they are both very beautiful fish and come in a range of colours and patterns
i personally prefer the look of the flowing fins the betta's have, but thats not to say gourami's dont look cool aswell
I have a ten-gallon tank I stocking, and I was torn between a male betta or a male dwarf gourami. After reading the replies in this thread, I'm choosing the betta. And I'll also be saving a betta from the miserable pint jar container they are kept in at the LFS.
The only gourami I really like are the gentle pearl, and maybe the sparkling.
I like betta better in 10g tanks, Gourami need 20g tanks IMO.
But I have a betta in a 20g with 11 whiteclouds.
SSSSOOOOOO, I like betta too