A room doesn’t give off that indoor garden vibe without climbing indoor plants that run up your walls, drape over your bookshelf, or fill in an empty corner shelf by climbing up it and replacing what was once empty space with something vibrant and beautiful. Indoor vine plants give you a great vertical dimension to your green oasis that you need to bring a small piece of the tropics inside.
What’s more, a lot of climbing indoor plants that grow long are very tropical and exotic, and they bring the feel of a rainforest. But, which climbing indoor plants are best? A lot of the indoor climbing plants come from tropical regions, they’re easy to grow, and they tend to take off and grow very quickly once you establish them.
Some are extremely popular, like philodendron or pothos, and which ones you pick out will depend on the size, overall look, growing conditions, and how much light you have in a room. The plant range goes from longer vines that need very little light that you can place on top of your cupboard to smaller climbing indoor plants that love light and do best on a plant stand right in front of the window.
We’ve picked out 17 great choices for you, and each of the climbing indoor plants on the list will do just fine with normal temperatures and humidity levels that are common indoors. But first, let’s look and see what indoor vine plants can do for you.
Variegated Pothos by spurekar / CC BY 2.0
What Climbing Indoor Plants Can Offer You
If you walk into a room, the presence your climbing indoor plants offer will become apparent right away. Climbing plants give vertical green lines in your room, and this adds a whole new dimension to your room’s composition and design. Vines will work to smooth out the harder edges of your furniture, and they can make the whole room look much softer and more inviting.
Climbing indoor plants gives you a sense of integration between the furniture, room, and the plants you put in it. The leaves may partly cover a shelf, and in doing so, they help bring together different heights and layers. All of this lends to a sense of unity throughout the room. Climbers are essential to get that tropical look in your home.
Also, you get a sense that you have established plants with climbers. You know when a garden looks like it’s been there for ages? Climbers, particularly types of ivy, give this same look inside. With these plants, they’ll look like they’ve always been part of your decor. We’ll outline 17 great climbing indoor plants for you to consider below.
17 Popular Climbing Indoor Plants
The following 17 beautiful and eye-catching climbing indoor plants will help create a nice flow to your room and bring in a slight touch of the tropics, no matter where you chose to display them.
1. Betel Leaf Plant (Piper Betle)
The Betel leaf plant is a pretty climbing indoor plant, and it’s one that works well with a backdrop. It has emerald-green, heart-shaped leaves that form a fairly bushy and thick look. While it’s a beautiful plant, it has a much more temperate look than many vines you keep as houseplants, so it’s not as showy.
In spite of this fact, this is actually a tropical plant that comes from East and South Asia, and it’s popular there for medicinal purposes. For this reason, it will look great in any room in your home, including the kitchen. It adds a lot to your room’s composition, both in containers and pots. You can grow it inside or outside without an issue as long as it has partial shade and constant humidity levels.
- Light – Moderate indirect light is best, but it can stand indirect but bright light
- Propagation – Leaf cuttings
- Soil – Well-draining potting soil that is slightly acidic and very rich or sandy loam
- Water – Keep the soil moist without soaking it, and water it lightly each day. You can also use saucers to hold water for the plant.
Betel Leaf Plant by Denish C / CC BY-NC-ND 2.0
2. Brasil Philodendron (Philodendron hederaceum ‘Brasil’)
This climbing indoor plant is a cultivar of the very popular heartleaf philodendron, and this one is characterized by the vibrant medium to light green variegation all over the plant’s foliage. The care is very similar to the heartleaf philodendron, and it will do very well put in virtually any room in your home. The more light you give this plant, the more vigorous the variegation on the foliage will be to create a more eye-catching look. So, you want to try and avoid putting it in locations that get lower light or you’ll end up with very little variegation.
- Light – Medium to bright as long as it’s indirect
- Propagation – Leaf cuttings
- Soil – A very well-draining potting soil on the slightly acidic side
- Water – Water your plant a few times a week to keep the soil moist but not soaked.
Brasil Philodendron by Dan Jones / CC BY 2.0
3. Forest Cactus (Lepismium Bolivianum)
The forest cactus is a very unique-looking, evergreen climbing indoor plant. It looks very similar to a thin, light green cactus, but the stems will drop down into the containers and produce long, succulent-like leaves. So, in a way it does look like a cactus, but it also looks like a temperate trailing plant. It’s an excellent way to add an individual touch to your space, especially if the room is airy and light. It’s perfect to pop into your hanging basket or to put it in a container and allow it to spill down the side of your shelves. It will also produce pretty pink and white flowers.
- Light – Indirect but bright light. Avoid direct sunlight as it can burn the plant.
- Propagation – Woody stems and cuttings
- Soil – Well-drained cactus potting soil
- Water – Let half of your soil dry before you water it again
Forest Cactus by Francois Guibert / CC BY-NC-ND 2.0
4. Golden Pothos (Epipremnum Aureum)
Golden pothos is one of the most common climbing indoor plants for low-light situations. It offers green and gold heart-shaped leaves that have been in homes throughout the world for decades. It’s very easy to propagate and grow because all you need is to put a cutting in a vase of water and you’ll have a new plant form. So, you can easily double or triple your plants without buying new ones. It’s very easy to grow hydroponically and trim to help control the size. As a bonus, it can also help purify the air, so it is very well placed in a bedroom to help you sleep better.
- Light – It prefers to be in indirect but bright light. However, it adapts to low and medium light if you want to sacrifice leaf color.
- Propagation – Leaf cuttings
- Soil – Any general-purpose well-drained mix. Suitable for hydroponics.
- Water – Allo the soil to dry out between watering. Water once every two or three weeks.
Golden Pothos by Elvis Ripley / CC BY-NC 2.0
5. Grape Ivy (Cissus Rhombifolia)
Grapy ivy is a very small climbing indoor plant that has a very pretty foliage texture. In fact, a lot of the little leaves give a very delicate look when the light hits them, and they almost look like they’re glittering. This is a pretty plant to have in containers in your home. You can also get a taller version called Miniature Grape Ivy, and it offers small leaves that you can easily cut back to fit into small vases and pots, working desks, or on coffee tables with limited spaces. Both plants offer a medium growth rate, and thi can be handy as a lot of vines grow quick enough to need constant trimming to keep them in line. You can “forget” this plant and it won’t grow out of control.
- Light – This plant requires indirect but bright light. It can’t tolerate low light.
- Propagation – Stem cuttings
- Soil – Rich but well-drained potting mix. It does best in an African Violet potting mix.
- Water – Let the soil dry between watering. Generally, you’ll water once a week.
Grape Ivy by John Rusk / CC BY 2.0
6. Hoya Carnosa
This is one of the most popular and common climbing indoor plants you can grow. It has longer vines with waxy, thick leaves to make it a very attractive addition to your room. In the right growing condition, it’s a very low-maintenance option. One thing you should note with this plant is that it likes being slightly rootbound. So, you shouldn’t be afraid to leave it in the container for a few years at a time.
- Light – Indirect to bright light
- Propagation – Stem cuttings
- Soil – Well-draining, general-purpose potting soil
- Water – Allow the soil to thoroughly dry out between watering sessions
Hoya Carnosa by Fuad Al Ansari / CC BY-NC 2.0
7. Hoya Hearts (Hoya Kerrii)
Hoya hearts is a very pretty climbing indoor plant from the southeast area of Asia. As you may have guessed by the name, the leaves are a rich emerald green color, heart-shaped, and very glossy and smooth. The foliage shape makes it a very popular Valentine’s day plant, especially in the UK. Of course, it’s a very pretty looking outdoor vine, and it has an exotic look and feel. Most of the vines have no flowers or very small ones. However, this one will produce rounded inflorescences of stunning star-shaped flowers. They are white with a purple spot in the middle, and this lends to the look.
- Light – Flexible. It can withstand a few hours of direct light, as well as medium or bright indirect light. It won’t tolerate low light.
- Propagation – Leaf and stem cuttings
- Soil – 25% orchid bark, 25% perlite, and 50% generic potting soil
- Water – Only water when the top two inches of soil dry out
Hoya Hearts by Aaron Gustafson / CC BY-SA 2.0
8. Kangaroo Vine (Cissus Antarctica)
You can describe Kangaroo vine as breezy, fresh, or light. The leaves on this climbing indoor plant look very delicate, like they’re made out of cotton or a light material. They are heart-shaped with serrated, artistic edges. The colors are bright green and light, so it gives a very airy feel to a room. It has a bushy and herbaceous look, more like a temperate forest plant. It’s a great option for informal settings, and it thrives when you put it in the kitchen or any space with cream or white walls.
- Light – It prefers to be in indirect but bright light, but it can adapt to medium indirect lighting or low light.
- Propagation – Semi-softwood an softwood cuttings
- Soil – 30% leaf mulch, 10% coarse sand, and 60% generic potting soil
- Water – Lots of water during spring and summer with less water in winter. Mist it frequently when it’s growing and water thoroughly when the top inch of soil dries out.
Kangaroo Vine by Tim J Keegan / CC BY-SA 2.0
9. Mini Monstera (Rhaphidophora tetrasperma)
Even though this pretty little climbing indoor plant looks like a Monstera variety, it’s actually part a Raphidora tetrasperma, and this isn’t in the Monstera genus. The care and growth pattern is very similar, but it’s much smaller than your typical Monstera deliciosa. This makes it a great choice for apartments or smaller rooms in your home. They offer a climbing growth habit and will grow upwards over time, so you’ll have to put a trellis or stake in once they reach a few feet high for support so it doesn’t flop over.
- Light – Indirect but bright
- Propagation – Stem cutting
- Soil – Moist but well draining and slightly acidic
- Water – Water when the top two inches of soil dry out
Mini Monstera by Dan Jones / CC BY 2.0
10. Monstera deliciosa
This is a fabulous low maintenance climbing indoor plant for any home. This is an Instagram-worthy plant that features an upright growth habit, and it does best if you put in a trellis or moss pole for support as it grows so the aerial roots can latch onto something. This is a very forgiving plant too, and this makes it fabulous for beginners.
- Light – Medium to bright is preferred, but it can survive low-light
- Propagation – Stem cuttings
- Soil – Very well-draining and rich with slight acidity
- Water – Water it when the soil dries out
Monstera deliciosa by Joanna Pedzich-Opiola / CC BY 2.0
11. Philodendron Nanegalense (Philodendron Nanegalense)
This is one of the many philodendron varieties that are excellent to try and grow inside. However, this cultivar has a very elegant look with tiny, showy vines. The leaves tend to spread out on the vine, and they are very broad and long with an emerald green coloring and a glossy look. They will form almost horizontally on the vines, and they have very deep grooves where the veins are. This is a specific cultivar from Ecuador, and if you want to grow it, you’ll help preserve it as it’s critically endangered. If you can’t find it, there are many other philodendrons that fall into the climbing indoor plant category that are very beginner-friendly.
- Light – Bright and indirect
- Propagation – Leaf or stem cuttings
- Soil – Generic well-draining potting mix, or peat moss works well too
- Water – Only water when ¾ of the soil is dry
Philodendron Nanegalense by Forest and Kim Starr / CC BY 2.0
12. Rex Begonia Vine (Cissus Discolor)
This climbing indoor plant isn’t actually a begonia, but it’s a stunning variegated plant with leaves that mimic the look of begonia leaves. They are heart-shaped, broad, and elongated with serrated edges. They are dark green with greenish-white patterns on them. The leaves tend to point downwards, and they grow on tailing vines that are a purple hue. You’ll also find this purple color on the underside of the leaves. Late in the fall, the leaves may turn fully purple. It’s a great plant to put in informal settings, and the shrub-like look of the vines make it look natural but artistic.
- Light – Filtered or bright, indirect lighting
- Propagation – Leaf cuttings
- Soil – 10% peat moss, 40% perlite, and 50% generic potting soil
- Water – Keep the soil moist but not wet constantly during the summer and cut back in the winter
Rex Begonia Vine by Leonora (Ellie) Enking / CC BY-SA 2.0
13. Satin Pothos (Scindapsus pictus ‘Exotica’)
This climbing indoor plant isn’t actually a part of the pothos family, despite what the name implies. It is a Scindapsus variety though. It’s characterized by the thick, large, velvety leaves that feature splotches of silver. This coloring makes it very hard to ignore. It’s a big slower growing than other things on the list, but it has very simple care requirements to keep it healthy and thriving almost anywhere in your home.
- Light – Bright to medium indirect light
- Propagation – Stem cuttings
- Soil – Organic, rich potting mix, but it’s not picky
- Water – Water when the soil dries out, roughly once or twice a week
Satin Pothos by Dan Jones / CC BY 2.0
14. Scindapsus pictus ‘Argyraeus’
This is a slightly smaller but no less pretty Scindapsus variety you can get, and it’s a generally faster-growing one that will quickly take over a small area. It has velvety green leaves with pretty silver spots, just like stain pothos. However, with this climbing indoor plant, the leaves are generally more green than silver. It isn’t a hugely picky plant with the growing conditions, and this makes it easy for beginner gardeners to add it to their collection.
- Light – Bright to medium indirect light
- Propagation – Stem cuttings
- Soil – Rich and organic potting soil
- Water – Water when the top two inches of soil dry out
Scindapsus pictus Argyraeus by Wendy Cutler / CC BY-SA 2.0
15. String Of Nickels (Dischida Numullaria)
String of Nickels is an indoor vine that almost looks fake while being artistic and playful. It offers succulent leaves that are perfectly round, and they’re jade green with a shiny sheen. This is a very vibrant climbing indoor plant, and it’s full of fresh energy and light. It can help bring a pop of texture to your room, and it works well in an area that is very brightly lit. However, it has an irritating sap and it’s toxic, so keep it well away from your pets and kids.
- Light – Indirect, medium light
- Propagation – Short stem cuttings
- Soil – Well-drained and chunky potting mix with a growing medium instead of straight soil.
- Water – Let the soil dry between watering
String of Nickels by Ashok Boghani / CC BY-NC 2.0
16. Swiss Cheese Plant (Monstera adansonii)
This is a very close runner-up to Monstera deliciosa when it comes to sheer popularity in this family, and this climbing indoor plant has a very tropical look and feel to it. They’re characterized by their bright green, fenestrated leaves that look a little like swiss cheese. They have a very strong climbing growth habit, and they don’t require regular pruning but a very light trimming to keep the size more manageable.
- Light – Bright to medium indirect light
- Propagation – Stem or leaf cuttings
- Soil – Generic potting soil that drains well
- Water – Water when the soil dries out
Swiss Cheese Plant by Benjamin Ho / CC BY-NC-ND 2.0
17. Wax Ivy (Senecio Macroglossus)
The final climbing indoor plant on the list is Wax ivy, and it looks very similar to English ivy, including the foliage and growth habit. However, the leaves have a slightly waxier appearance, they’re lighter green, and they’re glossier. Some will also have hints of cream, and it’s an evergreen vine that does very well indoors. It forms very pretty arching vines that will fill the space with fresh foliage, and it gives a slightly untamed and wild look in informal rooms.
- Light – Medium to bright indirect lighting
- Propagation – Semi-softwood stem cutting
- Soil – One part perlite mixed with three parts generic potting soil that drains well.
- Water – Allow the top soil to dry before you water it again, and don’t leave the soil soggy for long periods.
Wax Ivy by cultivar413 / CC BY 2.0
Bottom Line
All of these beautiful climbing indoor plants make fantastic additions to your home. A lot of them offer an exotic look, and some come with heart-shaped or spherical leaves. Some are purple, green, or variegated, and they grow in a range of lighting conditions. So, there is one or two that’ll suit your needs perfectly.
