however, reach out and offer to make it right, which I was impressed by. Edit 5/30/26 Back to 1 star. The offer i mentioned previously was not actually honored. I've now been waiting about 2 months for the promised resolution, which they said would be less than 1 week. 0 communication from them besides responding to an inquiry a month in saying "i'll ask the boss and get back to you." They didn't get back to me. So...if you're looking for something specific, look elsewhere. They'll remove items from your order without telling you, then make you hit their minimum purchase amount again for a chance at maybe them shipping what you actually want.”
— Joseph Mascari1.0Edited 4 weeks ago“Never answers phones ever , phone line may be wrong or abandon. Place really went down hill when Will the owner left it to a few of his employees. They started keeping difficult access hours, quality in customer service and care crashed harder than a reef tank. Would love to drum up business for them if they had a reliable contact point and service team. Unfortunately its seemed like they ghost you if you want to ask any questions or have any issues. Not the reliable LFS it use to be. Id be willing to change my review if someone can pick up a phone. If your too busy to answer phones just remove the phone number off Google and your website. Those that just cater to online orders tend to distance themselves fron accountability”
— San Diego Aquarium Cleaning1.04 weeks ago“Avoid this place. I spent thousands of dollars with SD Aqua and regret ever doing business with them. It started when I purchased premium-priced live rock from SD Aqua. Within days of adding it to my tank, the entire system began crashing. The rock appeared to be in terrible condition, my sand bed turned black, and the tank was effectively ruined. As someone relatively new to the hobby, I relied on SD Aqua's expertise and guidance. Instead, I was left dealing with a disaster. To address the problem, SD Aqua referred me to a person named Andrew to help fix the tank. Unfortunately, the situation only got worse. The work performed created additional plumbing problems that later had to be corrected. We relied on the recommendations of people who presented themselves as experts, and that trust turned out to be a costly mistake. While the tank was being repaired, we entrusted our fish to SD Aqua for temporary holding. Several fish died while in their care. The remaining fish were returned in poor condition and soon showed signs of disease. Over the following weeks, we watched fish die one after another despite significant effort and expense trying to save them. Anyone who keeps saltwater fish understands how devastating it is to watch animals slowly decline and die after investing so much time, money, and care into them. What makes the entire experience even more frustrating is the complete lack of accountability. We were left with a destroyed tank, dead fish, damaged plumbing, and thousands of dollars in losses. One additional concern was the business practices we encountered afterward. When I later tried to obtain copies of receipts for purchases and services, SD Aqua was unable to provide complete records. Many of our transactions had been made through Zelle because we were repeatedly told the credit card system was unavailable. As a customer who spent a substantial amount of money with the business, I found it troubling that obtaining basic documentation of purchases was so difficult. At a minimum, it reflected a level of disorganization and poor recordkeeping that was consistent with the rest of our experience. The owner, Diego, was ultimately responsible for our account, and Andrew was the individual recommended to work on our system. Based on my experience, I would strongly caution anyone—especially those new to the hobby—against relying on this store for fish, water, rock, advice, tank services, or system design. There are too many reputable aquarium stores in Southern California to risk going through what we did. My experience with SD Aqua was expensive, frustrating, and ultimately devastating to the aquarium we worked so hard to build.”
— Steve Zellers1.04 weeks ago“Largest dead coral farm? Should of taken a photo to show how the website has false advertising.”
— Tere Rojero1.0a month ago“hopefully this will get you to responded to all my emails, calls & text. went to the store on April 14 placed an order paid. still have not received anything with no response. Receipt #2098”
— Jose Hernandez1.0a month ago“As others have mentioned please be aware of this retailer on WhatNot app. Questionable practices. I “purchased”my corals on 4/18/26 & even got a few additional corals added to my order a few days later to utilize the advertised “free shipping” on their listings after paying for initial shipping costs. Cause as a hobbyist why not, amazing cost savings right ?! Or so I assumed but there is undisclosed additional shipping cost for corals not listed in any of their seller listings on the app. A vital detail that wouldn’t have been an issue if it was included in their listings but it wasn’t so hence the issue. After contacting them on the app i was told they disclose it on their lives, really SDAqua a live ?! I never seen their lives on the app or had any idea thats where this critical information is shared. Come on guys this type of stuff is deceptive and flat out false advertising. I have since decided to request cancel my order entirely and will be cancel visiting their facility on my upcoming San Diego trip this summer. A detail that Im sure is the least bit of significance to this company cause I’m just some internet random. Do better y’all.”
— Henry Romero1.02 months ago“Scammed me on whatnot. Refused to ship items after two weeks. Tried to coerce me to pay 30$ for shipping despite auction listing free shipping AND me double checking in the live auction by asking the guy if it was free shipping. Constant back and forth and I still have not gotten my order OR gotten a refund. Either it is a scam or they are lying about free shipping. Do not support these people”
— Asher Elliott1.02 months ago“Great corals Great customer service with Evan! My corals arrived a day late(FEDEX issue) and they replaced everything that was DOA + shipping.”
— Mike OBoyle5.0Edited 3 months ago“This has got to be the best place to buy corals. eBay auctions are awesome...Plus the little free bee in your order... Customer service is how customer service used to be.... Care more about you than the sale ...Keep up the great service, customer for life.”
— Dan Walters5.0Edited 3 months ago
Reference
Frequently asked questions
Note — Store information and services may change. Always call (858) 565-1910 to confirm current availability, hours, and services before visiting Aqua SD.