How to Repot a Houseplant Correctly

The short answer: repot when a plant has outgrown its pot or its mix has broken down usually every 1 - 2 years for most houseplants. Move it up just one pot size, into fresh substrate suited to the plant, in a pot with drainage holes, and water it in properly. The most common mistakes are jumping to a much bigger pot and reusing tired, compacted mix.

Repotting feels intimidating, but it's mostly about avoiding a short list of errors. Here's the whole thing.

When should you repot?

Look for these signs:

• Roots circling the surface or growing out the drainage holes the plant is root-bound.
• Water runs straight through without wetting the mix, or the plant dries out far faster than it used to the root ball has filled the pot.
• The mix has broken down gone dense, compacted, or water-repellent (common with ageing cocopeat-heavy mixes). Even a not-yet-root-bound plant benefits from fresh substrate when the old mix has collapsed. (See why cocopeat alone fails.)
• Stalled growth in a plant that should be growing.

Timing: the start of the growing season (spring into early monsoon in much of India) is ideal, so the plant recovers in active growth. Avoid repotting a plant in deep dormancy or while it's flowering unless it's an emergency (like root rot).

What size pot should you move to?

Just one size up about 2 - 5 cm more in diameter. This is the mistake people make most: a plant in a giant pot sits in a large volume of mix that holds water the small root system can't use, and that constantly-wet excess mix causes rot. Bigger is not kinder. (See root rot.)

Always use a pot with drainage holes. If you love a decorative pot without holes, use it as a cover and keep the plant in an inner pot you can lift out to drain.

How to repot, step by step

1. Water the plant a day before. A hydrated root ball handles disturbance far better than a dry one.
2. Prepare the new pot. Clean it; add a layer of fresh substrate at the bottom so the plant will sit at the same depth it was before. (No gravel "drainage layer" it doesn't help; see perlite vs pumice.)
3. Ease the plant out. Tip the pot, support the base, and slide the root ball out. Squeeze a flexible pot or run a knife around the inside of a rigid one. Don't yank the stem.
4. Inspect and loosen the roots. Gently tease apart circling roots so they grow outward. Trim any dark, soft, rotted roots back to firm tissue with clean scissors.
5. Remove some old mix if it's compacted or broken down you don't need to strip it bare, just free the root ball from the worst of the tired medium.
6. Position and fill. Centre the plant, add fresh substrate around it, and firm it gently by tapping the pot don't compact it. The air spaces are the point. (See what makes a good potting mix.)
7. Water in two stages. Saturate fully, wait 5 - 10 minutes, then water again until it runs clear from the drainage holes. This settles the mix around the roots and flushes through fines and any dissolved salts.

After repotting

Expect a short sulk some droop or a pause in growth is normal as roots establish in the new mix. Resist the urge to "help" with extra water; the fresh, airy mix needs to be allowed to do its job. Keep the plant out of harsh direct sun for a week or two while it settles, and hold off on anything beyond water for about three to four weeks while new roots take hold.

Match the fresh substrate to the plant, too drought-lovers into fast-draining mixes, moisture-lovers into retentive-but-aerated ones. Repotting is the perfect moment to fix a plant that was struggling in the wrong medium. (Browse our plant-family guides to match.)

FAQ

How often should I repot houseplants? Most need repotting every 1–2 years, either because they've become root-bound or because the mix has broken down. Some slow growers go longer; fast growers may need it annually.

What size pot should I repot into? One size up about 2–5 cm larger in diameter. A much bigger pot holds excess wet mix the roots can't use, which causes rot.

Can I reuse old potting mix when repotting? It's better to use fresh substrate, especially if the old mix is compacted or broken down. Tired mix that's lost its structure is a common reason plants struggle after repotting.

When is the best time to repot? The start of the growing season (spring into early monsoon in much of India), so the plant recovers while actively growing. Avoid repotting during dormancy or flowering unless it's an emergency.

Should I add a layer of gravel at the bottom of the pot for drainage? No a bottom gravel layer raises the waterlogged zone toward the roots rather than improving drainage. Use a pot with drainage holes and a well-structured mix throughout.

My plant looks worse after repotting, did I do something wrong? A brief sulk is normal as roots adjust. Keep it out of harsh sun, don't overwater, and give it a few weeks. If leaves go soft and the mix stays soggy, check that the pot isn't oversized and the mix drains well.