Fin-Alley

Negative experience: I’ve debated leaving this review for some time because the owner really is knowledgeable and friendly, but I feel it’s necessary. About a year ago we bought 3 fish from here, 1 dwarf Gourami and 2 molly. The gourami died within a couple of months and the two molly lasted just under a week. Later to find out they gave our other fish the ick. We have never had any issues prior to this and never had ick in any tank. This resulted in 3 of our longest living fish to die even with treatment. We are avid fish owners and test our water regularly so I know it was no fault of ours. We’ve had fish for a long time and never had any die outside of their life expectancy and have rescued fish from bad conditions so it was disappointing to have such a negative outcome. I think the owner needs to reevaluate where they are sourcing their inventory.

Fantastic experience: Excellent aquarium store! The animals here are clearly well cared for with clean and good-sized tanks. There is a decent variety of fish. The staff was helpful also. Fin-Alley is my go-to for my fish needs.

Fantastic experience: I have been buying from here for a few years now. Great quality fish. Very hearty and healthy. Great plant selection usually.

Negative experience: Prices are kind of decent depending on the aquarium aura you desire but the customer service is disgusting I acutely own a handful of exotic aquariums & very knowledgeable I do these these reviews just see what business are kind & honest people who gives you great service & makes your purchase feel more of a investment sadly this store lack availability & services must say it was average sadly. Support him though I see improvement

Fantastic experience: Awesome fish and customer service! I’ve been buying from here for about 8 months now and every fish I get is super healthy and eating. The owner is great too!

Fantastic experience: Troy (the owner) is so knowledgeable and has gone out of his way to assist me in this hobby consistently. Even above and beyond coming into the shop, Troy has allowed me to message him through facebook to get advice on my aquarium making it easier for me to get help. He’s super responsive and has even helped me place special orders for a very reasonable price. I highly recommend this shop!

Positive experience: Not much shelf stock, but healthy animals kept in clean habitats. You can tell this proprietor cares about his animals and the hobby.

Fantastic experience: Was visiting Athens and decided to drop by and to my surprise this was one of the few places that I have seen in which Bettas were being treated well by having them in tanks with other fish as opposed to keeping them in cups. There was one tank with two bettas, but he knew better and kept them separated with a divider. Also, it was pleasant to find stoney river black and white sand was also present at this store. The plant section was in its own tank, and from what I could tell, there were no snails in it, so I would not have to worry about pest snails hitchiking on any plants on the way home. I was looking at the Goldfish aisle, and Calico Telescopes and Red Fantails were listed for sale, although I didn't see any. I assumed this just meant they were currently sold out, and I am happy that they were getting business. That was pretty cool, though, since this is the only store I have visited to have Calico Telescopes and Red Fantails. Calico Telescopes are something I have not even thought of before this place, and many other fish stores find Red Fantails boring and do not sell them, but I think they deserve more love, so I am glad to see this shop was selling them. I hope they post photos of those in the future!

Fantastic experience: A great selection of healthy fish in clean, well kept tanks.

Fantastic experience: Nice selection of fish and knowledgeable on their care.

Fantastic experience: Such a wide variety of fishes. Super clean and friendly atmosphere here

Fantastic experience: Excellent pricing and the man working when I went in was very helpful! A wealth of knowledge. He actually prevented me from making a big mistake! Definitely recommend this shop.

Fantastic experience: Really awesome store with solid stock that is better priced than any local competitors. Never had any problems with fish I’ve purchased here and the owner is knowledgeable and friendly.

Fantastic experience: I have never had a store owner Get so excited with me about a new hobby that I know nothing about and have a million questions about. He even manages to answer simple questions without making me feel. Been there a couple of times now, Prices seem average , fish appear to be in better shape, Best betta set up i've seen And best of all it's a small business.

Fantastic experience: Fish are really healthy, and tanks are always clean. The owner is super helpful and knowledgeable as well.

Fantastic experience: We've gotten a lot of good fish here. Owner is very nice

Fantastic experience: Excellent Tropical Fish and a good selection of products.

Fantastic experience: Tanks are always pristine. Never have problems with the fish or plants not being healthy, and prices are better than others in the area

Fantastic experience: Great collection of freshwater and saltwater fish to choose from at reasonable prices. Healthy fish and very clean tanks!!!

Fantastic experience: I just bought a betta fish and its so healthy great store. I would recommend this fish store over any store. The bettas there are in big tanks not in those small cups.

Fantastic experience: Lovely shop. Wonderful selection of plants and fish. I just bought my first live aquatic plant, and the employee was super helpful. Everything looked so healthy, and the prices were good (if not better than big chain pet stores). I found this place because of the google reviews, and it will be my go-to aquatic store from now on.

Fantastic experience: Great store for fresh or salt water aquariums.

Negative experience: The tanks are disgusting and the staff wasn’t helpful at all the guy literally didn’t welcome us or say anything when we walked in he sat at the desk the entire time watching a basketball game and then was very rude when we asked for help and had a horrible attitude

Negative experience: Terrible customer service. He'll cut you off in sentence. Hes very sort in questions you ask. Half the fish had some sort of sickness. Decent price for some freshwater fish, only reason that I give this place a two star.

Fantastic experience: I had such a great visit to Fin-Alley. The owner was knowledgeable and very nice. He hooked me up with some great fish and some dwarf lobsters as well as some plants for my 3rd tank. I highly recommend you pay Fin-Alley a visit. He has a massive selection of fresh and salt water fish and supplies. And I am not just speaking highly of him because he offered his couch for when my better half finds out I bought more fish. Luckily me and my fish did not need to crash on his couch. He has a customer for life. It is 3 days now and every one of the many, many fish and shrimps I purchased are thriving and enjoying their new tanks! Fin-Alley has a customer for life. I only wished I had found them sooner!

Fantastic experience: I absolutely LOVE Fin-Alley!!! I drive all the way from Monroe just to go to this store for my fishy needs! My parents will drive all the way from Lilburn just to purchase fish from him! The gentleman that runs the store is extremely knowledgeable and more than willing to answer any questions you might have. My dad has also placed special orders for specific fish that weren’t in stock at the store! Love this place! Love the guy who runs it! Five stars 100%!

Fantastic experience: This guy is super knowledgeable and nice. I recently purchased 2 freshwater lobsters from him and couldn’t be happier.

Fantastic experience: I’ve gotten a good amount of fish from Troy, never had an issue. All have been healthy. Plant prices are reasonable, although his selection isn’t big yet. Great place.

Fantastic experience: Very professional and with great prices. Definitely recommend.

Fantastic experience: Nice little shop. He's got lots of fresh and saltwater fish. Some fresh water plants but no corals. The owner is super knowledgeable and always knows how to help.

Negative experience: Very poor selection of pretty much everything. Couldn't get anyone to help me with trying to purchase some fish, ended up leaving without buying anything.

Fantastic experience: The owner is kind and very knowledgeable. The selection is wonderful - lots of cool specimens for beginners and advanced tanks alike.

Fantastic experience: Great guy and great prices. Has a beautiful selection of freshwater fish and from my experience the healthiest in town.

Positive experience: I wasn't enamored with this place. The shelves for supplies were full of dust (see pics) looks like they haven't been dusted in years. I came in on Sunday and the owner was behind the counter watching tv- no other customers in the store and i only received any acknowledgement AFTER I asked him a question... Fish weren't plentiful but i came Sunday and he said new shipments start coming in on Wednesday, so I digress. I asked a few questions to kinda see where his fish smarts were and their akin to the knowledge base you'd find at a big bigbox store. I mentioned that one of my Oscars was around 14" and he said that was small lol and I'm like for an Oscar fish? And his response was yeah adult oscars should be around 20" or bigger...well no, oscars in captivity don't get that size and certainly not bigger (been keeping fish about 15 years, oscars in particular around 5 years) Either way, the establishment itself wasn't interesting or maintained well enough to warrant a follow up visit (It's an hour drive for me)...perhaps for the locals and I only say that because the fish I did purchase, while NOT moderately priced, were healthy and are doing well only reason for 3 stars.

Fantastic experience: I love this shop! The owner is very knowledgeable on keeping both fresh and saltwater aquariums. He even takes special request hunting down oddball fish for those who ask.

Fantastic experience: Awsome fish store the owner is very informative and prices are great.

Fantastic experience: After numerous fish purchases at another store in town, where many fish repeatedly (multiple purchases) died within a week, I got healthy fish at Fin-Alley, which were also active and fun to watch. I had forgotten what good health looks like! I wont be buying fish anywhere else.

Fantastic experience: Great place. Troy is super helpful and very knowledgeable.

Fantastic experience: The owner is very knowledgeable! Fish are well priced and he takes the time to walk you through step by step what is needed. It’s obvious the owner cares about his business and customers.

Fantastic experience: Great place. This guy knows his business and it shows. We dont go anywhere else

Fantastic experience: Everything is just soooo cool there. Including the shop owner lol. Besides the price of the tetras are good. Variety of selections!

Fantastic experience: incredible knowledge, mixed with A+ service, is the reason i get all my saltwater supplies and fish from Fin-Alley. Give him a follow on Intagram for daily updates on his stock. Fantastic guy.

Fantastic experience: Fin-Alley has been absolutely awesome! The owner is very knowledgeable, passionate, and extremely patient. He walked me through everything I needed to know to set up my tank, was super patient as I asked like 1000 questions over the course of a week, and was just the best at getting me set up with the knowledge I needed. I'd give more than 5 stars if it was possible, shopping with Fin-Alley has just been an absolutely amazing experience! Great prices! Couldn't recommend more!

Fantastic experience: Just outstanding! The shop keeper was very knowledgeable, the fish were healthy, and there was a huge selection of driftwood! After coming here, I don't think I'll ever be going back to the big chains lol.

Fantastic experience: Came to the store for the first time Friday around 6pm and I must say it was amazing. The manager there was extremely helpful even tho I interrupted him cleaning the tanks when I walked in. He gave me some great advice and I ended up purchasing couple of angel fish. This was my first time actually being in a fish store that wasn’t a huge chain like petco or PetSmart and I must say the difference is obvious from the knowledge of the manager to the healthy, clean looking fish and tanks. I will be back !

Fantastic experience: I've got 3 freshwater setups at home and this place is my goto. The owner is really helpful. He always has tons of fish to pick from as well as plants. If your looking for somthing different this is the place.

Fantastic experience: They know there stuff and they have better fish and cleaner aquariums than other fish stores.

Fantastic experience: We LOVE Fin Alley! The gentleman that owns and runs the place is one of the kindest and most knowledgeable people you will ever meet. What he does is his passion! He’ll answer any questions you have and help make sure you leave with what you’re looking for and what you need. I can’t even express how much we’re thankful to have his business in town. He’s meant a lot to me as I’ve come to explore this hobby of mine for the past several years! I more than highly recommend!

Negative experience: Wasn't really greeted, nobody checked on us while we were looking. Need a better assortment of fish

Negative experience: Fish I got seem healthy. Stock of animals and supplies is very limited. Employee ignored us and seemed to find it inconvenient to get our fish.

Fantastic experience: Awesome guy very knowledgeable! Healthy clean environment please help my fish guy grow in the business, he has a great selection of salt water and fresh water alot of fish as well as plants and coral!

Negative experience: Sparsely stocked, not a word from the employee, barely looked up from his laptop. Will never return.

Fantastic experience: Nice store with healthy fish with clean tanks. Worth the trip! For real fish keepers. Not a petco.

Fantastic experience: Top notch if your into fish. Customer for life. Covid hit them hard. Hope they recover

Fantastic experience: Great place with wide variety. The owner is very personable and knows his stuff.

Fantastic experience: Allot of beautiful fish. Clean tanks and a good selection of plants too. I'm totally satisfied with my Oscar purchase and several plants.

Fantastic experience: So clean! Fish always healthy and good prices.

Fantastic experience: Nice fish store in an easy to get to location.

Fantastic experience: Always a pleasure to buy from fin alley. The owner is meticulous and caring with his creatures and plants. It's always clean, with his stock well taken care of.

Fantastic experience: Very clean store! Good service! Good looking fish! Bought a Nerite snail there for my older tank and will be back to get some fish when my new tank is cycled.

Fantastic experience: Loved the variety of fish. Better than what you'd see at a chain pet store. Staff was very helpful and knowledgeable. Tanks were crystal clear and the fish looked happy. I ended up getting some peacock gobies. Will definitely go back if I'm in the area again.

Fantastic experience: Excellent store with high quality live stock and knowledgeable and friendly owner

Fantastic experience: Love going to the fish man!! He knows everything there is to know. My boyfriend and I both started new tanks and he’s walked us through the entire process. Very helpful and informative!!

Fantastic experience: Guy knows his stuff. Best fish store in Athens. Cool name too!

Fantastic experience: I've come in and talked to this man on a few occasions. No being talked down to, and no bull. Everything I've purchased from this store has also thrived. Also.... THE FISH HERE ARE CRAZY CHECK IT OUT

Fantastic experience: Fin-Alley is amazing! The store is clean and organized and the owner is extremely knowledgeable and knows more than anyone I have met in the aquarium business. I have always had a great experience in this store and love going in to check out his new items. He doesn't have a huge selection, but he will get you anything you need.

Fantastic experience: This is my favorite fish store in Athens. I have been going here for over 2 years and I have never been disappointed by the service. Troy is very knowledgeable and will do his best to assist you with any of your aquarium needs. If you are looking for a reputable local fish store in the area look no further.

Fantastic experience: Very knowledgeable and will order you the fish if not in stock.

Fantastic experience: Owner is super helpful and extremely knowledgeable on all fish! Everytime I go in, I learn something new!

Fantastic experience: Nice selection of fish at a good price

Fantastic experience: Very good I like this place the guy was very knowledgeable

Positive experience: Great selection, impressed by it infact.

Fantastic experience: I've worked in the fish/pet business for five years, so I hope my review is useful to those who read it. In this review, I want to specifically mention the quality of service, enthusiasm, health of fish, and the prices of fish. When I first walked in to Fin-Alley, Troy, the owner acknowledged me by greeting me. He didn't stop what he was doing, he didn't get overly excited in an attempt to sell me something, he just let me peacefully look at fish. I personally loved that, as it gave me some time to just look at all the fish and take everything in slowly. About 5 minutes later, he started working on some tanks and as he walked past me he casually asked if I needed any help. I didn't, but I thought he gave me the perfect amount of time to look at fish before asking me if I needed any help. Eventually I found some fish I was interested in and I went to him to ask some questions about them. He happily received my questions despite being in the middle of a task. I got pretty excited when he knew exactly which fish I was talking about despite being on the other side of the store, not seeing which ones I was referring to (You know the fish guy cares when he knows which fish are in every tank - that used to be me). He also told me about the brief history of the fish and where they came from: a local breeder, which I thought was awesome! The other two things I'll mention that made me respect this shop and the owner, are the top notch quality of the tanks and fish and the prices of the fish. First of all, the tanks are simple and clean. This gives them a very crisp look, also considering the crystal clear water. Consequently, the fish look very healthy and colorful. Secondly, the prices of the fish are hard to beat. In bigger cities, fish prices tend to sky-rocket, but Fin-Alley offers amazingly fair prices for their fish! As a final note, I'll say two things: 1) whether you're just getting into the hobby or highly experienced, this is a great fish shop that's worth checking out 2) if you're a customer who needs help immediately, don't be offput by the owner if he doesn't ask you if you need help right away; just go ask him and you'll probably get all the help you need plus some.

Fantastic experience: Definitely a nice little fish store. Really good prices,healthy fish and clean tanks

Positive experience: We have mixed feelings about this place, it is not a nice place, just a bare bones store shell with some fish tanks in there, don't get me wrong, the tanks are in mint condition and the fish are well taken care. My kids won a little $0.30 fish in a fair and we went into the store to look for a starter fish tank and some beginners info and the guy was not friendly or even engaging. I assume that if you are some kind of expert that know what you are doing and don't need any help picking a fancy fish, this place is OK. If you have kids and cero idea, stick to some other store like petsmart, at least they will take the time to talk to the kids and give beginners directions on a beautiful hobby. EDIT: Thank you for your response! We love our little fish and the kids are taking it seriously, with luck we may meet again.

Fantastic experience: Extremely knowledgeable owner, very friendly and great customer service! Amazing, clean, healthy tanks and awesome selection. We drove almost an hour to visit this store and we will definitely make that drive again. Can't wait to come back here!

Fantastic experience: Very clean and the customer service was second to none. When you walk in the first thing you see are rows of sparkling clean tanks. It may seem a bit spartan if you are accustomed to rows of dog toys and cat food, but there was a very nice selection of plants, saltwater and freshwater fish. All of the fish appeared healthy and active. Already looking forward to the next trip.

Fantastic experience: Love this place!

Fantastic experience: Drove over 70 miles from in SC; I’m glad I did. I’m from up North where there are fish stores everywhere. I’ve been in fish hobby my whole life. My dad breed and showed guppies back in the ‘70s. This small store reminds me of pet shops back in the day before stores like Petco killed the market. Clean tanks; focus on the hobby not bulk sales. Reasonable prices, great customer service. I will be back.

Fantastic experience: I am new to the hobby. I had a couple giant danios who were pretty aggressive for my community tank. I brought them to Fin Alley and they took them with no problem. The owner was so helpful and showed me some awesome fish for my 20 gallon. I ended up buying some tetras, Mollys, and a honey gourami. They have been in my 20 gallon for a month now and have been doing so great. I am so thankful for the awesome fish they had as well as the great advice. So much better than pet store chains. Thank you!!!

Fantastic experience: Fin-Alley is my go to spot in Athens for everything aquarium. The owner is incredibly helpful with everything from tank set up to fish recommendations. The fish and plants I've bought there have always been healthy.

Fantastic experience: The owner is very knowledgeable, his tanks are clean, his prices affordable and his fish are healthy. I wouldn't want to go to any other fish store now that I've been here!

Fantastic experience: Exactly what a fish keeper looks for: wide range of quality fresh water fish reasonably priced and super great customer service

Negative experience: The first time I went to fin alley I bought 6 tiger barbs. All but one died within 2 days. I went back and the guy said he got a bad batch and offered to refund me. Instead of a refund I put the cost of the 5 tiger barbs that didn’t make it toward a silver dollar tetra. Everything was fine at first until I had a huge breakout of ich which I’ve never had before I bought fish from this shop. This killed my bala shark and now in day 4 of ich treatment my silver dollar tetra is now laying on the bottom of the tank in very bad health. I do not recommend this place to anyone and how it got the high rating that it has on google is beyond me. Maybe it’s the “cheap” prices. I for one will not be going back to this place

Fantastic experience: Best selection at the best prices, always ready to help

Fantastic experience: Very clean tanks, great selection of healthy fish and plants. Betta’s are housed in tanks and not cups, which is greatly appreciated. I will go out of my way to give my business to someone who cares so much about their fish!

Fantastic experience: The owner is very knowledgeable and helpful. They offer free in-store water testing.

Positive experience: So many beautiful fishes here

Negative experience: I bought a tiger Oscar and a puffer from there. I maybe had the Oscar for 48 hours and the puffer just died today after a week and a haft they weren’t eating at all with any type of food. Maybe they didn’t feed them as often but I spent $50 wish I didn’t cause it was a waste. The management isn’t great at all or at least the guy that I saw didnt seem interested in helping me get fish I had to go up to him to ask 2 times. He was more focused on being on his phone and laptop at the register than helping customers, I would highly recommend going to aquarium outfitters on old Epps bridge road. Thanks

Fantastic experience: Always a great experience. The owner is very knowledgeable, and friendly. Our go to spot for our fish needs.

Positive experience: Nice store but a very limited quantity of fish

Fantastic experience: Very knowledgeable and helpful. Great fish!

Fantastic experience: The owner is clearly passionate about his store. Good prices on healthy fish! Love how clean and well cared for his tanks are.

Fantastic experience: Excellent shop and the owner is very knowledgeable about his products.

Fantastic experience: Always professional and fish are the best in rhe state!!

Fantastic experience: Great aquarium shop, owner passionate about aquariums and is informative. Clean location and all fish, plants, and coral looked healthy. Definitely recommend.

Fantastic experience: Best fish store around! The owner definitely cares about his business and fish. Thanks for the service and healthy fish!

Fantastic experience: The owner is always friendly and knowledgeable about the fish. Nice and clean store, with quality fish for your aquarium. The owner took time to listen to my dilemma and helped solve a stuck cycle, he also helped me narrow down what fish to stock in my newly set up 60g. Two thumbs up!

Fantastic experience: Thank you for my first angel fish! Especially a t such a great price! I'll be back for that German blue ram!

Fantastic experience: Very clean tanks with healthy fish in them. Also had a great selection of fish to choose from for a very good price compared to other local stores.