The bartail flathead Platycephalus indicus weighing 13.1g on average were fed with semipurified diets to investigate the effects of dietary protein levels on the growth and body composition. Fish were fed on diets with four dietary protein levels ranging from 37 to 54%, comprising white fish meal as a main dietary stuff and α-starch (gelatinized starch) as a digestible carbohydrate source. The growth performance was examined in terms of weight gain, feed efficiency, protein efficiency ratio, body composition and so on, in 8-week feeding trials at 21.2-23.8℃. The average weight gain and feed efficiency tended to increase with increasing dietary protein level, and the highest protein diet (protein level 54%) noted the best values on them. The protein efficiency ratio was not affected by the dietary protein level and showed an almost constant value. In the dorsal muscle, higher contents were obtained on crude protein and crude lipid at higher protein diets. In the liver, crude protein and crude lipid contents decreased with decreasing dietary protein level. Consequently based upon the results in the experiment under the present experimental conditions, high protein diet whose protein level is greater than 54% would be suitable for the rearing of the bartail flathead.