The best all-round pet lizard there is — friendly, hardy, active by day and genuinely enjoys being handled. The gold standard for a first 'proper' lizard.
🟢 Beginner-friendly🖐 Superb to handle☀️ Diurnal · Desert⏳ 10–15 years
Care difficulty
Easy–Moderate
Animal cost
£40–£400+
Full setup
£300–£600
Adult size
40–60 cm
Lifespan
10–15 years
Min. enclosure
120×60×60 cm
🎬See one of ours
A bearded dragon hatching at Pets on the Green 🐾
📋At a Glance
Bearded dragons are diurnal Australian desert lizards that are calm, curious and unusually sociable with people. They need a big, hot, brightly UV-lit enclosure and an omnivorous diet, but their temperament makes them the number-one recommended pet lizard and a brilliant handling animal.
Best for: first-time lizard keepers, families and handling sessions wanting a friendly, robust, interactive lizard.
£300–£600 — the biggest cost is a large vivarium, strong UVB and a proper basking lamp.
Ongoing costs
Moderate — live insects, fresh greens, supplements and higher electricity for heat/UVB.
Availability
Very easy. One of the most bred pet lizards; in every reptile shop.
These are minimums, not budgets. The low end still has to meet the animal's needs — proper UVB, a heat gradient, space and filtration are not optional extras. A vivarium alone can cost £250–£300+, and a tortoise's UVB lamp alone is often ~£100. Price the whole setup before you commit to the animal.
Buying tip: Choose an alert animal with bright eyes, a rounded belly, all toes/tail-tip intact and no sunken look. A baby that's feeding well is ideal.
🏠Enclosure & Where to Keep It
A large, diurnal desert lizard needing floor space, height for basking and a strong thermal/UV gradient.
Adult
Minimum 120×60×60 cm (4×2×2 ft); bigger is better.
Furnishing
A raised basking spot, hides, branches and a shallow water dish.
Housing
House singly — beardies are territorial and will fight/dominate.
Where to keep it
A stable room; the enclosure provides its own heat and light.
Provide a clear hot basking zone and a cool end so it can thermoregulate — a single flat temperature is a common beginner mistake.
🌡️Temperature, Lighting & Humidity
Temperature
Basking spot 38–42 °C, cool end 26–28 °C, night drop to 18–24 °C. Basking lamp on a thermostat/dimmer.
Lighting / UVB
Strong UVB is essential — a high-output desert tube (T5 12–14%). 12–14 hour day cycle.
Humidity
Low (30–40%).
Bedding / substrate
Solid substrate, tile or a bioactive desert mix for adults. Avoid loose sand for babies (impaction risk).
🍽️Diet, Supplements & Feeding
An omnivore whose balance shifts with age: babies eat mostly insects, adults mostly greens.
Juveniles
Dusted insects 2–3× daily plus finely chopped greens available.
Adults
Fresh greens/veg daily, plus dusted insects a few times a week.
Supplements
Dust insects with calcium (and D3/multivitamin per schedule) — vital alongside UVB for strong bones.
Water
Shallow dish; many also drink from misted greens.
Good greens: collard, dandelion, rocket, butternut. Avoid spinach (binds calcium) and feed insects no wider than the eyes.
✨Grooming, Shedding & Additional Needs
No grooming needed. They shed in patches (not whole like a snake). A shallow bath can help a stubborn shed and hydration.
Metabolic Bone Disease — soft jaw, bent limbs, tremors — comes from poor UVB or calcium. Get both right from day one.
🖐️Handling & Interaction
One of the best lizards to handle — most become genuinely relaxed and will happily sit on a hand, shoulder or lap. Excellent for supervised handling with children.
How to handle
Let a new dragon settle for a week or so, then support it fully on a flat hand/forearm. Most tolerate and even enjoy short, calm sessions. Watch for stress signs (dark beard, gaping) and give it a break.
✅ Do
Wash hands before and after.
Support the whole body and all four feet.
Keep early sessions short and calm.
Handle during the day when they're active and warm.
Supervise children.
⛔ Don't
Don't grab from above or by the tail.
Don't over-handle a stressed animal (black beard, gaping).
Don't house two together.
Don't skimp on UVB or calcium.
Don't use loose sand for babies.
🦎Fun Facts
They puff out a spiny black 'beard' to display or when stressed.
They wave an arm in a slow circle as a submissive/social signal.
They can brumate (a reptile hibernation) in cooler months.
A 'third eye' (parietal eye) on top of the head senses light and overhead movement.
Native to the arid interior of Australia.
⭐Overall Verdict
The definitive pet lizard: friendly, hardy and interactive, and superb for handling. The care isn't hard, but it isn't cheap — a big enclosure, strong UVB and a proper diet are non-negotiable. Get those right and it's a joy.