Best plants for a bathroom
Advice on the best plants to grow in a bathroom, in our guide.
Bathrooms are a popular choice for house plants as they typically provide high levels of humidity, similar to a jungle environment, in which many indoor plants thrive. By adding some greenery, your bathroom can become a lush and inviting oasis, giving your home a ‘spa-like’ atmosphere.
House plants can add colour and style to your bathroom, bringing large or variegated leaves, height and structure, and even flowers. Studies have shown that house plants can reduce stress and boost your mood, while some can also purify the air.
Choosing a house plant for your bathroom
When choosing a house plant for your bathroom, it's important to consider the specific conditions it has. Not all bathrooms are the same in terms of size, shape, temperature, light and humidity levels, so spend some time selecting plants that will do well in the conditions you have. For example, if your bathroom gets a lot of natural light then you will want to choose plants that can handle bright light, possibly even direct sunlight. If your bathroom is on the cooler side, you’ll need to select plants that can handle lower temperatures, particularly in winter. Do you use the bathroom regularly or is it reserved only for guests? This will affect humidity levels. Additionally, it's important to consider the size of your bathroom and how much space you have available.
Best bathroom plants
Snake plant (Dracaena trifasciata)
Snake plant is incredibly hardy and can handle low temperatures, low light, low humidity and infrequent watering, but also thrives in bathrooms. Studies have also shown that it can help to remove harmful toxins from the air.
Height x Spread: 1.2m x 50cm
Best for: cool bathrooms, low light levels, infrequent watering
ZZ plant (Zamioculcas zamiifolia)
The ZZ plant has glossy leaves and a compact shape, and is extremely easy to care for. It can also handle low temperatures, low light and low humidity, making it perfect for cool, dark rooms including a bathroom with a small window.
H x S: 90cm x 90cm
Best for: cool bathrooms, low light levels, infrequent watering
Peace lily (Spathiphyllum)
Peace lily is an attractive plant with glossy, ribbed leaves and contrasting white spathes (flowers). It's tolerant of low temperatures or low light and thrives in high humidity, making it perfect for a well-used but cooler-than-average bathroom.
H x S: 60cm x 60cm
Best for: cool bathrooms, low light, high humidity
Boston fern (Nephrolepis exaltata)
Boston fern thrives in bright but indirect light with good levels of humidity, making it perfect for a steamy bathroom. It does require regular watering but is otherwise easy to grow.
H x S: 90cm x 90cm
Best for: indirect bright light, high humidity
Spider plant (Chlorophytum comosum)
Spider plant is one of the easiest plants to grow, and can handle high levels of humidity. It's tolerant of low levels of temperature and light although does best in bright, indirect light.
H x S: 40cm x 60cm
Best for: cool bathrooms, high levels of humidity, medium to low light levels
Philodendron 'Xanadu'
Philodendron xanadun is an easy-to-grow plant with large, dramatic leaves. It tolerates high levels of humidity and low levels of light, making it ideal for a bathroom with a small window.
H x S: 1m x 1m
Best for: high humidity, low light
Elephant ears (Colocasia esculenta)
Elephant ears has large, velvety, heart-shaped leaves in shades of lime green, purple or black. It works well as a house plant but needs moist soil and high levels of humidity, so could work in a warm, steamy bathroom. Bear in mind that foliage is likely to die down if temperatures dip below 21°C. All parts of the plant are poisonous if eaten raw, and may cause skin irritation.
H x S: 1.5m x 1.5m
Best for: bright but indirect light, high levels of humidity
Aloe vera
Aloe vera is easy to grow and is a common house plant due to its ability to soothe sunburn or skin irritations. It thrives in direct sunlight and needs very little watering.
H x S: 60cm x 90cm
Best for: high levels of light, low levels of humidity
Bird's nest fern (Asplenium nidus)
Bird's nest fern has an attractive habit, with compact, glossy and curly fronds. It thrives in indirect light to light shade, and high levels of humidity.
H x S: 1.5m x 90cm
Best for: light shade, high humidity
Rubber plant (Ficus elastica)
The rubber plant is named after the rubbery white latex that runs through its stems and branches, and which was once used to make rubber. It has wide, glossy leaves. Rubber plant thrives in humid environments and can handle bright, indirect sunlight. It's an excellent, low maintenance choice for a steamy bathroom.
H x S: 2m x 1.5m
Best for: high humidity, low light
Jade plant (Crassula ovata)
The jade plant is a succulent sub-shrub with jade green, fleshy leaves and thick stems that become woody with age. As a succulent, jade plant can handle direct sunlight and infrequent watering, making it ideal for a sunny bathroom that's not used very often.
H x S: 2m x 1.5m
Best for: full sun, low humidity
Silver inch plant (Tradescantia zebrina)
Tradescantia zebrina has variegated leaves that are green, purple and silver. It has a trailing habit so looks great in a hanging planter or on a shelf. It's easy to grow and tolerant of neglect. It thrives in warm temperatures and indirect but bright light.
H x S: 60cm x 30cm
Best for: bright indirect light, low humidity
Air plant (Tillandsia)
Air plants don't require soil as they are epiphytes – they attach themselves to other plants or objects using their roots. They absorb nutrients and moisture from the air and rain. In the home they thrive in a warm and humid environment in bright but indirect light. They can be hung or mounted on the wall, making them a great option for small spaces.
H x S: approx 20cm x 20cm (depends on variety)
Best for: humid bathrooms, bright but indirect light
String of pearls (Senecio rowleyanus)
String of pearls is a trailing succulent house plant with pea-like leaves that look like beads. In spring, the plant may produce small white flowers with a cinnamon fragrance. It looks lovely hanging from a shelf or planter – it's fast growing and the tendrils can reach 1m in length. It thrives in bright, indirect light and low humidity, so is ideal for a large, light bathroom that doesn't get too steamy.
H x S: 50cm x 1m
Best for: bright but indirect light, low humidity
Pothos (Epipremnum aureum)
Pothos is extremely easy to grow and thrives in a number of environments, including bathrooms. It can tolerate neglect and low light levels. Train it to grow up a trellis or moss pole, or place on a shelf and use as a trailing plant. Both dark green and variegated varieties are available.
H x S: 1m x 2m
Best for: bright indirect light, high humidity
Lucky bamboo (Dracaena sanderiana)
Small and compact trailing lucky bamboo can be displayed in a variety of ways, such as in a vase or a small pot. It requires bright, indirect light and can be watered just once a week.
H x S: 1.5m x 60cm
Best for: bright, indirect light, low humidity
English Ivy (Hedera helix)
English ivy is more often found climbing walls and fences in the garden than in indoor container displays, but it lends itself well to indoor cultivation. Ivy thrives in low light levels, providing a rich, glossy green for even the shadiest corner.
H x S: up to 2m x 1m
Best for: cool and draughty bathrooms, low light levels
Moth orchid (Phalaenopsis)
Moth orchids thrive in humidity so are ideal for well-used bathrooms. However, they require a minimum temperature of 16°C all year round, so are best grown in a bathroom with central heating. Bright, filtered light is preferable, such as close to an east-facing window.
H x S: up to 50cm x 30cm
Best for: warm and humid bathrooms, bright light
Flamingo flower (Anthurium)
Anthuriums add an exotic touch to bathrooms, as they have heart-shaped, glossy leaves and bright red spathes. Native to tropical rainforests, they thrive in well-used, warm bathrooms.
H x S: up to 50cm x 50cm
Best for: warm and humid bathrooms, bright light
Adanson's monstera (Monstera adansonii)
A relative of the larger Monstera deliciosa, Monstera adansonii is well suited to growing on a shelf where its fenestrate leaves are allowed to cascade down. An undemanding plant, Monstera adansonii does best in bright light with high humidity.
H x S: up to 50cm x 50cm
Best for: warm and humid bathrooms, bright light
