When purchasing an aquarium for either a freshwater or marine environment, you have many choices to make regarding filtration, heating, lighting, substrate, and of course the fish and other aquatic life you want to stock your tank with. However, even the shape of your tank can have an effect on your eventual aquarium environment, not only in overall visual impact but in the quality of life of your fish.

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Most common aquarium tanks are rectangular (for larger tanks) or bowl-shaped (for small tanks). However, tanks these days come in a wide variety of shapes, including bow-front, corner bow-front, cylinder and half-cylinder, hexagon and pentagon, cube, bullet, and various specialty shapes. While rectangular, bow-front, and cube tanks can be made of glass as well as acrylic, other shapes such as cylinders are usually made of acrylic by custom manufacturers.

Glass is difficult to scratch, but a sharp impact may crack or even shatter glass. Acrylic, on the other hand, will scratch easily, but is more difficult to crack or shatter. Glass maintains its clarity but refracts light and therefore distorts images and colors; acrylic is less refractive, but may yellow with age, therefore losing clarity. Glass is denser and heavier, and supports its own weight; acrylic requires a stand that will support the entire bottom surface of the tank. And acrylic is available in a wider variety of shapes. Keep these differences in mind when choosing between glass and acrylic -- and whether glass tanks are available in the shape you prefer.

Consider how much cubic volume you need for each fish you intend to purchase. Any tank you purchase should state the volume of water it can contain; of course, with a rectangular or cubic tank, it’s easy to calculate this yourself. For small, freshwater fish, you will need at least 1 gallon of water for each inch of fish (measuring the fish lengthwise). Marine fish require more. So regardless of the shape of your tank, ensure that you’re providing enough water to sustain your fish population.

Different tank shapes have different footprints -- the footprint being the area of the bottom of the tank. The footprint defines the horizontal living space of your fish, and some fish need more of it. Cichlids, for instance, require more room to establish territory, in rocks and other features you install in your tank. You shouldn’t crowd them.

The height of a tank -- the vertical space -- also varies from tank to tank. Usually, tanks with more vertical space have smaller footprints; i.e., they are not as long or wide. While this may create a dramatic visual effect, your fish will not have as much space to swim. Particularly if your tank is narrow -- if there’s little space from front to back -- your fish will be forced to swim back and forth in straight lines, with little room to dart about and make broad turns. Some wall-mounted tanks are particularly narrow. All fish need to swim, some more than others; if you restrict their space, whether lengthwise or depthwise, your fish will be unhappy and even unhealthy. One exception is angelfish: because of their size and swimming patterns, angelfish do well in tall, narrow tanks.

Tall tanks are also detrimental to plant life in your tank substrate; it’s harder for light to penetrate to the increased depth, and your plants may suffer. If you have a tall tank, make sure your substrate plants don’t need a lot of light, or provide extra tank lighting.

And determine your surface area -- the area at the top of your tank, at the water’s surface. For most tanks, the surface area will be equivalent to the footprint, but for odd-shaped tanks, that might not be the case. The surface of your tank is where gas exchange occurs: carbon dioxide is released from the water in exchange for oxygen. This process is facilitated when you add an air stone to your tank, when you install filters and powerheads, and in general when you create surface agitation. Fish require well-oxygenated water, and a minimized surface area will hinder this process. If you have only a few fish, this might not be a problem, but for larger fish populations, ensure that you have adequate surface area.

There are other practical considerations when selecting the shape of your aquarium tank. Deep tanks -- tanks with greater height -- will be harder to clean. Think about how easy it will be to reach your arm down to the bottom of your tank, for cleaning or redecorating. This may seem like a minor concern, but over time an inaccessible tank may prove to be a major annoyance. What kind of available space do you have for your tank -- do you already know where you’re going to place it? Depending on what kind of aquatic environment you wish to create, your space may not be adequate; be prepared to purchase a new stand if required.

And how easy will it be to view your fish? As mentioned above, glass tends to be more refractive, and distorting, than acrylic. Odd shapes can also be distorting -- bow fronts, hexagons, pentagons, and cylinders may look beautiful at first, but viewing from certain angles can create distortions that don’t occur with flat-walled rectangular tanks. If viewing your fish without distortion is important to you, then a flat-walled tank is most suitable.

If you bear these points in mind, you will purchase the tank shape that’s most suitable for your purposes.