The Best Houseplants for Your Health (2024)

The best indoor plants rid the space of harmful chemicals. Plus, many of these are hardy and low-maintenance, a benefit for beginners.

Snake Plant

Sansevieria trifasciata, also known as the snake plant or mother-in-law’s tongue, is an evergreen perennial (meaning it grows in all seasons) identified by its pointed leaves, growing up to 4 feet tall.

Health benefits: Snake plants can remove certain amounts of air pollutants such as benzene (a flammable, colorless or light yellow chemical), formaldehyde (a colorless, flammable gas that can cause irritation and cancer) and, to a lesser extent, trichloroethylene (or TCE, a colorless, carcinogenic organic chemical), as found by a 1989 study from the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA)^[1]Wolverton BC, Johnson A, Bounds K. Interior Landscape Plants for Indoor Air Pollution Abatement. Published August 1, 1989. .

How to care for it: Snake plants thrive in warm, bright areas, but can endure some shade or low light as well. They should be watered regularly in spring and summer, and less fall through winter.

Golden Pothos

Epipremnum aureum, also called golden pothos or devil’s ivy, can be differentiated by the added gold/yellow to the pothos’ broad, heart-shaped leaves.

Health benefits: In the previously mentioned NASA study, golden pothos was found to somewhat filter formaldehyde and TCE from the surrounding air. It removed 73% of benzene from the air, and still performed well without its full foliage^[1]Wolverton BC, Johnson A, Bounds K. Interior Landscape Plants for Indoor Air Pollution Abatement. Published August 1, 1989. .

How to care for it: Golden pothos does best in medium to high indirect light and a humid environment. Wait until the soil is halfway dry to thoroughly soak the soil, allowing it to drain. Cut any discolored or damaged leaves and stems.

Bamboo Palm

Chamaedorea seifrizii, or bamboo palm, parlor palm or reed palm, can grow up to 6.5 feet tall indoors, is non-toxic and has narrow, lance-shaped leaves that grow up and out from the central stalk(s).

Health benefits: NASA’s study found Chamaedorea seifrizii successfully removed formaldehyde, benzene and TCE from surrounding air (listed in descending order of efficacy)^[3]Wolverton BC, Johnson A, Bounds K. Interior Landscape Plants for Indoor Air Pollution Abatement. Published August 1, 1989. .

How to care for it: Bamboo palms prefer bright indirect light in warmer temperatures. Water once the soil is mostly dry and let the water drain through. Remove any excess water to avoid standing water.

Spider Plant

Chlorophytum comosum, or the spider plant, is non-toxic and has long narrow, typically striped leaves. Perennial spider plants grow 12 to 15 inches tall and produce small white star-shaped flowers.

Health benefits: Across several studies, spider plants have been shown to remove toxins from indoor air, including particulate matter, formaldehyde^[4]Giese M, Bauer-Doranth U, Langebartels C, Sandermann H Jr. Detoxification of Formaldehyde by the Spider Plant (Chlorophytum comosum L.) and by Soybean (Glycine max L.) Cell-Suspension Cultures. Plant Physiol. 1994;104(4):1301-1309. ^[5]Li J, Zhong J, Liu Q, et al. Indoor formaldehyde removal by three species of Chlorophytum comosum under dynamic fumigation system: part 2-plant recovery. Environ Sci Pollut Res Int. 2021;28(7):8453-8465. , nitrogen dioxide, carbon oxide, ozone, xylene^[6]Wolverton BC, Johnson A, Bounds K. Interior Landscape Plants for Indoor Air Pollution Abatement. Published August 1, 1989. , benzene^[7]Cornejo, J.J., Muñoz, F.G., Ma, C.Y. et al. Studies on the Decontamination of Air by Plants. Ecotoxicology 8, 311–320 (1999). , toluene, cigarette smoke and ammonia^[8]Gawrońska H, Bakera B. Phytoremediation of particulate matter from indoor air by Chlorophytum comosum L. plants. Air Qual Atmos Health. 2015;8(3):265-272. ^[9]Peart V. Indoor Air Quality in Florida: Houseplants to Fight Pollution. University of Florida IFAS EXTENSION. Published September 2003. ^[10]Costa P, Eng C, James RW (1995). Constructive use of vegetation in office buildings. Proceedings the plants for people symposium, 23 XI 1995, Haga, Holandia, pp: 1–23. 12. .

How to care for it: Spider plants do well indoors with medium to bright light in cool to average temperatures and can live in soil or a soilless environment. Because it grows quickly, it requires frequent repotting.

Dracaena

There are several dracaena varieties, but they all tend to grow leaves upward and outward from a central stalk or cane.

Health benefits: Three dracaena varieties—Dracaena marginata, Dracaena deremensis (now known as Dracaena fragrans) and Dracaena massangeana—were found by NASA to remove TCE from the air; deremensis and marginata were also found to remove benzene and formaldehyde. The ‘Janet Craig’ variety of Dracaena deremensis stands out for removing 79% of benzene from the air^[11]Wolverton BC, Johnson A, Bounds K. Interior Landscape Plants for Indoor Air Pollution Abatement. Published August 1, 1989. .

How to care for it: Many dracaena plants, including Dracaena fragrans, thrive in low to medium indirect light; others such as Dracaena marginata prefer bright indirect light, but can still survive in low light. Water a dracaena with distilled water or rainwater when the soil is about 75% dry, and allow water to drain through. Avoid exposing the plant to cold or hot air.

Ferns

Ferns include thousands of species and reproduce via spores. Ferns are non-toxic, leafy and stay small or grow more like a tree, depending on the species.

Health benefits: Studies show ferns, especially the Japanese royal fern or zenmai, have strong air purification qualities, specifically when removing formaldehyde^[12]Lee CH, Shin SL. Functional Activities of Ferns for Human Health. Working with Ferns. 2010;347-359. . The Boston fern has also shown to be a strong proponent for removing carbon dioxide from its indoor environment^[13]Armijos-Moya T, de Visser P, Ottelé M, van den Dobbelsteen A, Bluyssen PM. Air Cleaning Performance of Two Species of Potted Plants and Different Substrates. App Sci. 2021;12(1):284. .

How to care for it: Ferns thrive in warm, humid climates and don’t need much light. Ferns should be kept in moist soil, requiring frequent misting.

English Ivy

An invasive outdoor plant, English ivy (Hedera helix) can be grown as an evergreen, typically fast-growing, houseplant. There are hundreds of types of English ivy that vary in shape and color, but ivies are typically identified by its climbing vines and broad, flat leaves.

Health benefits: English ivy removed the highest percentage of benzene from the air, at nearly 90%, compared to other plants tested in the NASA study, and is also able to remove TCE and formaldehyde^[14]Wolverton BC, Johnson A, Bounds K. Interior Landscape Plants for Indoor Air Pollution Abatement. Published August 1, 1989. .

How to care for it: English ivy thrives in bright indirect light and consistently mild temperatures. English ivies can be misted daily, watered when soil is partially dry and pruned without harming the plant.

Note: This list is intended to educate on the benefits of certain plants through normal houseplant use. The following are toxic and should not be consumed by pets: The snake plant, golden pothos, dracaena and English ivy.

On top of purifying the air we breathe, just having plants around you can offer different health benefits.

Lowered stress. Studies have associated living in greener environments with a lower risk of depression, aggression, cardiovascular disease and anxiety disorders^[15]Cohen-Cline H, Turkheimer E, Duncan GE. Access to green space, physical activity and mental health: a twin study. J Epidemiol Community Health. 2015;69(6):523-529. ^[16]Maas J, Verheij RA, de Vries S, Spreeuwenberg P, Schellevis FG, Groenewegen PP. Morbidity is related to a green living environment. J Epidemiol Community Health. 2009;63(12):967-973. ^[17]Weinstein N, Balmford A, DeHaan CR, Gladwell V, Bradbury RB, Amano T. Seeing Community for the Trees: The Links among Contact with Natural Environments, Community Cohesion, and Crime. BioScience. 2015;65(12):1141-1153. ^[18]de Vries S, Ten Have M, van Dorsselaer S, van Wezep M, Hermans T, de Graaf R. Local availability of green and blue space and prevalence of common mental disorders in the Netherlands. BJPsych Open. 2016;2(6):366-372. .

A small study in young men also found that tending to a live indoor plant lowered participants’ blood pressure and made them feel more comfortable and soothed compared to typing out a word document on a computer^[19]Lee MS, Lee J, Park BJ, Miyazaki Y. Interaction with indoor plants may reduce psychological and physiological stress by suppressing autonomic nervous system activity in young adults: a randomized crossover study. J Physiol Anthropol. 2015;34(1):21. .

Other studies have found that having lots of plants in a room (office or hospital ward) correlates with a perceived increase in comfort, lower blood pressure, improved psychological state and a positive attitude of employees and patients, says Julia Omelchenko, the resident botanist expert for the NatureID app.

Improved attention and concentration. One small study of elementary school students associated exposure to live plants with improved attention and concentration and feelings of comfort compared to fake plants, pictures of plants or no plants at all^[20]Oh YA, Kim SO, Park SA. Real Foliage Plants as Visual Stimuli to Improve Concentration and Attention in Elementary Students. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health. 2019;16(5):796. . Other studies have found that green environments may help restore concentration, even in children with attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD)^[21]Hartig T, Mitchell R, de Vries S, Frumkin H. Nature and health. Annu Rev Public Health. 2014;35:207-228. ^[22]de Vries S, Verheij R. Residential green space associated with the use of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder medication among Dutch children. Front Psychol. 2022;13:948942. .

Increased humidity. Plants can increase indoor humidity, which is good both for them and our respiratory system. Low humidity causes the mucous membranes to dry out, hindering them from protecting the human body against bacteria, viruses and allergens.

“I recommend that everyone at least tries taking care of plants,” says Omelchenko. “Choose easy-to-care-for, unpretentious and resistant plants at first, as they won’t put a strain on you with their high care demands.”