What size artificial plant or tree do I need?

Measure from the floor to the ceiling, take off around 30–40cm of clear space above the foliage and any height a planter will add, and the figure left is the tallest plant that will look comfortable in that spot. Then check the spread, because a plant's width decides whether it fits a corner or blocks a walkway. This guide explains how to measure, which height suits which position, and the sizing mistakes to avoid.

Compare popular plants and trees by size

These are some of our most popular plants and trees at each height. Sort by height or price, or show only products in stock.

In stock only Sort by Height: low to high Height: high to low Price: low to high Price: high to low

Image	Tree	Height	Spread	Starter pot	UV-stabilised	Price	Buy
	50cm Artificial Luxury Pine Bonsai Tree	50cm	60cm	19 (w) x 9 (h)	No	£69.99	View
	Artificial Monstera Plant - 60cm	60cm	60cm	12.5cm (d) x 11cm (h)	No	£22.99£24.99	View
	Artificial Bay Trees Natural Twist Trunk Topiary Bay Laurel Ball Tree	90cm	45cm	16cm (d) x 13cm (h)	No	£36.99	View
	100cm Large Fox's Aglaonema (Spotted Evergreen) Tree Artificial Plant	100cm	70cm	16cm (d) x 13cm (h)	No	£44.99	View
	120cm Twisted Trunk Artificial Japanese Fruticosa Style Ficus Tree	120cm	60cm	17cm (d) x 15cm (h)	No	£59.99	View
	120cm (4ft) Premium Artificial Areca Palm with pot	120cm	80cm	15cm (w) x 12cm (h)	No	£39.99	View
	150cm Twisted Trunk Artificial Japanese Fruticosa Style Ficus Tree	150cm	60cm	17cm (d) x 15cm (h)	No	£89.99	View
	150cm (5ft) Natural Look Artificial Bamboo Plants Trees - XL	150cm	60cm	16cm (w) x 13cm (h)	No	£53.99£59.99	View
	180cm (6ft) Artificial Bamboo Plants Trees - Natural Green XL	180cm	70cm	18cm (w) x 14cm (h)	No	£71.99£79.99	View
	180cm Premium Artificial Fiddle Leaf Fig Tree	180cm	70cm	19cm (d) x 18cm (h)	No	£119.99	View
	XXL Artificial Olive Tree 2m (200cm) With decorative planter	200cm	130cm	40cm (d) x 35cm (h)	No	£429.99	View
	260cm Artificial Coco Palm Tree	260cm	140cm	20cm (h) x 24cm (d)	No	£209.99	View

Live prices and stock. Heights are overall, from the bottom of the pot (or of the stem, for stem flowers and ferns) to the top of the leaves. Spreads are as arranged in our photos, and wired stems can be shaped wider or narrower.

Measuring your space

Ceiling height

Measure from the floor to the ceiling at the exact spot where the plant will stand, because sloping ceilings, beams and light fittings can take away more height than you expect. As a rule of thumb, leave around 30–40cm between the top of the foliage and the ceiling. With less clearance, a tree tends to look squeezed against the ceiling; with more, it has room to look natural.

Floor space

Measure the width and depth you have, and check them against each plant's spread. Our product pages give height and width as each plant is arranged in our photos. The height is the overall height, measured from the bottom of the pot to the top of the leaves, so you don't need to add anything for the pot the plant arrives in. For bare-stem products, which come without a pot, the height is the length of the stem. Many of our trees and plants have wired stems, so you can shape them a little narrower or wider, but a plant that is much wider than the space will always look crowded.

Planter height

Most of our plants and trees arrive in a weighted plastic starter pot. If you stand that pot inside a decorative planter, the plant may sit higher than it does on the floor, so add any extra height before you check the ceiling clearance. As a rule of thumb, choose a planter whose opening is a few centimetres wider than the starter pot, so the pot drops inside rather than resting on the rim. Our planter size guide explains how to match the two.

Ceiling height and maximum plant height

Take 40cm off your ceiling height to find the tallest plant that fits comfortably. If a planter will raise the plant, that lift counts towards the total. As a rule of thumb:

• 2.2m ceiling: plants up to about 180cm.
• 2.4m ceiling: plants up to about 200cm. A 180cm tree fits with room for a planter.
• 2.7m ceiling: plants up to about 230cm.
• 3m ceiling and above: plants up to 260cm, the height of our tallest trees.

Many UK homes have ceilings of around 2.3–2.4m, so a 150–180cm tree is usually the best fit for a floor corner, with room left for a planter. Save our tallest trees for high ceilings, stairwells, atriums and receptions.

Three worked examples

1. A living-room corner with a 2.4m ceiling: 240cm minus 40cm of clearance leaves 200cm. If the tree will stand in a planter that lifts it by 15cm, the limit becomes 185cm, so a 180cm tree fits, and a 150cm tree leaves more breathing space.
2. A hallway 130cm wide with a 2.3m ceiling: height is not the problem here. Keeping a 90cm walkway clear leaves 40cm, so the plant's width matters more than its height: choose one no more than about 40cm wide.
3. A reception with a 3m ceiling: 300cm minus 40cm leaves 260cm, so even our tallest trees fit. At this scale, a pair of 180–210cm trees often looks better than a single tree.

Height bands explained (cm and ft)

We sort our plants into height bands so you can shop by the space you have. Feet are rounded to the nearest inch or foot.

• Under 50cm (under 1ft 8in): shelves, desks, windowsills and bathroom shelves.
• 50–90cm (1ft 8in to 3ft): side tables, sideboards and floor accents beside a chair.
• 90–120cm (3ft to 4ft): beside a sofa, in a hallway or either side of a doorway.
• 120–150cm (4ft to 5ft): corners of most rooms and beside larger sofas.
• Over 150cm (over 5ft): floor corners in rooms with a standard ceiling. This band also includes our tallest plants.
• Large and tall trees (160cm and over): high ceilings, stairwells, atriums and receptions. Our tallest trees reach 260cm.

If you search in feet, remember that 6ft is about 183cm, so a 180cm tree is just under 6ft and a 150cm tree is just under 5ft.

How wide are plants at each height?

Taller plants are usually wider too, so check the floor space before you choose a height. Across our potted plants and trees, as arranged in our photos, typical spreads are:

• Under 50cm: about 25–40cm wide.
• 50–90cm: about 30–50cm wide.
• 90–120cm: about 40–70cm wide.
• 120–150cm: about 45–70cm wide.
• 150–180cm: about 60–80cm wide.
• 180cm and over: about 70–100cm wide, and some palms and banana trees spread more than that.

Shape changes the picture. Bamboo, spiral topiary and narrow ficus trees stay slim for their height, while palms and bushy trees spread wide. Where a plant has wired stems, you can bring it in by a few centimetres, but not by half, so choose a plant whose listed width is close to the space you have.

Choosing by position

Beside a sofa

As a rule of thumb, choose a plant that is taller than the back of the sofa, so it frames the sofa rather than hiding behind it. For most sofas, that means 90–150cm. A tree with a clear trunk and a canopy that starts above the sofa back keeps the seat area open.

Corners

An empty corner is the easiest place for a floor tree. In a room with a standard ceiling, 120–180cm fills the height without crowding the ceiling. Check the spread against the space between the walls: as arranged in our photos, most of our 180cm trees are 60–90cm wide.

Hallways and landings

Width matters more than height in a hallway. As a rule of thumb, keep a clear walkway of at least 90cm, and choose slim shapes such as bamboo, spiral topiary or a narrow ficus. The 150cm Artificial Twisted Ficus Tree, for example, is 40cm wide as arranged in our photos. Our hallway plants collection gathers suitable options.

Either side of a door

Matching pairs look best when they are the same height and shape. Ball, cone and spiral topiary at 90–120cm suits most doorways. For a front door or anywhere outside, choose only UV-stabilised plants, which are guaranteed against fading for one year; see our front door topiary.

Offices and receptions

Larger rooms need larger plants to hold their own, so look at 150cm and taller for reception areas, atriums and open-plan offices. Our office plants include smaller desk plants too. For commercial spaces where fire performance matters, see our fire-retardant plants guide.

Stairwells and landings with high ceilings

Double-height spaces are where our tallest trees work best. Measure from the floor where the tree will stand, not from the stairs, and check that the canopy won't overhang the handrail or the walking line.

Bedrooms

Bedrooms often have less free floor space than living rooms, so a 90–150cm plant in a corner or beside a chest of drawers is usually a better fit than a large tree. Keep plants clear of wardrobe doors and the space you walk through at night.

Kitchens and bathrooms

Worktops, windowsills and shelves suit plants under 50cm. Measure the gap under wall cupboards before you choose a worktop plant, because foliage pressed against the underside of a cupboard looks cramped. In a bathroom, a small plant on a shelf or a slim floor plant in a corner leaves room to move.

Shelves, desks and tables

Plants under 50cm suit shelves and desks, and trailing plants can hang over the edge of a high shelf. On a dining or coffee table, keep plants low enough for people to see over.

Pairs and groups

A group of plants at different heights often looks more natural than one plant on its own. As a rule of thumb, group three plants of clearly different heights, such as 60cm, 90cm and 150cm, with the tallest at the back. Our styling guide has more ideas.

If you are between two sizes

If two sizes both fit, think about where people will be. Next to seating, in a small room or anywhere people pass close by, the smaller size usually sits more comfortably. In a floor corner of a large room, under a high ceiling or at the far end of a long space, the larger size usually looks better, because plants look smaller from a distance.

A step-by-step check before you order:

1. Measure the ceiling height at the spot and take off 30–40cm.
2. Take off any height a planter will add.
3. Measure the width and depth you can give the plant, leaving walkways and doors clear.
4. Filter by height band, then compare widths in the table or on each product page.
5. Mark the height and width with masking tape and look at it from the doorway and from where you sit.

Common sizing mistakes

• Judging size from photos alone: plants photographed in a large room can look smaller than they are. Mark the plant out with tape before you order, as in the checklist above. If you are near Louth in Lincolnshire, you can also see our plants in person at our showroom: no appointment is needed Monday to Friday, 8am–4pm, and weekend visits are by appointment.
• Forgetting the planter: a planter that lifts the plant can push the top of a tall tree too close to the ceiling.
• Wide canopies in walkways: a tree that spreads 90cm or more can narrow a hallway or catch people as they pass.
• Ignoring the depth of a corner: a wide palm in a shallow corner is pushed forward into the room.
• Going too small on the floor: a floor plant under about 90cm can look lost in a large room, so raise small plants on a stand or group several together.

For more ideas, read our guide to choosing the correct height for artificial plants. Our artificial tree buying guide helps you choose a species, and our plants by room guide covers each room of the house.