Planters
The Best Indoor Planters with Drainage
Every pot here has a hole in the bottom and something under it to catch what comes out. That combination is rarer in this category than it should be.
By Scooter M., enthusiast · Published · Last updated
The short answer
For most apartments the best buy is a graduated set of glazed ceramic pots with drainage holes and matched saucers, because it covers three plant sizes in one purchase and the saucers are already the right diameter. If you only need one pot, buy the size that fits the root ball with about an inch to spare, not the size that looks right on the shelf.
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This should be the least interesting page on the site. A pot with a hole and a saucer is a solved problem, and yet a large share of what gets sold as an indoor planter has no hole at all, and a large share of what does have a hole ships without a saucer — which means the first thing you do with a new pot is either buy another thing or put a wet pot on a surface you do not own. So the ranking below starts from what is actually in the box.
Everything on this page links up to the planters hub, where the material question is laid out properly. And every pot here is a load on something: check its planted weight against whatever it will stand on using the pot weight guide before you put it on a shelf. How these picks were chosen.
Quick picks
Ranked, with the published figure each pick turns on. Tap a row for the full reasoning further down this page.
| # | Product | Best for | Price |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  LE TAUCI Ceramic Plant Pots with Drainage and Saucer, set of 3Three graduated sizes with a real hole and a matched saucer in each, which is a lower bar than it sounds and one most decorative ceramic fails. | Three sizes that actually drain | |
| 2 |  Gepege 6 in Ceramic Plant Pots with Drainage and SaucersThe size most houseplants are sold in and the size most shelves are built for, with the hole that the decorative version of the same pot leaves out. | The default shelf pot | |
| 3 |  Areutxbis 8 in Plastic Planters with Drainage and Saucers, 4 packPlastic at 8 inches, which is the size where the material choice stops being cosmetic and starts being a load decision. | Four matching pots on a shelf that is not rated | |
| 4 |  homenote 6.7 in Clear Plastic Nursery Pots with Drainage, 15 packClear walls, which turn the one variable you cannot otherwise check, what the roots are doing, into something you can just look at. | Watching roots instead of guessing | |
| 5 |  LE TAUCI 12 in Ceramic Planter with Drainage and SaucerA 12-inch glazed pot with a hole and a saucer, which is the size where the weight conversation starts and most people have not had it. | A floor plant in something that is not plastic | |
| 6 |  Idyllize Clear Plant Saucers, 6, 8 and 10 in, 15 packFifteen saucers in the three sizes that cover almost every pot in a normal apartment, which is a cheaper fix for a floor than a new pot is. | Fixing the pots you already own |
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What we looked at, in order
- Is there a drainage hole, and does the listing say so? A photo of a pot bottom is not a specification. Anything ambiguous did not make this list.
- Is a saucer included, and is it the right diameter? A saucer that is narrower than the pot base does nothing. Matched sets solve this by construction.
- How much of a collection does one purchase cover? A three-size graduated set covers a shelf. A single 6-inch pot covers one plant. Both are legitimate; they are not the same value.
- What does it weigh once planted? Computed from the published diameter, so the pot can be checked against a stand, a shelf or a windowsill before you commit.
How much each of these weighs planted
Mix only, saturated, computed. Add the pot itself — a glazed ceramic pot is meaningfully heavier than a plastic one of the same size, which is exactly why plastic wins whenever the shelf underneath publishes no rating.
| Pot size | Mix volume | Dry | Watered | Rating needed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 5 in | 0.034 cu ft | 0.7 lb | 1.8 lb | 3 lb |
| 6 in | 0.058 cu ft | 1.3 lb | 3.2 lb | 5 lb |
| 7 in | 0.092 cu ft | 2 lb | 5.1 lb | 8 lb |
| 8 in | 0.137 cu ft | 3 lb | 7.5 lb | 12 lb |
| 10 in | 0.268 cu ft | 5.9 lb | 14.7 lb | 23 lb |
| 12 in | 0.463 cu ft | 10.2 lb | 25.5 lb | 39 lb |
The cachepot workaround, since you probably own one
Most people reading this already have two or three beautiful pots with no drainage hole. You do not have to throw them out and you do not have to drill them. Keep the plant in a plastic nursery pot that does drain, sit that inside the decorative one, and lift it out to water — either in the sink or over the bin, letting it stop dripping before it goes back. The decorative pot becomes a sleeve. This is what garden centers do with everything they sell, and it is the reason clear nursery pots are on this list at all.
Every pick, in full
We have not handled any of these. What follows is what each listing publishes, what that means once you put a watered pot on it, and who should buy something else.
1. Three sizes that actually drain
LE TAUCI Ceramic Plant Pots with Drainage and Saucer, set of 3
Three graduated sizes with a real hole and a matched saucer in each, which is a lower bar than it sounds and one most decorative ceramic fails.
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- What the listing publishes
- 4.1, 5.1 and 6.5 in; drainage hole and a matched saucer on every pot
- Against a 10-inch pot
- No weight rating is published for this product, so there is nothing to check. That counts against it here rather than being treated as neutral.
Saturated mix in these three sizes computes to about 0.9, 1.8 and 3.7 lb, light enough that any shelf holds them and the interesting question is drainage rather than load.
A matched saucer is not decoration. Buying a saucer separately means guessing a diameter, and a saucer an inch too small overflows onto whatever is underneath.
Graduated sets are how you pot up a plant without a second order. A rooted cutting goes in the 4-inch, moves to the 5-inch in a season and the 6.5-inch after that.
What is good
- Every pot has a hole and a matching saucer
- Three sizes cover a potting-up sequence
- Glazed inside, so they do not wick like bare terracotta
What is not
- Nothing here fits a plant bigger than a small pothos
- Ceramic chips if it goes over
- Glazed pots dry slower than terracotta, which suits some plants and kills others
Skip it if you overwater. A glazed, non-porous pot is the least forgiving container for that habit, and terracotta is the fix.
2. The default shelf pot
Gepege 6 in Ceramic Plant Pots with Drainage and Saucers
The size most houseplants are sold in and the size most shelves are built for, with the hole that the decorative version of the same pot leaves out.
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- What the listing publishes
- 6 in ceramic with drainage hole and saucer
- Against a 10-inch pot
- No weight rating is published for this product, so there is nothing to check. That counts against it here rather than being treated as neutral.
A 6-inch pot of saturated mix computes to about 3.2 lb. Any stand on this site holds it, which is why 6 inches is where you can buy on looks rather than on arithmetic.
It is also the size where the no-drainage-hole trap is most common, because 6-inch pots are sold as decor as often as they are sold as pots.
Nursery plants usually arrive in a plastic 6-inch. Dropping that pot straight into a ceramic cachepot is a legitimate alternative to repotting, as long as you lift it to water.
What is good
- The correct default size for most houseplants
- Hole and saucer included
- Light enough for any shelf here
What is not
- Outgrown within a year by anything vigorous
- Glazed ceramic holds moisture longer than plastic
- One pot per order at this price point
Skip it if your plant came in a 6-inch nursery pot and is root-bound. You need the next size up, not the same size in ceramic.
3. Four matching pots on a shelf that is not rated
Areutxbis 8 in Plastic Planters with Drainage and Saucers, 4 pack
Plastic at 8 inches, which is the size where the material choice stops being cosmetic and starts being a load decision.
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- What the listing publishes
- 8 in plastic, drainage holes and saucers, four per pack
- Against a 10-inch pot
- No weight rating is published for this product, so there is nothing to check. That counts against it here rather than being treated as neutral.
An 8-inch pot of saturated mix computes to about 7.5 lb. In plastic the pot adds ounces; in glazed ceramic it can add several pounds, and on an unrated tiered stand with four of them that difference is the whole safety margin.
Four matching pots is also how a shelf stops looking like a collection of separate shopping trips.
Plastic dries slower at the walls than terracotta and faster than glaze, which puts it in the middle of the moisture range and makes it the safest default if you are not sure.
What is good
- Adds almost nothing to the computed load
- Four matching pots and saucers
- Middle of the road for drying speed
What is not
- Light enough to be knocked over by a cat
- Plastic goes brittle in a sunny window over years
- Looks like what it is
Skip it if the pots are going somewhere visible and the look matters more than the load. A ceramic set is the answer, and 8 inches is still light enough to get away with it.
4. Watching roots instead of guessing
homenote 6.7 in Clear Plastic Nursery Pots with Drainage, 15 pack
Clear walls, which turn the one variable you cannot otherwise check, what the roots are doing, into something you can just look at.
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- What the listing publishes
- 6.7 in clear plastic with drainage holes, 15 per pack
- Against a 10-inch pot
- No weight rating is published for this product, so there is nothing to check. That counts against it here rather than being treated as neutral.
The reason to use a clear nursery pot inside an opaque cachepot is diagnostic: you can see root growth, you can see when water has actually reached the bottom, and you can see rot before the leaves tell you.
Fifteen pots is a whole shelf and a propagation run's worth of potting-up, at a per-pot price no ceramic reaches.
They are not attractive. They are meant to sit inside something else, which is also the arrangement that keeps a decorative pot with no drainage hole from killing a plant.
What is good
- Root visibility that no other pot format gives you
- Fifteen pots at nursery pricing
- The correct inner pot for a decorative cachepot with no hole
What is not
- Ugly on their own
- Algae grows on the inside of a clear pot in a bright window
- Thin plastic flexes when you lift a wet one
Skip it if you want the pot to be the visible object. These are working pots and they look it.
5. A floor plant in something that is not plastic
LE TAUCI 12 in Ceramic Planter with Drainage and Saucer
A 12-inch glazed pot with a hole and a saucer, which is the size where the weight conversation starts and most people have not had it.
#ad · Price shown on Amazon. How we are funded
- What the listing publishes
- 12 in ceramic, drainage hole and saucer included
- Against a 10-inch pot
- No weight rating is published for this product, so there is nothing to check. That counts against it here rather than being treated as neutral.
12 inches of saturated mix computes to about 25.5 lb before the pot itself, and a glazed ceramic pot this size is not light empty. This is a floor pot, not a shelf pot, and putting it on an unrated tiered stand is the mistake this site is built around.
It is also the size at which you stop moving the plant. A rated caddy underneath is the difference between cleaning behind it twice a year and never.
The saucer is included, which at 12 inches is worth real money. Large saucers are priced oddly high when bought alone.
What is good
- Drainage hole and saucer at a size where both are usually extra
- Glazed, so it does not sweat onto the floor
- Heavy enough not to be knocked over
What is not
- About 25.5 lb of saturated mix before the pot's own weight, so floor only
- Ceramic at this size is genuinely fragile in a move
- Slow-drying for plants that want to dry out
Skip it if you were planning to put it on a tiered stand. None of the tiered stands here publish a weight rating, and this is the pot that finds out.
6. Fixing the pots you already own
Idyllize Clear Plant Saucers, 6, 8 and 10 in, 15 pack
Fifteen saucers in the three sizes that cover almost every pot in a normal apartment, which is a cheaper fix for a floor than a new pot is.
#ad · Price shown on Amazon. How we are funded
- What the listing publishes
- Five each of 6, 8 and 10 in clear heavy-duty saucers
- Against a 10-inch pot
- No weight rating is published for this product, so there is nothing to check. That counts against it here rather than being treated as neutral.
The commonest reason a plant lives in a pot with no drainage is that the owner has no saucer for it. Fifteen saucers removes that reason for a whole collection at once.
Clear saucers show standing water, which is the thing you actually need to see. An opaque saucer with two inches of water in it looks exactly like an empty one.
A saucer is only half the answer. A pot sitting apartment in its own drainage wicks it back up, so pair these with pot feet.
What is good
- Covers three common pot sizes in one order
- Clear, so standing water is visible
- Cheaper than replacing a single pot
What is not
- Thin plastic cracks if a heavy pot is dragged across it
- Clear plastic clouds over a couple of years
- Does not solve wicking on its own
Skip it if all your pots are already in cachepots. A cachepot is a saucer with sides, and stacking a saucer inside it just hides the water.
Questions people actually ask
Can I just drill a hole in a pot that does not have one?
How many drainage holes does a pot need?
Should I buy a matched set or individual pots?
Do I need pot feet as well as a saucer?
Sources
- Cornell University, Greenhouse Management: bulk density of greenhouse media components
- Biology Insights: how much a cubic foot of potting soil weighs, dry and saturated
- Clemson HGIC: Indoor Plants — cleaning, fertilizing, containers and light requirements
- Clemson HGIC: Indoor Plants — watering
Product specifications are quoted from each seller's own listing and are the seller's claim, not a measurement of ours.