October 2026 edition · updated monthly
Sow Plant Price Index
Are plant prices going up? Not this year. Like-for-like prices at the online nurseries we track are flat from a year ago (−0.1%). 24% of plants are on sale, against 11% a year earlier.
−0.1%
Prices vs a year ago
Same listings, four-week average: 99.34 now, 99.41 a year earlier.
24%
of plants discounted
Four-week average, against 11% a year ago.
26%
Typical gap between nurseries
The same plant in the same pot size, priciest nursery against the cheapest.
October
Most discounts
19% of plants on sale on average, against about 4% in the quietest months.
October 2026 edition, prices through October 24, 2026. 5,680 listings for 3,342 plants in the latest week.
Prices have barely moved
Across 78 weeks the index has stayed between 98.11 and 102.65, a band of 4.6%. Nurseries rarely reprice a plant they already list: of 478 listings we priced in both Octobers, 57% cost exactly the same, 24% went up and 19% went down.
Discounts are where prices move
The share of plants on a verified discount swings with the seasons, from almost none in midwinter to its highs in late summer and fall. The last four weeks are the broadest we have measured: 24%, against 11% a year earlier. We also track more nurseries now (18, against 13 a year ago), and some of the change may come from the shops we added.
When to buy: discounts by month
October has the most discounts, with 19% of plants on sale on average. The quietest months are December, January and March, at about 4%. Months from April to October average two years of data; November to March have one so far.
Same plant, different nursery
We compared 934 plants that two or more nurseries sell in the same pot size. In the typical case the priciest nursery asked 26% more than the cheapest, about $6 a plant. One in four cost at least 50% more, and 7% cost at least double. Checking two or three nurseries before you buy pays, especially for larger plants.
What plants cost right now
Typical asking price by pot size across every nursery we track. The bar covers the middle half of listings.
- Quart pot$17.00
- 1-gallon pot$31.99
- 2-gallon pot$56.95
- 3-gallon pot$85.75
- 5-gallon pot$134
Methodology
- We check asking prices for live plants at 18 online nurseries every day and keep one price per listing per week. A listing is one nursery's offer of one plant in one size.
- Each week compares a listing only with itself the week before. A new listing joins after four weeks of prices, so a plant launched at a clearance price can't pull the index down when it returns to normal.
- Changes are averaged within each plant first, so a nursery selling one plant in five sizes counts once, and then combined across plants as a geometric mean (a chained Jevons index). A single change is capped at a doubling or halving.
- A week counts only with at least 200 matched plants from at least three nurseries. If a week of prices is missing, the next week is compared with the last one observed, up to three weeks apart; those weeks are marked in the CSV.
- The average for January to March 2026 is set to 100.
- A plant counts as discounted when one of its listings is at least 5% below that listing's own median price over the previous 13 weeks, with at least four weeks of history. Retailers' “was” prices are never used.
- Prices exclude shipping and tax, and cover online nurseries only. The nurseries tracked have changed over time, from 11 to 19 in a given week.
Use this data
Quote it, chart it or republish it with credit and a link to this page. Press and data requests: [email protected].
Cite as
Source: Sow Plant Price Index, October 2026, https://www.usesow.com/plant-price-indexDownload the weekly data (CSV)
Embed the chart
<a href="https://www.usesow.com/plant-price-index"><img src="https://www.usesow.com/plant-price-index/chart.svg" width="800" height="440" alt="Sow Plant Price Index, weekly online nursery plant prices"></a> <p>Source: <a href="https://www.usesow.com/plant-price-index">Sow Plant Price Index</a></p>
Plant price questions
Are plant prices going up in 2026?
Not at the online nurseries we track. Like-for-like prices averaged 99.34 on the index over the four weeks to October 24, 2026, against 99.41 a year earlier, a change of −0.1%. Of the listings we priced a year apart, 57% cost exactly the same.
When is the best time to buy plants online?
October. Across our data, an average of 19% of plants were discounted in October, against about 4% in December, January and March. Discounts climb through late summer and fall as nurseries clear stock, then nearly disappear over winter.
How much more do some nurseries charge for the same plant?
In the typical case, 26% more. We compared 934 plants sold in the same pot size by two or more nurseries: one in four cost at least 50% more at the priciest nursery than at the cheapest, and 7% cost at least double.
How is the Sow Plant Price Index calculated?
Each week we compare every nursery listing with its own price the week before, average those changes within each plant so every plant counts once, and take the geometric mean across plants (a chained Jevons index). Listings join only after four weeks of prices, single changes are capped at a doubling or halving, and January to March 2026 averages 100. The methodology section on this page has the details.
Can I use these numbers?
Yes. Quote, chart or republish them with credit and a link to this page. The weekly series is a free CSV download, and the embeddable chart carries its own source line.
Keep exploring
For press and researchers
Know the price before you plant
Sow tracks what every plant in your design costs across nurseries, so you see the bill before you buy, and it tells you when something you saved drops.