How Often to Water Pothos

Short answer

Water a pothos when the top 2.5 cm (1 inch) or so of the soil has dried, then water until it drains and empty the saucer. Pothos-specific sources differ on how dry to let it get: NC State Extension says let the soil dry between waterings, while the Missouri Botanical Garden says keep it consistently moist in the growing season. Both say to water less from autumn to late winter, and a pot in low light will need water less often than one in bright light.

What the sources actually say

Golden pothos (Epipremnum aureum), also called devil's ivy, is one of the easiest houseplants to keep. That is partly because it forgives small watering mistakes in both directions. Even so, the two plant references used for this guide word their watering advice quite differently:

NC State Extension: let the well-drained potting medium dry out between waterings.
Missouri Botanical Garden: keep the soil consistently moist during the growing season, and reduce watering somewhat from autumn to late winter.

These sound opposite, but the practical overlap is large. Neither says to let pothos go bone dry for long, and neither says to keep it soggy. General houseplant guidance fills the gap. The University of Maine Cooperative Extension says not to water most houseplants again until the soil is dry about 2.5 cm (1 inch) from the surface. Applied to pothos, that keeps the root zone moist without staying wet, which fits both sources reasonably well.

If your pothos is in a small pot, a warm room or bright light, it will reach that point quickly. In a large pot or a dim corner, it can take much longer.

The dry-top-inch check

Push a finger into the soil to about the first knuckle. Clemson Extension uses that depth for its touch test. If it is dry there, water. If it still feels damp, wait a day or two and check again.

When you water:

Water slowly until it runs out of the drainage hole.
Let it drain fully.
Empty the saucer or cache pot. Oklahoma State University Extension says never to leave a houseplant standing in water, because the roots will rot.

The full method, including the weight test, is in schedule or check the soil.

Plant Watering Reminder & Care

Reminds you to water each plant on its own schedule and keeps a care log for every plant.

Get it on Google Play

Plant Care gives each plant its own interval, so a pothos in a hanging basket and a pothos on a dim shelf can have different reminders. You can add a photo to each plant to tell them apart, and the care log shows when each one was last watered.

Droop can mean thirst or overwatering

A drooping pothos is often thirsty. Its leaves go limp, the soil is dry and the pot feels light. But Oklahoma State University Extension warns that wilting may be caused by too little water or too much. If the soil is moist and the plant is still wilted, inspect the roots, because they have likely rotted.

NC State Extension lists the signs to watch for with pothos specifically. Overwatering can cause root rot and blackening of the leaf margins. So:

Limp leaves, dry soil, light pot: water it.
Limp leaves, wet soil, blackening leaf edges: stop watering and check the roots.

Some yellowing is normal. NC State notes that over time older leaves yellow and fall off, so most of the leaves end up near the stem tips. Pruning stems back keeps the plant bushier. Several leaves yellowing at once while the soil stays wet is a different story. The overwatered vs underwatered guide explains how to tell.

Pothos in low light

Pothos is popular for darker rooms. NC State says it prefers bright, indirect light but survives for long periods in low light, and UNH Extension recommends it for low-light spots. The Missouri Botanical Garden says it does well in bright indirect light or part sun, with protection from afternoon sun.

Low light changes the watering. Clemson Extension notes that a plant in a cool, low-light place needs water less often than one in a warm, sunny spot. A pothos on a shelf away from the window grows slowly, uses little water, and its soil can stay damp for a long time. This is where most pothos overwatering happens. People water it on the same day as their brighter plants.

Check low-light pots more carefully and expect longer gaps. NC State also notes that low light can cause variegated leaves to lose their yellow or white marbling.

Hanging baskets dry faster

Pothos is often grown trailing from a hanging pot. Oklahoma State University Extension notes that many hanging plants are lost by not watering enough. Warm air rises, so it is warmer where the pot hangs, and hanging pots dry more quickly. Check hanging pothos more often than ones at floor level, and water thoroughly each time, letting the excess drain into a sink.

Winter

Both the Missouri Botanical Garden and the general extension advice agree that pothos needs less water from autumn to late winter. Growth slows in the shorter, darker days, so the soil stays moist longer. NC State also advises stopping fertiliser in winter.

Keep using the same dry-top-inch check. It will simply take longer to reach that point. See do indoor plants need less water in winter for the full picture, including the effect of heating.

Cuttings moved from water to soil

NC State notes that pothos vines root easily in water, and its photos show cuttings rooting in water after about two weeks. Many people grow cuttings in a jar and then pot them up.

None of the sources consulted here gives a specific watering routine for the weeks after moving water-rooted cuttings into soil, so treat this as a cautious outline:

Use a small pot with a drainage hole and a well-drained mix. A big pot holds more wet soil than the new roots can use.
Do not let the mix dry out hard while the cuttings settle. Clemson Extension notes that peat-based mixes are difficult to rewet once completely dry.
Do not keep it soggy either. Empty the saucer every time.
Once you see new leaves, treat it like any other pothos and go back to the dry-top-inch check.