Purple Houseplants: Best Varieties with Purple Leaves or Flowers

Purple foliage is unusual enough in the plant kingdom that a genuinely purple-leaved houseplant creates a striking contrast against the predominantly green palette of most indoor collections. The purple pigmentation comes from anthocyanins, pigments that absorb green and yellow light and reflect red and blue wavelengths. They are often most vivid in bright light, where light intensity triggers higher anthocyanin production.

Tradescantia Zebrina (Wandering Dude)

Tradescantia zebrina is one of the most vivid purple-leaved trailing plants available. The oval leaves carry alternating stripes of silver-green and deep purple on the upper surface, with a solid rich purple underside. It grows quickly, trails generously from a shelf or hanging basket, and is among the easiest houseplants to maintain. It prefers bright indirect light, where the purple is most intense, and tolerates a wide range of temperatures and humidity levels. It is non-toxic to cats and dogs. Propagation from stem cuttings is almost instantaneous: a cutting in water roots within a week.

Purple Oxalis (Oxalis Triangularis)

Purple oxalis, also called purple shamrock, produces triangular, deep burgundy-purple leaves that fold closed at night and in low light, opening again in daylight in a movement similar to prayer plants. It is a bulb-forming plant that goes dormant periodically, losing its leaves completely before re-emerging. This dormancy alarms many owners who assume the plant has died, but it is a natural cycle. In bright indirect light, the purple is deepest. It produces small pink or white flowers and spreads steadily from its bulbs. It is mildly toxic to cats and dogs.

Persian Shield (Strobilanthes Dyerianus)

Persian shield produces large, broad leaves in an iridescent silver-purple that shifts in color with the light angle, creating an almost metallic shimmer. It is one of the most visually unusual foliage plants available. It needs bright indirect light to maintain its best color: in lower light, the iridescence fades and the leaves become more uniformly green. It prefers consistent moisture and humidity above 50 percent and grows to 60 to 90 centimeters. It is not commonly sold in standard garden centers but is available from specialist plant retailers.

Calathea and Stromanthe Purple Varieties

Several calatheas display significant purple on the undersides of their leaves: Calathea ornata, calathea medallion, and most prayer plant family members show deep burgundy-purple reverse coloring. Triostar stromanthe takes this further, with vivid pink and purple in the leaf pattern itself. For the most purple-forward calathea, Goeppertia warsewiczii produces large leaves with deep green and silver-green topside coloring and a rich purple reverse. Full care for these species is in the calatheas and marantas hub.

Purple Waffle Plant (Hemigraphis Alternata)

Purple waffle plant produces small, puckered, metallic grey-purple leaves with a characteristic textured surface on a spreading, low-growing habit. It needs bright indirect light to maintain its purple color and high humidity, making it well suited to a terrarium. It is a compact, interesting choice for a sheltered, humid growing environment.

Coleus

Coleus (Solenostemon) includes countless cultivars with purple, burgundy, maroon, and near-black foliage in combination with green, pink, or cream. It is traditionally grown as an outdoor annual but performs well as a houseplant in bright indirect light. The purple intensity fades in insufficient light: coleus needs more light than most foliage-only plants. It requires consistent moisture and pinching to maintain a bushy form.