AquaLibs presents AquaRank Discover the world’s leading aquascapers

Explore transparent rankings built from published results across the world’s leading aquascaping contests.

TOP 27 IAPLC 2006 - Look back history

World ranking 1 - Autumnal colors - W90xD45xH45 (cm)

Chen Yu Lin - Taiwan

Plant: 
Rotala nanjean
Glossostigma elatinoides
Eleocharis parvula

Fish:
Hemigrammus bleheri
Caridina multidentata

 

World ranking 2 - Relaxed Time - W114xD52xH52 (cm)

Masashi Ono - Japan

Plant: 
Vallisneria nana
Microsorum sp.
Eleocharis xingua
Fantinalis antipyretica

Fish:
Puntius sp.cf.denisoni
Crossocheilus siamensis
Caridina multidentata

 

World ranking 3 - Rain is coming - W125xD45xH45(cm)

Olga Baranovskaya - Ukraine

Plant:
Cladophora aegagrophira
Echinodorus tenellus 'red'
Eleocharis acicularis
E. pusilla
Glossostigma elatinoides
Hydrocotyle verticillata
Lilaeopsis brasiliensis
Lindernia rotundifolia
Ludwigia sp.
Micranthenum micranthemoides
Microsorum sp.
Nymphaea sp.
Didiplis diandra
Rotala macrandra
Rotala macrandra var.
Rotala rotundifolia
Rotala rotundifolia 'green'
Vesicularia dubyana
Riccia fluitans

Fish:
Trigonostigma heteromorpha
Naocaridina denticulata

 

World ranking 4 - Old Tree - W105xD58xH45(cm)

Chen Ze Xin - Taiwan

Plant:
Hemiantbus callitrichoides "Cuba"
Blyxa japonica
Cryptocoryne wendtii
Elatine triandra
Hottonia inflate
Lilaeopsis novae-zelandiae
Microsorum sp.
Vesicularia sp.
Riccia fluitans


Fish:
Paracheirodon axelrodi
Hemigrammus erythrozonus
Pterophyllum altum
Pterophyllum scalare
Ancistrus temmincki
Apistogramma cacatuoides
Corydoras sterbai
Hemimyzon formosanus

 

World ranking 5 - Part of Nature - W130xD45xH57(cm)

Jung Soon Ja - Korea

Plant:
Glossostigma elatinoides
Anubias barteri var. nana
Bolbitis heudelotii
Microsorum pteropus
Microsorum pteropus "WINDELOV"
Vesicularia dubyana

Fish:
Hemigrammus erythrozonus
Gyrinocheilus aymonieri
Neocaridina sp.

 

World ranking 6 - Lingering Snow - W120xD45xH45(cm)

Minoru Yamagashi - Japan

Plant:
Bolbitis heudelotii
Microsorum sp.
Cryptocoryne wendtii 'Green'
Cryptocoryne parva
Eleocharis acicularis
Vesicularia sp.

Fish:
Rasbora agilis
Otocinclus sp.
Caridina multidentata

 

World ranking 7 - Listen Carefully for the Sound of a Stream - W150xD45xH60(cm)

Fumio Shiga - Japan

Plant:
Echinodorus angstifolia
Vallisneria nana
Bolbitis heudelotii
Microsorum sp.
Isoetes japonica
Blyxa novoguineensis
Eleocharis acicularis
Rotala nanjean
Ludwigia arcuata
Cryptocoryne wendtii 'brown'
Fantinalis antipyretica

Fish:
Hemigrammus ulreyi
Otocinclus sp.
Crossocheilus siamensis
Caridina multidentata

 

World ranking 8 - Hometown, Has Pure Water Stream - W90xD45xH45(cm)

Akira Yamagishi - Japan

Plant:
Rotala rotundifolia 'green'
Rotala nanjean
Anubias barteri var. nana
Ludwigia sp.
Micranthemum micranthemoides
Ludwigia arcuata
Echinodorus tenellus
Rotala sp.
Rotala indica
Vallisneria nana
Hygrophila polysperma
Bolbitis heudelotii
Myriophyllum mattogrossense
Glossostigma elatinoides
Fantinalis antipyretica
Vesicularia sp.
Cryptocoryne wendtii

Fish:
Hemigrammus hyanuary
Moenkhausia pittieri
Hyphessobrycon haraldschultzi
Otocinclus sp.
Caridina multidentata

 

World ranking 9 - Hometown in a Mountain Pass - W90xD45xH45(cm)

Takayuki Kosuge - Japan

Plant:
Rotala rotundifolia 'green'
Rotala rotundifolia vietnam
Eleocharis acicularis
Vesicularia sp.
Glossostigma elatinoides
Ludwigia arcuata

Fish:
Paracheirodon axelrodi
Otocinclus sp.
Caridina multidentata

 

World ranking 10 - Hiding Hometown - W120xD45xH45(cm)

Junichi Itakura - Japan

Plant:
Rotala rotundifolia 'green'
Vesicularia sp.
Micranthenum micranthemoides
Micranthenum unbrosum
Bolbitis heudelotii
Microsorum sp.
Microsorum pteropus
Echinodorus tenellus
Eleocharis sp.
Eichhornia natans
Rotala nanjean
Ludwigia brevipes
Ludwigia inclinata var.
Myriophyllum mattogrossense
Hottonia palustris
Glossostigma elatinoides
Cryptocoryne wendtii 'green'

Fish:
Hemigrammus bleheri
Otocinclus sp.
Caridina multidentata

 

TOP 27 IAPLC 2001: https://youtu.be/rpu6nEkwQNw

TOP 27 IAPLC 2002: https://youtu.be/olbDvtSFwAQ

TOP 27 IAPLC 2003: https://youtu.be/Ro7NPcN0xU0

TOP 27 IAPLC 2004: https://youtu.be/h7N__Dv_lvU

TOP 27 IAPLC 2005: https://youtu.be/UPYwedd5exk

TOP 27 IAPLC 2006: https://youtu.be/lNnafDy4n9w

TOP 127 IAPLC 2009: https://youtu.be/RChGpujKfxo

Leave your comments
Latest on News & Press
  • IAPLC 2026 Top 10 cover featuring three contrasting aquascapes with large white and turquoise lettering.

    IAPLC 2026 Top 10: Ten Aquascapes, Ten Underwater Stories

    Ten aquariums can draw us underwater in ten different ways. A luminous forest opening, a red surface canopy or an exposed rock valley changes where we look—and what we discover next.
  • Editorial cover for AquaLibs’ analysis of Chuanwei Yu’s IAPLC 2026 Grand Prize aquascape.

    IAPLC 2026 Grand Prize Aquascape: What Makes Chuanwei Yu’s Design Convincing?

    Chuanwei Yu’s 万物自然, the IAPLC 2026 Grand Prize aquascape, is immediately recognisable as a woodland scene. Its lasting interest lies in how that scene holds together. Large trunks establish the setting, finer roots connect its layers, planting softens the structure and fish make the spaces between the wood feel inhabited.
  • CIAC 2026 Top 3 analysis cover featuring Tectonic Memory, Under The Cave and 幽邃.

    CIAC 2026 Top 3 Analysis: Inside the Podium Aquascapes

    The CIAC 2026 podium offers three remarkably different ways to make an aquarium feel larger than its glass boundaries. Trần Anh Đức’s “Tectonic Memory” builds its world through folded rock contours. Acho Choky’s “Under The Cave” places the viewer beneath a dark canopy. Zhao Gang’s “幽邃” draws us through a planted valley animated by blue fish.
  • CIAC 2026 Top 30 results cover celebrating Vietnam’s winning aquascaper Trần Anh Đức.

    CIAC 2026 Top 30 Results: Trần Anh Đức Wins with Tectonic Memory

    Vietnam’s Trần Anh Đức has won the CIAC 2026 Aquascaping Group with “Tectonic Memory,” leading the newly published Top 30. Indonesia’s Acho Choky takes second place with “Under The Cave,” while China’s Zhao Gang (赵刚) finishes third with “幽邃.”
  • Vietnam flag and bold IAPLC 2026 typography celebrating two Top 7 awards.

    Vietnam at IAPLC 2026: Two Top 7 Awards, 29 Top 300 Places.

    Vietnam has plenty to celebrate at IAPLC 2026. Ha Le Trinh wins the Gold Prize at world rank 2, while Minh Toan Nguyen earns a Bronze Prize at rank 6. Together, they give Vietnamese aquascaping two places among the contest’s seven leading awards—and two striking aquariums for the international community to discover.
  • IAPLC 2026 results editorial cover adapted from Chuanwei Yu’s Grand Prize aquascape.

    IAPLC 2026 Results: Chuanwei Yu Wins Grand Prize

    Chuanwei Yu of China has won the IAPLC 2026 Grand Prize, leading a season that also brings a proud moment for Vietnam: Ha Le Trinh takes second place and Minh Toan Nguyen finishes sixth.
  • October 10 IAPLC and CIAC 2026 results hub cover, with an archived CIAC 2025 aquascape by Muhammad Yusuf.

    IAPLC & CIAC 2026 Results Hub: Your October 10 Guide

    Two competitions. One date. A new collection of aquascapes for the world to discover. IAPLC and CIAC have both scheduled their 2026 results announcements for Saturday, October 10. This AquaLibs guide brings together the confirmed schedule, official channels, archive galleries and reading to help you follow the day.
  • IAPLC 2025 Revisited editorial cover adapted from Josh Sim’s 2025 Grand Prize aquascape.

    IAPLC 2025 Revisited: 12 Aquascapes Before the 2026 Reveal

    Before the next champion is revealed, there is time for one more look at the aquariums that made the previous season memorable.
  • IAPLC and CIAC One Creator Two Stages cover based on Gang Zhao's IAPLC 2025 second-place forest aquascape.

    One Aquascaper, Two Stages: Five Journeys Across IAPLC and CIAC.

    Aquascaping results are usually read one competition at a time. Follow the author's name across IAPLC and CIAC, however, and a richer story comes into view: a double championship, two very different layouts in one season, or a striking work discovered through a second gallery.
  • CIAC Country Map 2024–2025 editorial cover with bold white and turquoise typography beside an illuminated globe.

    CIAC Country Rankings: Comparing the 2024 and 2025 Top 30

    A CIAC results list is also a meeting point for aquascaping communities around the world. Read the country column alongside the photographs, and another story emerges: established names holding their ground, more works reaching the leading positions, and communities finding new reasons to celebrate.
  • CIAC Steps Forward 2024–2025 cover featuring Eternal Blaze by Rahul Mukherjee, sixth in CIAC 2025.

    CIAC 2024–2025: Five Notable Steps Forward

    In 2024, Rahul Mukherjee finished 63rd in CIAC's Aquascaping Group. In 2025, he reached sixth place. That 57-place advance is one of five compelling stories we can discover by putting two seasons of results—and their photographs—together.
  • CIAC 2025 Beyond the Podium cover featuring Enchanted Valley by Fernando Moraes, ranked 24th in the Aquascaping Group.

    Beyond the Podium: Eight CIAC 2025 Aquascapes Worth a Closer Look

    The first three places make the headlines. Keep scrolling through the CIAC 2025 aquascapes, however, and the gallery opens into a much wider landscape: shaded forests, weathered roots, bright rock valleys and fish that give an underwater scene its sense of life.
  • CIAC Champions: The Stories Behind Their Winning Aquascapes

    CIAC Champions: The Stories Behind Their Winning Aquascapes

    Every CIAC results announcement gives the aquascaping community a new collection of works to discuss, study and remember. Behind the winning photograph is a longer story: earlier competitions, ideas developed across seasons, and the practical work of bringing a landscape to life.
  • CIAC 2025 Review: Six Lessons Before the 2026 Results

    CIAC 2025 Review: Six Lessons Before the 2026 Results

    Before the CIAC 2026 results arrive on October 10, there is time to look again at the aquascapes that made the previous season memorable. The most useful question is not simply which work finished highest. It is how each composition earned our attention—and what we notice when we return to it.
  • IAPLC 2025 in Review: Top 300 Aquascaping Styles Before the 2026 Results

    IAPLC 2025 in Review: Top 300 Aquascaping Styles Before the 2026 Results

    Before a new IAPLC winner is revealed, the previous season deserves a closer look. Which aquascaping styles filled the TOP 300 in 2025? Did the same visual families become more common in the TOP 100, TOP 27 and TOP 7? And what can those layouts teach us about depth, planting and the way fish bring a composition to life?
  • Rasio Wild Secrets - Heri Amir / Indonesia - Honour Prize  IAPLC 2020 - Rooted Forest Canopy Framing a Bright Sandy Underwater Trail

    Rasio Wild Secrets - Heri Amir / Indonesia - Honour Prize IAPLC 2020 - Rooted Forest Canopy Framing a Bright Sandy Underwater Trail

    This image presents a densely planted underwater scene organized around a pale sandy trail that recedes beneath an arch of roots and foliage. A school of small fish occupies the upper-left and central water, while layered greens, reddish plant accents and hanging root-like forms create strong vertical depth. The composition is highly atmospheric and technically controlled, with darkness at the edges directing attention toward the illuminated opening. Because the photograph does not reveal maintenance history, livestock identification or construction details beneath the planting, those aspects are judged conservatively from visible evidence only.