The Hottest Houseplants Of 2025 - What To Look Out For

Looking to build a houseplant collection or add to what you already have? Choose the top houseplants that are trending right now.

A smiling man with tattoos holds a potted dracaena
(Image credit: Anchiy / Getty Images)

Looking for new houseplants to add to your current collection? Or if you are just getting started on the houseplant craze, here are some new, as well as old, plants with bold, colorful, or attractive variegation for 2025.

2025 Outlook - Top Houseplants for the New Year

Houseplants have exploded in popularity in recent years, becoming must-have decor for living spaces. Bringing nature indoors appeals to our environmental aesthetic, and choosing plants that help clean the air appeals to our sense of well-being.

Today, plant enthusiasts are attracted to bolder, more unusual houseplants with vibrant colors, eye-catching leaf patterns, therapeutic scents, or air-purifying capabilities.

With the advent of plant care and ID apps, navigating the houseplant world is easier than ever. Here is our list of trending houseplants for the new year.

Top Houseplants For The New Year

Speckled leaves of Thai Constellation monstera

(Image credit: Prapass Pulsub / Getty Images)

For 2025 houseplants, look for vibrant colors and patterns, striking variegation, or unusual leaf shapes. Of course, those who are long-time plant aficionados can opt for plants that require more meticulous care, such as moist soil and high humidity. If you’re a beginner in defining your space with live plants, check out our easy-care plants.

  • Philodendrons are a staple in houseplant greenery but the newer cultivars offer exciting colors and patterns. Philodendrons need bright, indirect light. Water when the soil begins to dry. Philodendrons prefer moderate to high humidity. They are toxic so keep them out of reach of pets and children. They are NASA-approved as air purifying plants.
    • Philodendron "Birkin" has dark green leaves with white stripes and averages 3 feet (1 m) tall and wide.
    • Philodendron "Golden Crocodile" has golden, oval leaves that develop serrated edges as it matures. Leaves can grow more than 2 feet (0.6 m) long.
    • Philodendron "Brasil" has glossy, heart-shaped, green leaves with bold splashes of yellow. Grows 4 to 6 feet (1.2 to 1.8 m) tall.
  • Monstera plants are large, vining plants with holes or cuts in leaves (fenestration). The classic swiss cheese plant is a showy favorite. Monstera prefers moist soil, bright light, and high humidity.
    • Monstera Adansonii (Swiss cheese vine) features large, heart shaped, fenestrated foliage. The vining plant can grow from 3 to 8 feet (1 to 2.4 m) tall.
    • Monstera deliciosa "Thai Constellation" (pictured above) has deeply cut, fenestrated foliage marked with creamy white variegation. Monstera deliciosa can grow to 14 feet (4.3 m) tall with a spreading habit.
    • Hypoestes phyllostachya, also known as polka dot plant, features cream, pink, rose, or red splashes of color on green foliage. It grows 2 feet (0.6 m) tall and wide. Its colorful foliage brightens up any room with partial sunlight. It needs moist soil and average indoor humidity to thrive. Look for "Carmina," "Pink Brocade," "Confetti," or "Splash" series.
  • Calathea "Freddie" - also known as peacock plant or prayer plant, has light green foliage with bold paint stripes across the leaves. It does equally well in low or bright light with low to moderate water needs but does require high humidity. Grows 1 to 3 feet (0.3 to 0.9 m)
  • Fittonia (Fittonia albivenis), also known as nerve plant, boasts many cultivars in a variety of colors with contrasting veining. Fittonia is for advanced plant parents and requires high humidity and consistently moist, acidic, well-drained soil. It stays low, about 3 to 6 inches (8 to 15 cm). Look for "Marble Green," green foliage with silver white veins; "Forest," green to pink foliage with pink veining; "Skeleton" with chartreuse foliage and pink veining.

Best Houseplants For Easy Care

Hanging cebu blue pothos

(Image credit: AnSyvanych / Getty Images)
  • Hoyas are easy to take care of and have a cult following. Hoyas thrive in bright light and well-drained, loose soil such as an orchid mix. When provided with ideal conditions, they can bloom several times a year with clusters of fragrant flowers that look like they are made of wax.
    • Hoya parviflora features very spectacled leaves.
    • Hoya carnosa "Compacta" grows in a ropelike vine with curly leaves.
    • Hoya publicalyx "Pink Silver" has more elongated leaves than other hoyas, and with enough sun, its leaves look silvery pink.
  • Aglaonema "Red Valentine" is a colorful, upright plant with splashes of red, green, and pink that also has air-purifying qualities. Suitable for beginners, Chinese evergreen needs bright, indirect light and moderate water needs. It grows 1 to 2 feet (0.3 to 0.6 m) tall.
  • Schefflera, or umbrella plant, is the ultimate easy plant. Its green clusters of leaves give the room a tropical flair. Schefflera doesn't need any fertilizer, yet grows quickly to 4 to 6 feet (1.2 to 1.8 m) tall and can be cut back and shared. Provide bright light, low moisture, and rich soil. Variegated umbrella plant, S. arboricola, is a dwarf variety with smaller leaf clusters and creamy variegation.
  • Pothos is an easy beginner plant that offers different cultivars of variegated, vining plants. Pothos is an air-purifying plant that thrives in bright light with low water needs.
    • "Marble Queen" has white leaves with green splashes of color.
    • "Njoy Regular" has distinct white and green variegation with smaller leaves than other pothos.
  • Beaucarnea recurvata, or ponytail palm, has a large bulb or caudex that stores water, making this a welcome, drought-tolerant plant. The dark green, strappy leaves grow up and out like a fountain. It thrives in bright light and a cactus soil mix. It can grow 6 to 8 feet (1.8 to 2.4 m) tall.

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Susan Albert
Writer

After graduating from Oklahoma State University with a degree in English, Susan pursued a career in communications. In addition, she wrote garden articles for magazines and authored a newspaper gardening column for many years. She contributed South-Central regional gardening columns for four years to Lowes.com. While living in Oklahoma, she served as a master gardener for 17 years.