The gravel is OK. If you want gravel that is on the darker side....DO NOT BUY THIS GRAVEL! The gravel I received was crushed and whole shell. There were no natural dark rocks to be found. When you look at the picture there are reds, blacks, grays, browns, and different shades of white shells. My 80 lbs of gravel was all white. I would have returned my purchase....but the postage to return would have been too expensive. Otherwise the gravel hasn't killed anything. All of my fish seem to be happy.