Yes, Pothos can live in water permanently. Not just for a few weeks while you wait to pot them up — for their entire lives. It’s one of the lower-effort ways to keep them, and it sidesteps several of the most common Pothos problems entirely.
Here’s everything you actually need to know.
Can Pothos Really Live In Water Full Time?
They can. My water Pothos started as cuttings I propagated and never got round to potting up.
That was over a year ago.
Whoops.
They’re still in the jug, still growing, still completely unbothered.
Why Pothos Can Live In Water (But Die From Overwatering)
This is one of the more interesting things about Pothos (ok, all plants, but this is a Pothos site, and we care only about Pothos), and it’s ones of those things that make people go ‘wait…what?’.
When Pothos grow in water from the start — or transition gradually — they develop water roots.
Water roots are adapted to extract oxygen directly from water, in much the same way fish gills extract oxygen from water rather than air.
Soil-grown roots aren’t built like that. They get water from the air, like us.
When soil becomes saturated and waterlogged, it runs out of oxygen quickly, and the roots suffocate. That’s what root rot is — not the water itself, but the absence of oxygen that comes with it.
So a Pothos living happily in a vase of water and a Pothos dying of overwatering in a pot are experiencing completely different things, even though both involve a lot of water.
The roots are different, the environment is different, and the outcome is completely different.
Setting It Up
The simplest approach is to start with cuttings rather than transitioning an established soil plant. Take a cutting with at least one node, strip the lower leaves, and pop it in water. It will develop water roots over a few weeks and can stay in water indefinitely from there.
Transitioning a soil-grown plant is possible but more disruptive — you’d need to wash all soil off the roots, and the existing roots will need to adapt to the new environment. Some will die back and be replaced with water roots. It works, but it’s not as seamless as starting fresh.
Keep the water level consistent — top it up when it drops, and that’s largely it for maintenance.
What Container To Use
I’m going to tell you this, and you’re gonna be like ‘thanks, but that won’t happen to me.’
IT WILL.
Pothos in a clear glass vase looks lovely — very, as the kids say, aesthetic.
For about two weeks.
Then algae builds up on the glass, the water starts looking murky, and everything starts looking a bit grim
I keep mine in an opaque jug because it blocks the light that algae needs to grow.
No algae problem, no cleaning schedule. The plant doesn’t care what it lives in, but you might care about looking at it every day.
If you do want to use a clear vessel, just factor in a regular clean. It’s not a big job, but it is a recurring one.
Do You Need To Change The Water?
Some plants need a lot of dissolved oxygen in the water and require either a bubbler or regular water changes to stay healthy.
Pothos are not those plants.
If they were, mine would have died long ago.
It’s been sitting in the same jug for months at a stretch with nothing more than a top-up when the level drops. They don’t seem to mind at all.
If you notice the water smelling off or looking particularly grim, change it — but you’re not on a strict schedule.
What About Fertiliser?
You will eventually need a hydroponic fertiliser — standard soil feeds aren’t formulated to be absorbed without a growing medium, so they won’t do much in water.
My cuttings went over a year with no fertiliser at all and grew perfectly well.
Pothos are not hungry plants.
If yours is growing, putting out new leaves, and looking healthy, it doesn’t need feeding yet. When growth slows noticeably, that’s the time to introduce a diluted hydroponic feed.
What Type Of Water Should You Use?
Tap water is fine. If you can drink it, your Pothos can grow in it. I use tap water and have no issues.
Filtered water is also fine. The one to be cautious about is distilled water — distilled water has had everything removed from it, including the trace minerals plants use. It won’t kill them but it gives them nothing to work with nutritionally.
The Upsides Nobody Talks About
Growing in water has a couple of advantages that don’t get mentioned enough:
- Overwatering is impossible. I think. You’re already at maximum water. Just don’t submerge the leaves.
- Pests are much easier to deal with. If your water Pothos picks up an infestation, you can take the whole plant to the sink and hose it down thoroughly without worrying about disturbing roots in soil or waterlogging a pot.
The One *Slight* Downside
If you want your Pothos to climb, water growing makes it significantly more complicated. You’d need to use something aquarium-safe — bogwood, for example — as a structure inside the vessel. And once you’ve got a large climbing plant in a bucket of water, you’ve created something that’s somewhat precarious, particularly if you have a cat, dog or kid.
If climbing and training is part of your plan for your Pothos, soil or LECA is the more practical choice. Water growing suits trailing plants best.
(But don’t put them up high, because that’s an accident waiting to happen. Mine lives above my kitchen bin, for reference.)
FAQ
Can pothos live in water forever?
Yes. Pothos can live in water indefinitely, not just as a temporary measure. They develop water roots adapted to extracting oxygen from water, which is what allows them to thrive where a soil-grown plant would develop root rot.
Do you need to change the water for pothos?
Not on any strict schedule. Pothos don’t need highly oxygenated water the way some plants do. Top up the water level when it drops and change it if it starts to smell or look particularly unpleasant, but there’s no need for weekly changes.
What container is best for growing pothos in water?
An opaque container is easier to maintain than a clear one — it blocks the light that algae needs to grow. Clear glass looks beautiful initially but requires regular cleaning to stay that way. Any watertight container works; the plant doesn’t have a preference.
Do pothos in water need fertiliser?
Eventually, yes — a hydroponic fertiliser rather than a standard soil feed. In practice, Pothos can go a year or more in water with no feed at all before growth slows noticeably. Don’t rush it.
Can you put a soil pothos in water?
You can transition a soil-grown Pothos to water, but you’ll need to wash every trace of soil off the roots first. The existing roots will partly die back and be replaced by water roots. Starting with cuttings is simpler and less stressful for the plant.
Why do pothos survive in water but die from overwatering in soil?
When grown in water, Pothos develop water roots that can extract oxygen directly from water. In waterlogged soil, oxygen is depleted and normal roots suffocate — that’s root rot. It’s the same element (water) causing two completely different problems depending on how the roots developed.
Can I fully submerge my Pothos in water
No, it’ll rot.