Best Fast-Growing Indoor Plants: 15 Ranked (2026)

✓ Strong signal Light tolerance: Bright indirect light; the speckling fades in shade and bleaches in direct sun

⚠ Watch out for Whole plant collapsed and limp: usually the pot dried out

Our take The polka dot plant is an easy, cheap, colourful little plant that is non-toxic to cats and dogs, which makes it a good pick for a pet household. Two things to know: it needs bright indirect light to keep its speckles (in shade it reverts towards plain green), and it wilts fast w

✓ Strong signal Light tolerance: Bright, indirect light ideal; tolerates medium light; direct sun scorches

⚠ Watch out for Brown leaf tips: usually fluoride/chlorine in tap water, or fertilizer salt buildup

Our take Spider plant is pet-safe, tolerant of neglect, and multiplies itself. Mature plants send out runners covered in ready-to-root plantlets.

✓ Strong signal Light tolerance: Bright indirect light; tolerates medium light; no hot direct sun, which scorches fronds

⚠ Watch out for Raining dry, tan leaflets all over the floor: usually low humidity. the classic winter complaint in heated rooms

Our take Boston ferns want two things without fail: evenly moist soil and humidity above 50%. Give both, plus bright indirect light, and they grow into huge, spilling baskets; miss either and they shed dry leaflets all over the floor.

✓ Strong signal Light tolerance: Medium to bright indirect light; green forms tolerate low light, variegated forms fade there

⚠ Watch out for Whole plant suddenly limp and droopy: usually thirst. syngoniums wilt dramatically when dry

Our take Arrowhead plant is one of the easiest fast growers in the aroid family: medium to bright indirect light, water when the top few centimeters dry, and prune to keep it bushy or let it climb a moss pole. Cuttings root in plain water in days.

✓ Strong signal Light tolerance: Bright indirect light indoors, with some direct morning sun; deep colours need good light, but hot afternoon sun scorche

⚠ Watch out for Tall bare stems with leaves only at the tips: usually insufficient light, or no pinching

Our take Coleus is fast, cheap and colourful, and it is one of the easiest plants to propagate: a cutting in a glass of water roots in about a week. Indoors it needs a bright spot and steady moisture, and it wants pinching every few weeks or it turns leggy and flowers, at which point the

✓ Strong signal Light tolerance: Tolerates low light indoors; variegated types need brighter light to keep their pattern

⚠ Watch out for Brown, crispy leaf tips: usually low humidity or underwatering

Our take English ivy is an easy, fast-growing trailing or climbing vine that tolerates low light and average home humidity. Water when the top inch of soil dries out, keep it out of direct sun, and prune regularly to control its spread.

✓ Strong signal Light tolerance: Low to bright indirect light; more light = faster, fuller growth

⚠ Watch out for Yellow leaves: usually overwatering

Our take Heartleaf philodendron is as easy as houseplants get: tolerates low light, forgives missed waterings, and trails or climbs for meters. Water when the top few centimeters dry (roughly weekly), pinch stems to keep it bushy, and root cuttings in water in under three weeks.

✓ Strong signal Light tolerance: Bright indirect light to hold variegation. A step brighter than the plain heartleaf needs; tolerates medium light but st

⚠ Watch out for New leaves solid green (reversion): usually too little light. green tissue outcompetes variegated tissue

Our take Brasil is the heartleaf philodendron with a lime-yellow racing stripe. Care is identical to the plain green base vine with one delta that matters: it needs brighter light.

✓ Strong signal Light tolerance: Bright indirect light; tolerates medium light with slower, greener growth, but direct midday sun burns the velvet surfac

⚠ Watch out for Long bare stems with widely spaced small leaves: usually too little light

Our take Micans is the velvet form of the heartleaf philodendron, and it keeps that plant's forgiving nature: bright indirect light, water when the top few centimetres dry out, and it will trail a metre or more. New leaves emerge pinkish-bronze and darken to deep green with an iridescent

✓ Strong signal Light tolerance: Tolerates low light; bright indirect light produces faster growth and stronger variegation

⚠ Watch out for Yellow leaves: usually overwatering

Our take Pothos is one of the easiest houseplants to grow: it tolerates low light, irregular watering, and neglect better than almost any other common indoor plant. Water every 7-14 days when the soil is dry, keep it out of direct sun, and expect vigorous trailing growth.

✓ Strong signal Light tolerance: Bright indirect light; tolerates medium light but grows leggy; variegated forms need more light

⚠ Watch out for Leaves dropping steadily: usually overwatering or a spot that's too dark

Our take The umbrella plant is one of the fastest, most forgiving indoor shrubs: give it bright indirect light and water when the top of the soil dries, and it can put on 30cm or more a year. It shrugs off pruning (it's a classic beginner bonsai) but drops leaves in dark corners and soggy

✓ Strong signal Light tolerance: Bright, indirect light; fewer holes form in low light

⚠ Watch out for Yellow leaves: usually overwatering or poor drainage

Our take Monstera adansonii is the smaller, faster, vining cousin of Monstera deliciosa. Its leaf holes stay enclosed ovals rather than splitting to the edge.

✓ Strong signal Light tolerance: Very bright light, including some gentle direct sun; this is not a low-light palm despite how it is often sold

⚠ Watch out for Steady yellowing and browning fronds from the bottom up: usually the classic indoor decline: not enough light combined with dry air and irregular watering

Our take Honest verdict: the majesty palm is a riverbank palm that wants very bright light, constantly moist soil, and high humidity, more than most homes provide, which is why so many decline within a year of purchase. It is cheap ($25-$60 for a big plant) and pet-safe, but if you want a

✓ Strong signal Light tolerance: Bright, indirect light; tolerates medium light but grows and fenestrates slower

⚠ Watch out for Yellow leaves: usually overwatering or poor drainage

Our take Monstera deliciosa is a fast-growing, beginner-friendly houseplant that needs bright indirect light, water every 7-10 days, and a well-draining pot. It's toxic to pets, propagates easily from stem cuttings, and typically costs $25-$75 (non-variegated).

✓ Strong signal Light tolerance: Bright indirect light; tolerates light shade; hot direct sun yellows the foliage

⚠ Watch out for Needles yellowing and shedding in showers: usually too much direct sun, or drought stress followed by heavy watering

Our take Asparagus fern gives you fern looks without fern fragility: bright indirect light, water when the top few centimeters dry, and it bounces back from lapses thanks to water-storing tuberous roots. Watch for two surprises.