Compared, honestly
The best plant care app in 2026
Five real options, what each costs, and what each one gives up. Written by the people behind one of them, which is why every page here also says where the other app wins.
Prices and features checked August 2026. This category changes constantly, so confirm on the App Store before deciding.
The short answer
- You have pets as well as plants: Kounts Care, because nothing else cross-references the two.
- Plants are your actual hobby: Planta, for the light meter and the depth, if you accept the subscription.
- You mostly want to identify things: PictureThis, which is the strongest identifier, indoors and out.
- You want free and friendly: Greg, for its free tier and its community.
- You have three plants: Apple Reminders. Genuinely. Save the install.
At a glance
| App | Price for the full app | Free tier | Pets | Sharing | Best at |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kounts Care | $19.99 a year, or $34.99 once | 5 profiles, permanent | Yes | Household + sitter link | Plants and pets together, toxicity warnings |
| Planta | Reported around $35.99 a year | Limited | No | Single user | Light meter, depth, plant diagnosis |
| PictureThis | Reported around $39.99 a year | A few credits, then paid | No | Single user | Identification, indoors and outdoors |
| Greg | Freemium membership | Generous | No | Single user | Free tier and community |
| 11pets | Premium reported around 69 euros lifetime | Yes | Yes, deeply | Account-based | Pet medical records |
| Apple Reminders | Free | Everything | No knowledge of either | Shared lists | Being free and already installed |
No App Store star ratings appear on this site, for Kounts Care or anyone else, while the app is new. Comparisons here are on features, price and platforms.
The full comparisons
Each one includes a section on where the other app is the better choice, because a comparison without honest losses is an advert.
Kounts Care vs Planta
Planta is the benchmark for plant care apps, and it is also the most expensive way to be reminded to water something. Here is the honest version.
Kounts Care vs PictureThis
PictureThis is an identification engine with a care app attached. Kounts Care is a care app with identification built in. That difference decides which one you want.
Kounts Care vs Greg
Greg is the friendliest free plant app on the App Store, with a real community around it. Here is where it fits and where it does not.
Kounts Care vs 11pets
11pets is a serious pet health record with years of features behind it. Kounts Care is a calmer routine app that also happens to know what is on your windowsill.
Kounts Care vs Apple Reminders
The honest starting point: Reminders is free, already installed, and for a couple of plants it is genuinely enough.
Planta alternatives
Most people looking for a Planta alternative are looking for the same thing: the care reminders, without the annual bill.
The one real difference
Every other app on this page is missing half the room
Planta, PictureThis and Greg can all tell you that a monstera is toxic to cats, in the way a reference book can: if you already thought to look. None of them knows whether you own a cat, so none of them can raise the warning at the moment it matters, which is when the plant comes through the door.
11pets knows a great deal about your animals and nothing about your windowsill. The check simply cannot exist in an app that only holds one half.
How the warnings work
Questions people actually ask
What is the best plant care app in 2026?
It depends what you need, and anyone giving a single answer is selling something. Planta is the most capable plant-only app and has the best light meter. PictureThis is the strongest identifier. Greg has the best free tier and a community. Kounts Care is the only one that tracks pets alongside plants. For three plants and no pets, Apple Reminders is free and enough.
Is there a plant care app without a subscription?
Kounts Care offers a $34.99 one-time lifetime unlock alongside monthly and yearly plans, and its five-profile free tier is permanent rather than a trial. One-time pricing is rare in this category, which is exactly why so many people search for it.
Which plant app is best if I have cats?
Kounts Care, because it holds both halves. Other apps can tell you a plant is toxic in general. This one knows you own a cat, names her in the warning, and re-checks every plant you already own when a new animal arrives.
Do I need a plant app at all?
Under about five plants on similar schedules, probably not. Repeating reminders will do it. An app starts earning its place when the collection grows past what you can hold in your head, when the schedule should change with the seasons, or when there are animals in the house.
Can I move my plants over from another app?
There is no direct import. Adding a plant takes well under a minute, because you photograph it and the care plan is built from the identification. For a large collection, expect an evening in front of the television.
Try the one that sees the whole room.
Five profiles free, no account, and every toxicity warning included at every tier.
In review with Apple · iPhone, iOS 26 · Five profiles free when it lands