Best Plant Care Apps in 2025

Some of the best plant care apps are PlantIn, Plant Parent, Plantfie, Planta, and LeafSnap. They’ve earned their place because they make everyday care easier. These apps let you keep track of schedules, spot problems early, and even offer guidance when your green friends look a little off. In short, they help your greenery thrive without constant Googling.

For this article, we’ve narrowed it down to five apps that really stood out in 2025. We based our picks on real reviews, ratings, and how valuable their free features actually are. We also looked at extra tools, like light meters, expert support, and task tracking, that make caring for your greens less of a chore. Here’s what each app does well, where it falls short, and how it can fit into your routine.

What Do the Best Apps for Plant Care Actually Do?

Think about it: today, there’s practically an app for everything. Want to meditate, cook, track your steps, or even identify a bird? You can. So why should tending to your leafy companions be any different? The best plant apps combine multiple functions to cover nearly every aspect of plant health.

• Reminders for watering, pruning, fertilizing, and repotting.
• Identification features that can tell you what you’re growing (or what you just impulse-bought at the nursery).
• Health diagnostics, usually powered by AI, to figure out why leaves are curling, browning, or turning spotty.
• Light meters that measure how much sunlight a space actually gets (spoiler: it’s often less than we think).
• Expert support – sometimes a real human, sometimes AI, sometimes both.
• Community spaces to swap tips or just show off your thriving greenery.

The idea is simple: reduce guesswork, provide actionable guidance, and help your greenery thrive. With these tools, even beginners can feel confident tackling a jungle of greens.

5 Best Plant Care Apps to Try This Year

With dozens of options available, narrowing down the field to just five was tough. We focused on apps that strike the right balance between usability, feature set, and value – without turning your phone into a constant notification nightmare. Here’s what stood out after extensive testing.

PlantIn

If you’re looking for an all-in-one solution, PlantIn covers virtually every need. Want to organize your collection? Done. Need reminders for watering, fertilizing, pruning, or repotting? Done. Curious about a new leaf showing signs of stress? Snap a photo, and PlantIn’s AI-driven health diagnosis can help, with optional consultations from real botanists.

You can create collections, track growth, and add potential new additions to your wishlist. And despite its rich feature set, the interface is intuitive and simple to navigate. The app is synced across iOS, Android, and web platforms, so your data follows you wherever you go.

Platforms: iOS, Android, Web

Pros:

• Reminders for watering, misting, fertilization, pruning, and repotting.
• Personalized care schedules for each species.
• Treatment plans from real botanists for sick plants.
• Community feature for sharing photos or asking questions.

Cons:

• No info on allergens.
• You can’t track care tasks offline.

Plant Parent

This application is clearly built with beginners in mind. The interface is simple and easy to navigate, and the app offers free courses that cover the basics of common houseplants – light requirements, watering habits, and how to avoid common mistakes. The care schedules can be customized or generated automatically. The ID tool works reasonably well, but it isn’t the most reliable one. Plant Parent’s free version includes enough features to be genuinely helpful without overwhelming you with ads or paywalls.

Platforms: iOS, Android

Pros:

• A lot of helpful info for beginners.
• The free version doesn’t feel limited.
• Flexible scheduling (smart suggestions or custom plans).

Cons:

• Care reminders only cover watering and fertilization.
• Their DIY treatments lack safety guarantees.

Plantfie

Ever wish tracking your collection felt like a game? Plantfie delivers. Every identified species gets added to your personal “discovered plants” collection. You can also create custom entries if the app can’t identify a species. It also covers disease diagnosis, care reminders, a light meter, and provides access to human botanists. The app doesn’t have a community feature, but users can comment on plant entries and exchange advice there. The two main drawbacks are its smaller database compared to other apps and the fact that it’s only available on iOS.

Platforms: iOS

Pros:

• Combines plant ID with care tools like a light meter, a water calculator, and disease diagnosis.
• Detailed blog articles for care guidance.
• All the identified species are saved in the “discovered plants” section.

Cons:

• Currently, it’s only available for iOS users.
• You can only save three plants in the free version.

Planta

Visually appealing and easy to navigate, Planta focuses on care planning and plant health. However, most tools (including identification and health diagnostics) are locked behind their premium subscription, with no free trial available. Free users can only set basic watering reminders and mark tasks as completed. On the other hand, the premium version allows sharing with family or a plant sitter and unlocks more detailed health guidance.

Platforms: iOS, Android

Pros:

• Slick and intuitive design.
• You can share your account with family or a plant sitter (premium only).

Cons:

• The free version feels very limited; you can only set watering reminders, and that’s it.
• No additional educational resources like guides or a blog.

LeafSnap

LeafSnap is another app that combines identification with basic care suggestions. Unfortunately, the free version is weighed down by aggressive ads. You can’t open the app without being hit with a banner, video, or upsell screen. Of course, this can be fixed with their subscription.

That said, it does cover a lot of ground: you can ID plants, mushrooms, and even insects. The reminders system lets you track almost anything – watering, fertilizing, pruning, rotating – but it doesn’t calculate optimal schedules. And while it has a blog, the content is pretty thin.

Platforms: iOS, Android

Pros:

• A ton of possible reminders you can set: watering, light, fertilizer, rotate, prune, repotting, mist, harvest, pesticide, and fungicide.
• You can identify plants, mushrooms, and insects.

Cons:

• Too many ads in the free version.
• No smart scheduling.

Here’s a short table to sum up what each app does best:

Next, let’s break it down by platform so you can find the best fit for your device!

Best Plant Care Apps for Android

The best Android plant apps are Plant Parent for flexible reminders and beginner tips, Planta for structured schedules and health guidance, Gardenize for tracking plants indoors and outdoors, PictureThis for accurate ID and care suggestions, and LeafSnap for recognition paired with customizable task alerts.

• Plant Parent is probably the easiest entry point for beginners. It keeps things simple with flexible reminders and short, clear lessons about watering, light, and other basics. If you’ve ever killed a plant by overwatering, this app can help you avoid repeating those mistakes.
• Planta. If you need some structure in your routine, try Planta. The free version gives you basic watering reminders, while the premium version also unlocks fertilizing tasks. And if you’re often away, you can share the account with a family member or friend. The app also has health guidance and diagnostics.
• Gardenize feels like a gardening diary. You can log plants with photos, map your beds or pots, and track seasonal tasks like pruning or harvesting. It’s especially useful if you have both indoor and outdoor plants and want a single place to organize everything.
• PictureThis. While PictureThis is often seen as an ID app, it’s also very strong when it comes to care. The app can spot pests and diseases from photos and suggest possible treatments. Along with that, it offers care tips for each plant you add. 
• LeafSnap. It combines identification with a flexible reminder system. You can set up alerts for almost any task – watering, pruning, rotating, fertilizing, even misting. But you’ll need to set everything up yourself, as the app doesn't have any recommended schedules.

Best Plant Care Apps for iPhone

On iPhone, the top picks are PlantIn for reminders, AI scans, and expert treatment plans, Planty for straightforward alerts and diagnostics, Greg for personalized schedules based on climate and location, Plantfie for all-in-one tools plus expert support, and Blossom for care guides, reminders, and health management.

• PlantIn. With PlantIn you get reminders for everything from watering to pruning, AI health scans, and even treatment plans from real botanists. It’s packed with features but still easy to use. Plus, you can find new friends with the Plant Hero community.
• Planty keeps things simple. With the free version, you can set watering reminders, and if you upgrade, there are also light and health check alerts. Aside from that, you can also identify greenery and diagnose health issues. 
• Greg. This one adapts to you and your environment. After adding your plants, it creates watering and fertilizing reminders based on your location and the weather. You can also set goals, like keeping care easy, staying balanced, or aiming for maximum growth.
• Plantfie. All the essentials are here: ID, reminders, health checks, and you can even get advice from real botanists. Despite the long feature list, it’s not hard to use at all! You can also add photos and notes to build a record of your greenery.
• Blossom is another great app that combines all the basics any gardener needs. It’s got a ton of detailed content on care, reminders and an ID tool. You can follow its suggested schedules or set your own for watering, fertilizing, and repotting. It can also help with health diagnosis so that you can keep track of everything in one place.

Common Plant Problems These Apps Can Solve

On paper, caring for greenery seems simple: water them, give them light, and occasionally feed or repot. But life happens – busy schedules, travel, or just forgetting when you last watered. The reality is that we already use our phones to manage most of our daily lives. So it’s only natural to use them for plants, too. Of course, plant care apps won’t solve every problem, but they can help with the most common ones:

• Forgetting watering schedules. With just a few plants, you might remember who needs water and when. But once you have more, it gets messy fast. Apps log each watering and send reminders so you don’t have to keep it all in your head. They won’t account for every variable (like extra heat in summer or different soil mixes), but they can help you stay consistent.
• Light struggles. Not every corner is plant-friendly, and most of us aren’t measuring lumens in our living rooms. A light meter feature can check whether your chosen spot is bright enough. Just know that these readings depend on your phone’s sensor, so they’re “good enough” rather than scientific.
• Routine care tasks. Fertilizing, repotting, and pruning – these jobs are easy to forget since they don’t happen every week. But with a plant app, you can schedule them as needed and get a notification when it’s time to tend to your greenies.
• Pest and disease identification. Snap a picture, and the app will suggest possible issues. It’s helpful in narrowing down the options, but not always 100% accurate. AI tools can still make mistakes. Luckily, some tools can connect you with human experts (PlantIn, Plantfie) if you need confirmation.
• Tracking progress. If you only have one pothos, it’s simple. But if you’ve got a dozen or more, remembering who got what treatment becomes a headache. With a specialized app, you can store notes and photos for each plant, so you can look back and see when it was repotted, treated, or fertilized.

Your phone won’t replace observation or experience any time soon, but with the help of the right app, everyday care can become easier to manage, especially when life gets busy.

What Is the Best Free Plant Care App?

Most plant care apps today are freemium. You get a basic set of tools for free, and more advanced features require a subscription. That’s true for all the apps in this list, but the free versions are still useful if you know their limits.

Here’s what you actually get for free with the five apps we tested:

• PlantIn. Free users can set reminders for up to three plants, do a limited number of identifications, and browse the community feed.
• Plant Parent. You can try all the features, including the light meter, but only a limited number of times before hitting the subscription wall.
• Plantfie. You’re limited to three slots in your collection and a capped number of identifications and health checks.
• Planta. Probably the most restricted of the group. Free users only get watering reminders and basic task logging. Everything else, including plant ID, is premium.
• LeafSnap. The free version runs on ads but lets you identify plants and set reminders. Premium removes ads and unlocks extras like the water calculator, mushroom and insect identification, and detailed health diagnostics.

So, what’s the best free app for plant care? If you’re looking for the least restricted experience, Plant Parent gives you the most flexibility before you have to pay. PlantIn is also solid for a small starter collection. If you don’t mind ads, LeafSnap is functional, though limited. The rest are worth trying, but the experience is better with a subscription.

Side-by-Side Comparison of the Best Plant Apps

After testing these tools, one thing became clear: they all aim to solve the same problems, but each takes a slightly different approach. To make it easier to see where they overlap (and where they don’t), here’s a quick comparison of the core features:

Note that just because a feature is listed, it doesn’t mean it works the same way across every app. For example, PlantIn’s reminders are tailored to each plant, while LeafSnap’s are basic and manual. Plantfie gives solid diagnostics, but Planta keeps health checks locked behind premium. On paper, they look similar, but in practice, the experience is very different.

Conclusion: What Is the Best Plant Care App

We tested and highlighted only the most reliable tools in this list, so whichever one you choose, you’ll have a solid experience. For an all-in-one solution that combines identification, care guidance, health diagnosis, reminders, and expert advice, PlantIn’s a great pick. That said, Plant Parent, Plantfie, Planta, and LeafSnap all also have strengths. Plant Parent is great for beginners, Plantfie makes collecting plants fun, Planta has shared accounts, and LeafSnap offers simple, quick identification. Whatever you’re looking for, there’s a best plant app to match.

FAQ

What Is the Best Plant Health App?

PlantIn, Plantfie, and Planta connect you with human experts who can provide professional treatment instructions.

What App Tells You How to Treat Plants?

All of the apps in this list offer some form of treatment guidance. Some rely on AI, while others have botanist-backed advice.

Are Free Plant Care Apps Enough?

It depends on your needs. For watering reminders and quick IDs, yes. But if you want full diagnostics, light meters, or unlimited plant slots, you’ll eventually need a paid plan. Free versions are still a good way to test what works for you.

What’s the Difference Between a Care App and an ID App?

Identification apps mostly just tell you what a plant is, sometimes without any guidance. Care-focused apps, on the other hand, help with watering, light, and general health. But now most apps blend both, so you can identify the species and care for it all in one place.

Do you already use one of these apps? Have you had a different experience than we did? Drop your thoughts in the comments! And if you end up trying PlantIn, tell us how it went. We’re always listening, and your feedback helps us make the app better for everyone. 💚