About
Don't let the name fool you — that's the line longtime regulars repeat about Aquatic Reef Design, an aquarium store in Ocala, FL that has quietly become North Central Florida's go-to shop for both reef and river keepers. Yes, a wall of saltwater fish greets you at the door, with a dedicated coral and anemone room packed with bright, healthy color. But the freshwater side runs just as deep, and visitors driving in from Gainesville and The Villages say the trip is worth it.
Walk in and the first thing you notice is how clean everything is — crystal-clear tanks, no funky fish-store smell, and identification tags on each tank showing arrival dates. New livestock is medicated on arrival and quarantined before it reaches the sales floor, a detail reviewers single out again and again. You'll find saltwater fish, corals, and anemones for sale in Ocala, FL alongside a huge freshwater selection: community fish, live plants sorted by whether they need substrate, neocaridina shrimp, dwarf crayfish, healthy bettas swimming in proper tanks, and the occasional oddball like a red frogfish or a decorator crab.
A strong dry-goods aisle covers rock, pumps, wavemakers, lights, test kits, and food, and they fill fresh and saltwater by the jug for easy water changes. What truly sets the store apart is the staff. Ben comes up in review after review — customers marvel that he answers any question on the spot and steers them toward what they actually need instead of padding the bill.
Rhi (Rhiannon) earns the same praise for her patience with newcomers, and Michael is the name people ask for on saltwater maintenance and honest setup advice. Beyond the counter, the team handles in-home tank setup, from installing a 115-gallon saltwater system to walking you through every piece of equipment. 9-star reputation through clean tanks, fair prices, and genuinely expert help — the kind of local fish store you look forward to visiting.
What they offer
Fish & livestock for sale at Aquatic Reef Design in Ocala, FL
Aquatic Reef Design stocks corals, reef fish, anemones, invertebrates, shrimp, betta fish, goldfish, rare and hard-to-find species, aquarium plants and freshwater, saltwater & pond fish for sale in Ocala, FL. As an aquarium store serving Ocala, FL, it also carries dry goods, aquarium equipment and fish food and offers aquarium setup, tank maintenance, aquarium consultations and fish quarantine.
- Livestock & products
- CoralsReefAnemonesInvertebratesShrimpLive PlantsBettasGoldfishRare SpeciesDry GoodsAquarium EquipmentFish Food
- Specializes in
Highlights
What makes them special
- Reef and freshwater under one roof — a wall of saltwater fish, a dedicated coral and anemone room, plus deep freshwater stock of plants, shrimp, and bettas
- Spotless tanks with arrival-date ID tags; new fish are medicated and quarantined before they hit the sales floor
- Staff like Ben, Rhi (Rhiannon), and Michael praised by name for patient, no-upsell expertise
- In-home tank setup and maintenance, including full saltwater system installs
- Fresh and saltwater filled by the jug for convenient water changes
From keepers
Customer reviews
“We visited this place on a Sunday and it was well staffed, clean, large, and very impressive. They have a colossal variety of both salt and freshwater fish, anemones, corals and invertebrates. They also sell reverse osmosis water, salt mixes, food and other supplies. And Ben needs a raise. Dude knows his stuff.”
— Anthony Volpe5.0an hour ago“Mitchel and Lesli were so helpful. I love the atmosphere in the store and the quality of the fish is excellent.”
— Jennie Ellis5.03 days ago“Huge shoutout to Rhi and Ben at Aquatic Reef Design. The customer service was phenomenal. They took the time to answer all my questions, helped me make good decisions for my tank, and never tried to upsell me on things I didn’t need. You can tell they genuinely care about their customers and the fish they’re selling. As someone who’s newer to the aquarium hobby, having people willing to teach and help makes a huge difference. I’ll definitely be coming back and recommending them to anyone looking for aquarium fish and supplies. ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Thanks again, Rhi and Ben!”
— Corey Carter5.05 days ago“Best Saltwater freshwater Store in Florida Customer service is Excellent”
— Antoni Bicy5.05 days ago“Video tour @ranslowreef on Instagram We stopped in to check out the shop, and this place really felt like it had something for every kind of aquarium keeper, saltwater, freshwater, beginner, or experienced.🌊 Right when you walk in, you’re greeted by a large wall of saltwater fish. 🐠 One detail I really liked was that each tank had fish identification tags along with arrival dates, so you can see exactly how long each fish has been at the store. They also medicate their fish on arrival and continue care throughout their stay, which is always nice to see when you’re looking at livestock.✅ From there, we checked out the coral and anemone room, which was packed with color. 🪸Plenty of popular pieces, bright corals, and a few that definitely made me stop and stare longer than I should have. The display tanks throughout the store were also impressive and gave the shop a really polished feel. They also had a strong dry goods section with rock, pumps, wavemakers, lights, test kits, food, and plenty of other products for both new setups and established tanks. The freshwater side had the same clean, well-kept feel as the rest of the store, including a really nice freshwater display tank. And then came the fun stuff… red frogfish, other oddball fish, and a large decorator crab crawling around up close. Definitely not something you see every day. Overall, Aquatic Reef Design was clean, well-stocked, organized, and absolutely worth the stop if you’re in or around Ocala, Fl. 📍”
— Jeremy R.5.02 weeks ago“Took my grandson today Saturday 6-13-26. This place is awesome! I highly recommend them! Everyone was so nice and helpful! They had everything he wanted. They have a fantastic selection of fresh water and salt water fish and supplies! This place is so pretty and clean! We went to a couple of places in the Villages let's just say we won't waste our time on those places in the future. It's worth the drive for us to go to Ocala! I highly recommend them!! Thank you for your excellent service!!”
— Elizabeth Hinde5.02 weeks ago“I recently made the endeavor of switching to saltwater tanks. I have kept numerous freshwater tanks over the years. I currently have 5 tanks up and running. I really enjoy it. But I’ve always done freshwater. I have wanted to do saltwater but always found it a bit intimidating. Anyways, my experience here has been very good. I brought in a fish that was in the tank I converted. They offer some money back, but I felt very reassured that the fish would be taken care of and that the fish will be treated ethically. They have freshwater fish there and I was impressed with the selection. The sales associate I interacted with was Ben. He made the experience seem less. He was great. Made great recommendations and didn’t get the impression he was trying to sell me things I didn’t need just to pad the bill. He actually told me I would only need 20lbs of sand, where I thought I would need 40lbs. He was right. I found him personable, knowledgeable and very helpful. I have my tank up and cycling and look forward to picking out the fish for my new ecosystem. Also, the other sales associates were very courteous. The store is clean and the fish are all very well kept. It is very apparent that the workers there are very passionate about the hobby and that is very refreshing. I have been very pleased with my experiences here and definitely recommend them for any of your fish needs. I actually look forward to going in there.”
— Scott Morningstar5.02 weeks ago“Thank you BEN!! I had an idea of what I needed for my tank and the neo Cardenia shrimp but after speaking with Ben, he stared me in a different direction and I am in love with the dwarf crayfish that I purchased. They are healthy. They are big every tank in that place is spotless. Ben was so very attentive even when he was helping someone else he told me he would be right back with me very courteous very informative. I love the variety of plants that this place has and he broke down the ones that didn’t need substrate and the ones that did so informative so helpful Ben thank you so much. You made my shopping experience amazing and my husband and I will definitely be back!!”
— leslie richardson5.03 weeks ago“Rhi was so helpful and amazing! I bet we asked her 100 questions and she answered each one so thoroughly. She never lost her patience and we can’t thank her enough for all her help! They carry freshwater fish which is amazing and beats all the big box pet stores 100 times over! Cant wait to go back!”
— Cathy Vaccaro5.04 weeks ago“Rhiannon was super helpful with helping me find the exact things I needed to get my tank set up, and made sure that I fully understood every piece of equipment so I can fix it if anything happen in the future. Will be back for more fish tank ideas and assistance so long as they are there!”
— Nathan Gloria5.0a month ago
Reference
Frequently asked questions
Note — Store information and services may change. Always call (352) 629-1011 to confirm current availability, hours, and services before visiting Aquatic Reef Design.