This study evaluated the chronic effects of NO₃-N on juvenile blackhead seabream Acanthopagrus schlegelii. The experiment used six identically configured recirculating aquaculture systems (435 L), with three tanks (70 L) each. The NO₃-N concentrations studied were 0 (control), 62.5, 125, 250, 500, and 1,000 mg/L NO₃-N/L. Thirty juvenile blackhead seabream (18.8±2.2 g) were stocked in each tank. Growth and hematological changes were evaluated after 120 days. At the end of the experiment, the growth, survival, and cortisol levels indicated that blackhead seabream were healthy in 500 mg NO₃-N/L. However, insulin-like growth factor I (IGF-1) and the IGF-1 receptor were significantly lower at 250, 500, and 1,000 mg NO₃-N/L than in controls (62.5 and 125 mg NO₃-N/L). Juveniles were likely affected at a much lower NO₃-N concentration than 250 mg/L NO₃-N/L in terms of IGF-1 and the IGF-1 receptor. Therefore, for the sake of long-term fish welfare, the NO₃-N should be maintained at lower than 250 mg/L for blackhead seabream in recirculating aquaculture systems.