<p>Despite its contribution to food security, managing solid waste from land-based aquaculture has been a major problem worldwide. Various bioremediation approaches have long been used to manage solid waste. Hence, a holistic and self-driven system is lacking. As a practical alternative, aquaculture sludge can provide habitats and nutrition, thereby increasing biomass production for deposit-feeding polychaetes. As nutrient uptake abilities and reproductive strategies can vary among species, we examined the survival, growth, and nutrient uptake efficiency of <i>Neanthes acuminata</i> from sludge types collected separately from two recirculating aquaculture systems: puffer (i.e., <i>Takifugu rubripes</i>) and tilapia (i.e., <i>Oreochromis niloticus</i>). A higher survival rate (i.e., 80–90%) was achieved in the sludge treatments compared with the negative control over an eight-week period. The growth rate increased in both sludge treatments across the experimental weeks, suggesting their ability to utilize nutrients in metabolic processes. Carbon and nitrogen uptake were evident, with a higher nitrogen percentage. The enrichment of nitrogen stable isotope ratios within polychaete body tissue in puffer sludge exposure further supports the upcycling rate. The carbon-to-nitrogen ratio of fecal materials of <i>N. acuminata</i> after 10-day exposure was significantly higher than the initial sludge, indicating the supply of carbon-enriched materials within the sludge substrate. This study confirms the survival, growth, and nutrient-upcycling efficiency of a newly introduced polychaete species that utilizes solid waste materials and recommends it as an efficient species for aquaculture solid waste management.</p> Graphical abstract <p></p>