Have you ever killed a houseplant and had no idea why? Do you wish you had a green thumb? In this post, we’ll share the best low maintenance indoor plants for your home. We’ll help you choose houseplants for low light, indirect light and bright light rooms in your home. Selecting the right plant for the correct light conditions in your home is the key step you might be missing. Use this guide when choosing popular houseplants for your home.
Related: How to Propagate Plants, Best Porch Plants, Air Plant Care
Jade Plant
Jade plants are a popular variety of succulent houseplants. With proper care, these plants can live for 50 or even 100 years. Jade enjoys being in bright light, about 4-6 hours of it a day. Younger jade plants should be in indirect light, but more mature plants can handle some direct sunlight.
Jade plants are said to bring good luck. Place your jade plant indoors in the southeast direction of your hall or living room to welcome wealth luck. Learn more about jade plant care.
Aloe Vera Plant
I love these plants because when I was child my mom taught me to break a piece off and use it for sunburns and burns. They are easy to keep alive, beautiful and useful. Aloe plants enjoy extended sunlight (a minimum of six hours per day) and should be placed by a window where they can bask in the sun.
ZZ Plant (Zamioculcas zamiifolia or Zanzibar gems)
I love these. They are beautiful and extremely easy to care for. They’re a nice alternative to a snake plant if you need something that’s sort of spiky and vertical for a certain spot in your home. These plants thrive in medium to bright indirect light for at least six hours each day.
Pilea (Chinese Money Plant)
Pilea plants love light. They do best in bright, indirect sunlight. Sitting by a window is a good choice for these plants. Learn to care for a Chinese Money Plant.
Boston Fern
This fern plant thrives in indirect sunlight. They don’t like to be directly in the sun, but they also won’t grow in total shade.
Golden Pothos (Devil’s Ivy)
This plant is super common and easy to find almost anywhere. They are beautiful and easy to keep alive! A golden pothos is an excellent choice for a first plant. Learn to care for a Golden Pothos.
Elephant Ear Plant (Colocasia)
Known for their heart-shaped leaves, these plants love full, indirect sun for at least six hours each day. Choose a pot that is at least 18 inches in diameter, or one gallon.
English Ivy (Hedera helix)
The English Ivy is flexible and can thrive in most lighting conditions. Its favorite is bright light. This plant loves humidity, so misting it daily is a great way to keep it thriving.
String of Pearls
String of Pearls is one of my favorite plants for its beautiful appearance. It’s a unique trailing succulent that looks like a string of peas. They enjoy a bright and sunny location in the home. Learn to care for String of Pearls.
Rubber Plant
A Rubber plant is a beautiful houseplant that I have had great luck keeping alive. A well lit area of your home is crucial to keeping this plant alive. These plant leaves need to be dusted with a damp cloth once in a while. Learn to care for a Rubber Tree.
Peace Lily (Spathiphyllum)
A Peace Lily is easy to care for and blooms flowers starting in early summer. Ideally, peace lilies enjoy bright indirect sunlight, and are a good plant to choose if you have a low light area as they also do well in shade to partial shade. How to Care for a Peace Lily.
Monstera
This plant is very versatile in what lighting conditions it requires. Monsteras like bright indirect light. They can adjust to medium light, but might get leggy in that environment. So, I placed her in a room that has large west-facing windows. How to care for a Monstera plant.
Fiddle Leaf Fig
If you get a fiddle leaf, then find a window with ample light. Be sure that it is bright, indirect light. Don’t stick it in a corner away from the sunlight. These are a type of ficus tree and are native to a tropical environment. How to care for Fiddle Leaf Figs.
Aglaonema (Chinese Evergreen)
Aglaonema plants are known for their hardiness and adaptability to a variety of conditions. They are able to thrive in both bright light and low light situations. These easy houseplants are adaptable even to spaces with little light. These are a great choice for an office or rooms with less natural light.
Parlor Palm (Chamaedorea elegans)
Parlor Palms grow best indoors with bright, indirect sunlight. They can also thrive as a low-light plant. They help to purify the air in your home as well.
Snake Plant
I love snake plants. I like the look of these and they will survive practically in the dark, but also tolerate the sun. They are adaptable to nearly any environment. Learn to care for a snake plant.
Cacti
Cacti are easy to care for and make great indoor plants. They require less frequent watering than most plants and they thrive in medium to high indirect sunlight. Cacti have a growing season from March to September, where they can grow rapidly. I often take my cacti outdoors during the summer and bring them back inside for the winter. It’s best to let them get very dry between waterings.
Spider Plant (Chlorophytum comosum)
We love spider plants. If you are looking for a natural air purifier, you will want to get a spider plant. A recent study indicates that spider plants removed 95% of toxic formaldehyde from the air in a sealed Plexiglass container over a 24-hour period. The spider plant is one of the most popular houseplants. How to care for a Spider Plant.
Calathea Plant (Prayer Plant)
Calathea Plants are easy to care for and present eye catching patterns on their leaves. Calatheas love to be in medium to bright indirect light. They can handle low light situations well, but their color and pattern may not be as vivid as it would be with more light. How to care for Calathea Plants.
Cast Iron Plant
Cast Iron Plants are easy to care for and thrive in low light. They do great in low or medium light and bright light should be avoided.
If you have a favorite indoor plant, we’d LOVE to hear all about it in the comments.