I’m sorry, I’m going to say it. I just can’t hold it back. If you’re asking how much light houseplants need, I just have to answer with:
How long is a piece of string?
There are thousands of varieties of houseplants. Admittedly we only really choose plants from a very small selection but still, you can’t be expected to know the perfect light conditions for each plant. Let alone actually have the perfect conditions for it.
Sunlight is the number one requirement for a plant. All plants require light for photosynthesis, the process within a plant that converts light, carbon dioxide and water into energy.
This energy is used by the plant to grow, as well as produce flowers and seeds. Without enough light, a plant will not grow.
So, How Much Light Do Houseplants Need?
Alright, this question isn’t going to go away is it?
You’ve all seen the very rough guidelines on the side of plant pots that tell you what level of light a houseplant needs.
Terms like ‘Direct Light’ and ‘Bright Indirect Light‘ get thrown at you as if you know exactly what they are.
But in general, houseplants need more light than you think. Don’t expect good things to happen if you bring a houseplant home and sit it on a shelf in your living room. Unless your living room is incredibly bright, or your shelf is right next to a window. In which case, do expect good things.
That turned out as a terrible analogy.
The best way to understand how much light you have in your home is to measure it.
A free app on your phone will give you a rough idea, but it’s not very accurate. If you’re serious about keeping houseplants and help them thrive then you might want to get a light meter.
I use an Urceri light meter [US link, UK link], but have also used this Dr Meter light meter [US Link, UK Link] in the past and both do a good job in terms of accuracy and useability.
When I moved to a new home recently, I simply went around the house measuring the light in places that were obviously well-lit and that I could feasibly place a plant or two.
When you have a light meter you will truly understand how rapidly the light levels drop off as you move away from a window.
Keep this in mind: The darkest shade outdoors is still lighter than the brightest light indoors.
The light meter will measure in both lux and foot-candles. We want to foot-candle (FC) measurement.
A measurement of 50 FC would be low light and anything over 1,000 FC is bright for an indoor setting. To give you an idea of the difference between indoors and outdoors, a low reading outdoors would be 2,000 FC, going up to 30,000 FC in bright conditions.
What this all means is that houseplants will take as much light as you can give them when they are indoors. The only thing you need to control is how much direct sunlight they get.
..houseplants will take as much light as you can give them when they are indoors. The only thing you need to control is how much direct sunlight they get.
Some plants will be happy in the sun all day, some will not want any sun at all.
At the bottom of the article, I have made a table of how much direct sunlight some of the most common plants will tolerate.
How Do You Give Your Houseplants The Right Amount of Sun?
The obvious answer is to choose a spot that gives them the right amount of sun.
A South-facing window is going to give a lot of sun throughout the day. An East or West-facing window will give sun for part of the day. A North-facing window will not give any direct sun.
There are ways you can bend the sun to your will. By having sheer curtains over a window, this prevents the full force of the sun hitting your houseplants.
There are ways you can bend the sun to your will. By having sheer curtains over a window, this prevents the full force of the sun hitting your houseplants.
You can also arrange plants in a cluster with the direct-light-loving ones next to the window, and plants that prefer less direct sun behind them so that they only get dappled sun through the leaves of the first plant.
If you have the time and energy to move your plants around (not many people do!) then you could try that if it means you have your houseplant in the most desirable location for most of the day. The trouble is that you might forget and the results could be disastrous for the plant!
What If There Just Isn’t Enough Light?
If you don’t have anywhere that has enough light to help your plants thrive, or you’ve filled up all the best spots with other plants, what do you do?
The last resort is to use artificial lights. There are some pros and cons to doing this.
Pros:
- You can have your houseplants literally anywhere in your home.
- You have complete control over how much light your houseplants receive.
Cons:
- It is an extra cost to your houseplant care (although fairly minimal).
- It is hard to get artificial lighting that also looks good!
That last point is also a turn-off for me. It’s pretty easy to set up artificial lighting for you plants, but then you have unsightly, cable-strewn lighting rigs cluttering up your decor.
I really dislike the idea of using plants specifically for decor purposes but on the flip side, I love the way they look and a light connected to a twisted cable just ruins it!
You can get some more attractive set ups for your artificial houseplant lighting, but it is never perfect.
However, if that is your only path of action, other than moving home, then you may have to go for it.
The time at which your plants get their light isn’t all that important. With this in mind, you could have some artificial lighting that gets brought out at times when you are not using the room. Clip-on grow-lights are perfect for this purpose and I use these Vogek lights for some of my houseplants [US Link, UK Link].
Summary
How much light do houseplants need? As much as you can give them, but be careful of the amount of direct sun they are getting.
How much light do houseplants need? As much as you can give them, but be careful of the amount of direct sun they are getting.
Use a light meter to really understand the amount of light every part of your home receives during the day.
If you don’t have enough light in your home, consider using artificial lighting. But this doesn’t have to be out all the time if you don’t like it.
It all comes down to how committed you are to keeping and nurturing your houseplants.
Do you want to be a good and wise houseplant parent? Then invest in the areas that matter most.
Starting with light!
Direct Sun Tolerance By Houseplant
| Houseplant | Hours of Direct Sun Tolerated |
| African Violets | 2-3 hours |
| Air Plants | 3-4 hours |
| Alocasia (Elephants Ear) | 3-4 hours |
| Aspidistra (Cast-Iron Plant) | 1-2 hours |
| Areca Palm | 3-4 hours |
| Begonia | 1-2 hours |
| Bird-Of-Paradise | 4-5 hours |
| Calathea | 1-2 hours |
| Croton | 4-5 hours |
| Dracaena | 3-4 hours |
| English Ivy | 2-3 hours |
| Hoya | 3-4 hours |
| Ferns | 1-2 hours (but keep soil moist) |
| Ficus (Rubber Plant, Fiddle Leaf Fig) | 3-4 hours |
| Maranta (Prayer Plant) | 2-3 hours |
| Monstera Deliciosa | 2-3 hours |
| Norfolk Island Pine | 2-3 hours |
| Parlour Palm | 1-2 hours |
| Peace Lily | 1-2 hours |
| Peperomia | 2-3 hours |
| Pilea Peperomioides | 2-3 hours |
| Pothos | 3-4 hours |
| Sansevieria (Snake Plant) | 5-6 hours |
| Spider Plant | 2-3 hours |
| Succulents | 5-6 hours |
| Yucca | 3-4 hours |
| ZZ Plant | 3-4 hours |