The objective of this work was to assess the acceptance of live and inert food by Macrobrachium tenellum during the early larval stages. The larvae were obtained by collecting wild ovigerous females in the Ameca River in the State of Jalisco, Mexico. Eight treatments (diets) were used to feed the larvae: D1, control (fasting); D2, micro-pulverized food (Purina®); D3, living, newly hatched nauplii of Artemia franciscana (INVE®, Salt Lake City, Utah, USA); D4, commercial paste containing microalgae (Instant Algae Rotifer Diet®); D5, water extracted from a biofloc system; D6, cooked egg yolk; D7, newly hatched and frozen nauplii of A. franciscana (INVE®, Salt Lake City, Utah, USA); D8, nutritional supplement for shrimp larvae (Epifeed LH1®). Treatments D2, D5, D6 and D8 showed traces of food in the digestive system. The larvae did not consume D3 and D7 treatments. The diets that had more acceptance were micro-pulverized food, a nutritional supplement for shrimp larvae Epifeed® LH1, cooked egg yolk, and biofloc water.