Low light hanging plants are a great option if you’re living in a tiny space. They purify the air and provide oxygen which is great during the darker months when people are inside more often. Check out this list of 20 beautiful plants that are well-suited for hanging and can tolerate low light.
Since my favorite way to display plants is in hanging pots, I love finding plants that will thrive in every corner of the home… even the low light corners.
I also make and sell macrame plant hangers so I love finding fun pots and sticking beautiful plants into them to show off my newly created piece.
Before we get into the list and start dreaming of our indoor plant haven, let’s consider a few things. First, while all of these plants can tolerate and even thrive in low light, most of them will grow faster with medium to bright indirect light. Some plants may also display more dull colors in a very low light situation.
That being said, I would still rather have a plant in my low light locations rather than not. You can experiment with plant placement in your home to see where each variety thrives (or survives, if you’re looking for a suiter for that dark corner.)
There are certainly more options than the ones listed here, but in this post, I share my favourite finds: plants that I would legitimately spend money on and hang in my own home. Let’s dive in!
Low Light Indoor Hanging Plants:
Pothos and philodendrons
1. Golden Pothos (Devil’s ivy)
We have to start with the golden pothos. This seems to be the quintessential low light indoor hanging plant. It’s often someone’s first houseplant because of its easy care and simple beauty.
This plant is resilient and can really thrive with basic care!
Before moving on, let’s discuss pothos care. The basics are to place your plant in indirect light and water when the top half of the soil is dry. You can dig your finger down into the dirt, and water it if you don’t feel any moisture. This is usually every 1-2 weeks depending of course on your homes atmosphere.
2. Snow Queen pothos
One thing I love about pothos plants is that they display endless variety. I love the look of the Snow Queen pothos; how it has a more unique and striking appearance than the common golden pothos.
This plant also will likely tolerate low light. However, less green on the leaves means that it may have a harder time in low light than its greener relatives. It may actually become more green to accommodate the lower light.
It is also worth mentioning that in between the Snow Queen and golden pothos, there is a Marble Queen pothos. This is variegated, but with more yellows and greens instead of white.
3. Neon pothos
Like other pothos, the neon pothos is great for hanging because it loves to trail. The bright green leaves allow it to tolerate lower light. However, the leaves may become paler or smaller if it is too light-restricted. Still, I would consider this a good candidate as a low light indoor hanging plant.
4. Satin pothos
The satin pothos, sometimes called the silver pothos, is another beautiful variation on the common golden pothos. The dark green leaves with silver speckles set this elegant house plant apart.
And the best part? The satin pothos also can thrive in low light conditions and loves to trail out of its hanging pot!
Now, there are even more pothos varieties than these. Check out some other varieties and care instructions from Bloomscape here.
5. Heart-Leaf Philodendron
Next, we’ll move to a few varieties of philodendrons. As you can see, these beautiful green plants are similar to the pothos, but have some noticeable differences. The primary difference in appearance is the sharp angle at which the leaves bend away from the stems on the philodendron. In contrast, the pothos leaves gradually curve away from their stems.
The care, however, is the same. Place in indirect light (bright is preferred, but it can do well in low light) and water when the top half of the soil is dry. These plants do not like to be overwatered, so be sure to use a pot with drainage holes or stones in the bottom so the water has somewhere to sit away from the plant roots.
6. Philodendron Brasil
Here you’ll see another variety of philodendron – the philodendron Brasil. The thick stripes of contrasting green give this plant a unique and spunky look!
This low-light tolerant plant is lovely in a hanger because of its full leaves and trailing vines. Each plant has its own tendencies, but philodendrons can end up trailing many, many (like 20) feet if you let them.
And as with the pothos, there are many varieties of philodendrons. However, these two seem the most ideal for hanging.
Low light indoor hanging plants:
Ferns
7. Boston fern
Now let’s talk about a different type of low light indoor hanging plant altogether. Ferns.
While many varieties of ferns are a great choice as an indoor plant, the Boston fern seems to be the most popular. Its lighter stems allow it to “droop” more naturally in a hanging plant.
The care for Boston ferns is basic. However, it is different from pothos/philodendron care. Ferns like to stay moist in order to thrive. If their roots dry out, they may start dropping leaves quickly… no fun.
You can keep them happy by watering regularly (about once per week indoors), and even misting them with a spray bottle periodically. To get more specific, you’ll want to water your fern when the top 25% of the soil is dry (in contrast to the top 50% with pothos).
8. Kimberly Queen Fern
Next in line is the Kimberly Queen fern. As you’ll notice, it looks very similar to the Boston fern. However, there are some important differences. The main difference is that the Kimberly Queen fern has stiffer leaves. This causes it to be generally more resilient (even tolerating direct sunlight), and causes it to grow more upwards than the Boston fern.
Many people use this as an outdoor plant, but I would try it indoors for its strong and full appearance. I really enjoy plants that take up a lot of real estate (although that becomes a problem since I live in a tiny house on wheels.. oh well!).
And lastly, the care instructions are the same as for the Boston fern.
9. Bird’s nest Fern
Lastly, we have the bird’s nest fern. This unique fern (that doesn’t really look like a fern, in my opinion), can also do well in low light. Also, the full, long leaves would be lovely in a hanging pot.
As with other ferns, the bird’s nest fern needs continual moisture. So, be sure to water frequently, when the top inch or so of the soil is dry. To avoid soggy soil (which ferns do not like), water around the edges of the pot.
Also, an important difference in caring for the bird’s nest fern is that you want to avoid wetting the leaves. This plant will not like being misted like its relatives listed above.
Low light INDOOR hanging plants:
Succulents
I LOVE succulents. If you have a hard time raising and keeping plants alive, succulents are definitely for you!
Although I only mention a select few, there are many many others that look lovely in a hanging pot and only need a tad bit of natural light. BUt the ones listed below are some of the best for sprawling out over the pot it lives in.
10. String of pearls
Being a succulent, the string of pearls is happy with dry air, and only needs to be watered when the soil is completely dry. While it would prefer medium to bright indirect light, it can do well in lower light.
11. String of tears
Very similar to String of Pearls is its relative; String of Tears. The difference is the shape of the leaves. As you can see, the small succulent leaves on the String of Tears are elongated rather than circular.
To be thorough, there is also a String of Bananas succulent with even more elongated leaves. I personally would stick with one of these two varieties, but that is entirely a personal preference.
12. Snake plant
Though I almost skipped over the snake plant because of its height, I had to include it because of its tolerance to low light. In fact, the snake plant can tolerate everything from low light to direct sunlight! That is one resilient plant, my friends.
Because of this, I would definitely consider hanging a smaller variety of the snake plant in a low light location, knowing that it will likely look healthy and great at all times! Also, it should grow slower with less light, making it “hangable” for longer.
Snake plants are one of my all time favourites because it’s so dang easy to care for and the benefits are amazing. You can check out a whole post I wrote about snake plants here.
Other low light indoor hanging plants
Lastly in this post, we’ll look at a variety of other mostly-unrelated plants well suited for hanging and tolerating low light. I have personal experience with some, and the others are definitely on my “when the plant (and space) budget allows” list!
13. Spider Plant
The spider plant tops this list of “other” low light indoor hanging plants. It’s said to be a great beginner’s plant because it’s generally easy to care for and adaptable to different conditions.
Before moving on, let’s talk about spider plant care. It is quite simple. Place in indirect light (moderate to bright is preferred, will tolerate low) and water when the top half of the soil is dry. Be sure to use a pot with drainage because spider plant roots are sensitive to root rot.
14. Dracaena Limelight
Next on our list is the dracaena limelight. While many dracaena plants are tall, even with wooded stems, this compact dracaena would be perfect for hanging indoors in a lower light location.
This neat plant can tolerate a variety of lighting situations; from low indirect light even to moderate direct light.
The dracaena limelight is a slow grower with easy care. You simply water when the top 75% of soil is dry. Again, use a pot with drainage as this plant is also susceptible to root rot.
15. Nerve Plant (Fittonia)
Now, this is a fun little family of plants. With there being many different varieties of nerve plants – with different shapes, sizes, and colors of leaves – you’re sure to find one you enjoy!
The catch is that some consider these plants to be more challenging than other houseplants. Still, others say they’re easy! Either way, I wanted to include it on this list because it can thrive under low light (some say even under only fluorescent lights, though I’ve never tried it myself).
The trick with nerve plants is to keep them properly moist. Being native to the bright shade of a rainforest, they like to be humid. If your bathroom has any light, this would be a great place to hang a nerve plant.
Wherever your nerve plant lives, water when the top half of the soil is dry. The leaves might go limp if it gets too thirsty, but they should perk up quickly after watering!
16. Calathea freddie
Next up are a few varieties of calathea plants. While there are many varieties of calathea, I’ve only included a couple that appear to be short enough for hanging.
The first variety to mention is the calathea Freddie. Apparently, this plant was bred for low light. And it looks to be affordable. Perfect!
When your plant is small, it will likely do well hanging in a lower light location. However, it may eventually get too tall and need a new home.
This also is a tropical plant and enjoys humidity. Water when the top 25% of the soil is dry and consider misting for added humidity. Like most plants, the calathea plants thrive in medium to bright indirect light but will tolerate low light.
17. Calathea rattlesnake
Sometimes called the Rattlesnake Plant, this spunky calathea could do really well as a hanging plant with its long, extending leaves and shorter body.
Similar to its relatives, this plant prefers indirect bright light. However, it can tolerate lower light.
The care instructions are the same as with the Freddie: water when the top 25% of the soil is dry and consider misting for added humidity. If you’re interested, you can explore many other varieties here.
18. Baby Rubber Plant
Often called its scientific name, Peperomia Obtusfolia, the “baby rubber plant” is an adorable, easy, versatile indoor plant.
It likes to grow and can easily be propagated from trimmings or by splitting the plant. This means more baby rubber plants! It’s easy to prune and could be pruned to fit in a hanging pot for as long as you like.
With its easy care – simply water when the top 50-75% of the soil is dry – the baby rubber plant might just be the ideal low light indoor hanging plant.
19. Creeping fig
Now, I just had to include this picturesque hanging plant, pouring out of its pot. The creeping fig loves to… well, creep! And grow, and trail.
These plants do prefer bright indirect light. But they can do well in low light. However, they might grow more slowly and drop some leaves. If the leaf-droppage is significant, it might be time to find a slightly brighter home for your creeping fig.
They desire consistent watering, so water about once per week in the spring and summer, and a bit less over the fall and winter.
There is a catch, however. With rapid growth, these plants aren’t designed to survive more than a few years. To get around this sadness, you could regularly propagate the long vines to have fresh, baby plants to replace the old one when it dies off. OR, if you’re anything like me, it’ll die before then anyway like all of your other plants and you need a new one regardless haha!
20. Rex Begonia
And finally, we saved the most interesting one for last: rex begonia. I can’t get over their popping colors!
It’s the common story with lighting – they prefer medium to bright indirect light but can do well in low light.
However, the water care is a bit unique with these in that they like humidity, but do not enjoy misting and only need to be watered when the top 50-75% of the soil is dry.
Placing a tray of pebbles and some water beneath the plant can help meet its humidity needs. A room humidifier would be more useful if your rex begonia is hanging.
A closing note on low light hanging plants
Well, there you have it! 20 beautiful choices for low light hanging plants.
As I mentioned in this post, I didn’t list all of the choices, and I currently own a few not on this list that I’m really enjoying for their low light success! But this list is great to get started.
I hope that this overview has inspired you in your houseplant journey! I know I’m excited to try some new plants ASAP!
Another post you might like
11 SNAKE PLANT BENEFITS YOU’LL FALL IN LOVE WITH
I hope these 11 snake plant benefits help you discover how resilient and easy this succulent is AND that it can add more than just beauty to your home! It’s so easy, even I can keep them alive.. and that says a lot!
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Shoutout to my friend Amelia for her contributions and insight within this post! Thanks girl!
I love this list! I’m always wondering what plants will work for certain spaces. Thank you!
Im glad you found it helpful!
I love greenery and just plain love having active life around me. Sterile environments are just so depressing and fighting the blues in winter is important for anyone in a colder environment