The best terrariums, compared.
Top pick: Clementoni Harry Potter kit, 7+ Best value: Clementoni Harry Potter kit, 7+ – Best value at about £12.90 because the box is a complete seed-and-plaster project for ages 7–16, rated 4.6 from 3,397 reviews. It is not the top pick. Updated 21.10.2026.
A terrarium, in this houseplants comparison, is a glass or plastic container for a small indoor planting, sold empty or as a kit. UK buyers on amazon.co.uk are mostly choosing a gift or a desk object, and the listing photo is often planted when the box is not. Sealed jars suit small humid foliage, open containers suit succulents and cacti, and a geometric door is not a sealed ecosystem. Geometric houses are compared on the [glass terrarium](/hub/houseplants/glass-terrarium) page. Reptile tanks and LED craft jars with plastic animals are not in this set. The checks before you pay, as a checklist rather than a ranked grid, are in the [terrarium buying guide](/hub/houseplants/terrarium/sub/terrarium-buying-guide). UK reviews describe those seeds as clover, cress or grass.
A terrarium, in this houseplants comparison, is a glass or plastic container for a small indoor planting, sold empty or as a kit.
11 products checked · 48 hrs invested · +17,200 readers
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Personal buying guide
Question 1 of 2
Who is it for?
The Clementoni Harry Potter kit is a plastic seed-and-plaster set for ages 7–16, model 19248, at £12.90, and the amazon.co.uk line is 4.6 from 3,397 reviews on a Toys & Games ranking. The box holds a two-part plastic bowl, plaster, moulds, tempera, seeds, soil, sand, stones and miniature decorations, and UK reviews describe the seeds as clover, cress or grass rather than a rooted houseplant. Reviews mention children around 7, 9 and 10, sometimes with an adult mixing the plaster, and one says the sheet did not say to use only half the seeds and half the plaster. The listing’s size lines conflict, 7 × 35 × 26 against 35 × 35 × 26 cm, and the weight is printed as 800 g, while the maker’s UK page lists the box as 35 × 26 × 7 cm and 1,195 g. UK reviews also report mould, a hut that soaks up water, bent plastic halves, and paint and plaster failing when watered, with clover or cress hiding the hut, and one kit was binned. One review says a seed type was missing, and another suggests your own paints and brush. In this set it is the best value when a supervised child wants a short Harry Potter build, and it is not a glass terrarium.
Pros
Cons
Best for: A supervised build for a child of about 7–16 who wants Hagrid’s hut and will accept short-lived seeds.
Less suitable: An adult who wanted a glass jar, a corked ecosystem, or established houseplants.
Specifications
Common questions
What plants are included?
Seeds, not a rooted houseplant. The spec table does not name the species. UK reviews describe clover, cress or grass, and one review says a seed type was missing.
What age is it for?
The title says 7+ years. The manufacturer recommended age is 7–16 years. Reviews describe children around 7, 9 and 10, sometimes with an adult mixing the plaster.
Does it come with instructions?
The listing does not put a yes on the spec table. Reviews say the build is followable. One says the sheet did not say to use only half the seeds and half the plaster. The assembly-required field says No.
The PYEF CRAFTS kit is a 1 litre glass cylinder, 11 × 11 × 20 cm, at £24.99, with soil, moss, activated charcoal, stones and tools, and the amazon.co.uk line is 4.4 from 1,024 reviews. Across the UK reviews, buyers often treat it as a gift or a first jar, and they mention a cork that fits and a size that sits on a shelf or desk. The title says without plants, and several of those reviews only noticed that after the parcel arrived. Buyers who compared it with the photo found it smaller: some could not fit three shop plants, and one returned it with room for only one. The substrate is described as dried blocks rather than loose soil, and one review found no English on the instruction sheet. Two reviews report the jar smashed in transit, including a cut hand. A closed lid still misted for one buyer who said they had followed the instructions. In this set it is the top pick when you want the layers in the box and will add one small plant yourself.
Pros
Cons
Best for: A first closed jar for one small plant you buy separately, or a gift where the recipient adds the plant.
Less suitable: You already have three shop plants, or you expected a planted jar in the box.
Specifications
Common questions
Does this kit include plants?
No. The title says without plants, and the customisable bullet says it does not include the plants. Several reviews say they only noticed that after it arrived.
Does it come with soil?
Yes. The included-components line names terrarium soil, moss, activated charcoal, stones and tools. One review says the substrate arrived as dried blocks rather than loose soil.
Can it be used outdoors?
The listing asks whether it can be used outdoors and does not answer it. The specific-uses field says indoor.
The Homtone birdcage is an empty brass-and-glass case, 18 × 18 × 23 cm and 1.51 kg, at £32.95, and the amazon.co.uk line is 4.4 from 168 reviews. UK reviews often call it a sturdy windowsill piece and like a hinged flap that can stay open. Plants and decorations are not included, and UK reviews expected the planted photograph to be the contents. The single door is the practical limit: reviews say it is too small to pass a pot through. Water holding is not on the spec table. One UK review reports no leak so far, while others say the glass is not sealed and water leaks if you water freely, which is why one buyer added a tray. The same bullet lists ferns, moss, succulents, air plants and cacti, and it also says the case is not designed for hydroponic plants.
Pros
Cons
Best for: An indoor windowsill case for small plants you already have, with the door left open for air.
Less suitable: A sealed bottle garden, a planted gift, or a door wide enough for a nursery pot.
Specifications
Common questions
Does this terrarium come with plants?
No. Two bullets say plants and decorations are not included. UK reviews expected the planted photo to be the contents.
Will a small pot fit through the door?
The listing describes one hinged side door. UK reviews say that opening is too small to pass a small pot through.
Does it hold water?
The spec table does not say. One UK review reports no leak so far. Others say water leaks if you water freely because the glass is not sealed, and one buyer added a tray.
Scores use the three amazon.co.uk listings kept here. Shelf prices are £24.99, £32.95 and £12.90. No lab planted a jar. The score is 0–100 from four parts: stars out of 40, review sample out of 20, listing fit out of 25, and price in this set out of 15. The highest score is the top pick, once. Best value is the lowest shelf price that still completes a named job, once, and it is a different product.
Star line
40%Stars are the amazon.co.uk rating divided by 5, times 40, then rounded. 4.4 becomes 35. 4.6 becomes 37. PYEF and Homtone are both 4.4. Clementoni is 4.6.
Review sample
20%1,024 garden reviews on the PYEF jar score 18. 168 garden reviews on the Homtone case score 12. The Clementoni toy pool of 3,397 reviews is capped at 10 so it cannot outrank the garden jar on volume alone.
Listing fit
25%Layers in the box, plants named as absent, and a closed glass jar score 13 for PYEF. Glass and brass only, with UK reviews that disagree on leaks, score 8 for Homtone. A plastic seed-and-plaster kit marked for ages 7–16 scores 4 for Clementoni.
Price in this set
15%£24.99 for the jar kit scores 8. £32.95 for the empty case scores 6. £12.90 for the toy kit scores 4. The low price does not add fit points, and it does not make Clementoni the top pick.
Check whether plants are in the box, then match the lid to the plants and the centimetres to what you actually own. A jar kit, an empty brass case and a plastic seed kit are not the same purchase.
A terrarium, on this page, is a glass or plastic container for a small indoor planting, sold empty or as a kit. UK buyers on amazon.co.uk are mostly choosing a gift or a desk object. The listing photo is often planted when the box is not. The checks before you pay, as a checklist rather than a ranked grid, are in the [terrarium buying guide](/hub/houseplants/terrarium/sub/terrarium-buying-guide). Start with plants in the box. PYEF CRAFTS and Homtone say plants are not included.
PYEF and Homtone exclude the plants. Several UK reviews only noticed that after the parcel arrived. Clementoni includes seeds, which reviews describe as clover, cress or grass, not a rooted houseplant.
Humid foliage and moss suit a lid. Succulents and cacti suit an open container. Watering a closed jar like a pot plant, and sealing cacti into a wet jar, are the mistakes the RHS and Kew split apart.
A 1 litre jar did not hold three shop plants in UK reviews. Homtone’s door did not pass a pot, and water leaked when buyers watered freely. A smashed PYEF jar in transit is a retailer problem, not a courier footnote.
Read the closure before the word large. PYEF is a closed 1 litre jar, 11 × 11 × 20 cm, and UK reviews mention a cork that fits, plus one buyer whose lid still misted. Homtone has one hinged door on an 18 × 18 × 23 cm case, and reviews say that opening will not pass a pot. Clementoni is a two-part plastic bowl, with size lines that conflict. The RHS and Kew match a lid to humid foliage, tropical plants and moss, and an open container to succulents and cacti.
PYEF includes the jar, soil, moss, activated charcoal, stones and tools, and names the plants as absent. Homtone is brass and glass only, so you still buy plants, soil and drainage. Clementoni includes seeds, soil, sand, stones, plaster, moulds and tempera, for ages 7–16, on a Toys & Games rank. The 3,397-review pool is a toy pool, which is why it does not outrank the garden jar. Lead-free solder on Homtone is the manufacturer’s sentence, not a cited British Standard.
Three typical situations, each with a recommendation from this comparison.
You want the layers in the box and you will add one small plant yourself. The PYEF CRAFTS kit is the top pick at about £24.99: a 1 litre glass cylinder, 11 × 11 × 20 cm, with soil, moss, charcoal, stones and tools, plants excluded, and 4.4 from 1,024 reviews. UK reviews say three shop plants do not fit.
You want a short Harry Potter project for a child of about 7–16, and you will accept seeds rather than a rooted houseplant. The Clementoni kit is best value at about £12.90, with plaster, moulds, tempera, soil and seeds, rated 4.6 from 3,397 reviews. It is plastic, and UK reviews report mould.
You already have small plants and you want a brass-and-glass case, with the door left open for air. The Homtone birdcage is 18 × 18 × 23 cm at about £32.95, rated 4.4 from 168 reviews, and it has no award. Plants are not included, and UK reviews say the door will not pass a pot.
The top pick is the PYEF CRAFTS 1 litre jar kit at about £24.99. It scores 74, the highest here, with soil, moss, activated charcoal, stones and tools in the box, plants named as absent, and 4.4 from 1,024 reviews. UK reviews say the jar is smaller than the photo. Best value is the Clementoni Harry Potter kit at about £12.90, a different product: a complete seed-and-plaster project for ages 7–16, scoring 55, rated 4.6 from 3,397 reviews. It is plastic, not glass. The Homtone golden birdcage scores 61 at about £32.95 and has no award: an empty case, with UK reviews that disagree on leaks and a door too small for a pot.
Clementoni Harry Potter kit, 7+
Best value at about £12.90 because the box is a complete seed-and-plaster project for ages 7–16, rated 4.6 from 3,397 reviews. It is not the top pick.
Editorial
Peter F. is the editor for DIY & tools at productscompared.co.uk. Comparisons in this category are checked against amazon.co.uk listings, review evidence and public UK sources.
Guides on what to look for, how to use a product, and common mistakes.
Public UK sources named below. amazon.co.uk prices, stars and review counts on these three listings were read for this comparison. Page updated 21 October 2026. Other price bands are a 20 October 2026 snapshot, not a market average.
This page contains affiliate links to amazon.co.uk (tag pcuk26-21). If you buy through them, we may earn a commission at no extra cost to you. Prices, stars and review counts are taken from those listings. We did not run a lab test.
