The number of commercial aquaponics operations in the United States, Canada, and Mexico has expanded over the last decade in North America (Table 1). Due to its emergent nature, the exact size of the aquaponics industry is difficult to establish. The definition of what constitutes a commercial aquaponics operation varies, while some assessments focus on the production of produce and fish, most sources recognize that many aquaponics operations expand their offerings via other aquaponics related services. Survey-based investigations of commercial aquaponics have been conducted at a global scale, for Europe, for the Czech Republic, and for South Africa. Though not yet used commonly in aquaponics research, the well-established qualitative research methods of semi-structured interview and qualitative thematic coding offer the opportunity to delve deeper into emergent patterns in technology use, innovation, and operation of commercial aquaponics farms in North America. This approach holds potential to uncover patterns and connections between both qualitative and quantitative data within the experiences and stories of practitioners, aspects which play a key, and sometimes overlooked, role in use, choices, and innovation of technologies and operational practices impacting farm success. Along with case study analysis, semi-structured interviews (n=25) were conducted in 2021 with a representative sub-section of practitioners and qualitatively coded for emerging patterns and themes. This was paired with analysis of technical and operational data (general farm attributes, level of technology adaptation, business model and continuity) to find vital patterns, correlations, and connections within the characteristics and practices of commercial aquaponics in North America which crucially impact the economic and sustainability performance of the growing commercial aquaponics industry and farms within it.