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Compost for an indoor palm

Updated: October 2026

The kentia by the window and the parlour palm on the shelf are both sold as easy indoor palms, and the bag you are holding says palm once, as if that settled the compost. Compost for an indoor palm in a UK living room depends on which plant you have. Most indoor palms start from a peat-free John Innes No 2 or a peat-free indoor mix. A parlour palm wants a lighter ericaceous mix that none of these five bags states. Prices are on the [palm soil comparison](/hub/trees-and-palms/palm-soil). We did not measure pH. A qualifying purchase can earn us a commission at no extra cost to you.

The kentia by the window and the parlour palm on the shelf are both sold as easy indoor palms, and the bag you are holding says palm once, as if that settled the compost.

Our top picks

Invigortex Invigortex houseplant mix, 3 litre title

Best overall

Invigortex Invigortex houseplant mix, 3 litre title
5.5/10about £8.99
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COMPO COMPO Sana palm compost, 10 litres

Rank 2

COMPO COMPO Sana palm compost, 10 litres
9.2/10about £26.84
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COMPO COMPO Sana palm earth, 5 litres

Best value

COMPO COMPO Sana palm earth, 5 litres
8.6/10about £20.59
View offer
On this page
  1. 1.Indoor palms are not one compost
  2. 2.Kentia and similar indoor palms
  3. 3.Parlour palms want a lighter, more acidic mix
  4. 4.What the bags in this comparison actually say

Indoor palms are not one compost

Shop pages often sell one indoor palm mix for a kentia, an areca and a parlour palm. The RHS does not. Its general indoor page points you to peat-free John Innes No 2, or a peat-free indoor mix, with coarse sand if you need drainage. The Chamaedorea guide asks for a light, peat-free, loam-free ericaceous mix. Those are two recipes. A heavy loam is what the genus page links to root rot on a parlour palm. Hardy outdoor palms, such as Trachycarpus in a patio tub, are a third case: peat-free John Innes No 3, and winter wet. That is not the living-room job this page is for. None of the five amazon.co.uk listings states a pH, an ericaceous claim, or peat-free. COMPO names palms and green plants and states 8 weeks of feed. Invigortex names palms beside ferns and states no feed period. You cannot promote either brand into an RHS recipe it never printed.

Kentia and similar indoor palms

Howea forsteriana, the kentia, is what most people mean by an indoor palm in a British front room. The RHS profile describes a peat-free loam-based compost. Gardeners’ World adds horticultural grit and drainage holes. An areca follows that general advice, not the ericaceous exception for Chamaedorea. The COMPO bags, 10 litres at £26.84 and 5 litres at £20.59, name palms and green plants. Neither says John Innes or peat-free. A kentia needs a verified few litres, and grit if a handful stays slick. After a repot, wait six to eight weeks before liquid feed. That pause is on how to repot a palm.
Invigortex Invigortex houseplant mix, 3 litre title

Testsieger

Invigortex Invigortex houseplant mix, 3 litre title
5.5/10about £8.99
View offer

Parlour palms want a lighter, more acidic mix

Chamaedorea is the split. The RHS asks for a light, fast-draining, peat-free, loam-free ericaceous compost, about three parts compost to one part grit, and a pot only a couple of centimetres wider. A heavy loam-based compost can lead to root rot. Water with rainwater where you can. Hard tap water can brown the leaves. Gardeners’ World is less acid-specific: soil-based compost plus peat-free multipurpose, in a snug pot. This page does not blend those into one recipe. None of COMPO or Invigortex says ericaceous, peat-free and loam-free. Using COMPO as the parlour-palm recipe is a guess the listing does not support. Brown tips can be hard tap water, not the compost.

What the bags in this comparison actually say

For a kentia, the COMPO 5 litre bag matches one pot and the 10 litre bag a larger plant or a pair. You still add grit if a handful stays slick, and you still do not claim a pH. Invigortex, at £8.99, £12.95 and £19.95 by title, names palms. One shared UK review dated 3 August 2026 reports no tiny flies. Do not treat the 10 or 30 litre title as settled litres. It does not become ericaceous because a parlour palm is in the room. In winter, let the surface dry and empty the saucer. A mix that is still wet days later is on palm soil that stays wet.

Common questions

Does a parlour palm want the same bag?
The RHS Chamaedorea guide says no. It wants a light, peat-free, loam-free ericaceous mix, about three parts compost to one part grit, and rainwater. Gardeners’ World is milder: soil-based compost plus peat-free multipurpose, in a snug pot. We do not merge those into one recipe. A bag that only says palm, including the COMPO bags here, does not state the ericaceous mix.
Can I use the COMPO palm compost indoors?
Yes, in the sense the listing allows it and UK reviews already do. The 5 litre bag at £20.59 suits one small pot. The 10 litre bag at £26.84 suits a larger plant. Add grit if the mix stays wet, and do not treat it as the ericaceous parlour-palm compost the RHS describes.
Is ericaceous compost right for every indoor palm?
It is the RHS recommendation for Chamaedorea, the parlour palm. The general indoor-palm page, which covers the kentia, points to John Innes No 2 or a peat-free indoor mix, not to an ericaceous bag. A rhododendron compost was kept out of this comparison because it is a different product. Ericaceous is a species decision, not a slogan for every palm in the house.
Should I use rainwater?
For a parlour palm, the RHS prefers rainwater, because hard tap water can brown the leaves. A water butt or a jug left out in the rain is enough for one plant. Other indoor palms are less fussy in the general RHS page, and they still resent a pot left standing in water. If leaf tips brown on a parlour palm, look at the tap before you replace the compost.
Will a houseplant mix that lists palms be enough?
Invigortex lists palms with ferns and foliage plants. One shared five-star review is a thin reason to prefer it, and the litre lines disagree. It can be enough for a small kentia-type palm if the bag is a sensible volume and you add grit when it stays wet. It does not state the ericaceous mix a parlour palm is given by the RHS.

Related pages

Palm soil buying guide

Palm soil

Best palm compost UK: the named bag and a clear skip

Why palm soil stays wet: saucer, pot size and gnats

How to repot a palm: spring timing, width and bag size

Sources

Public UK sources listed below, used for this page in October 2026. Prices, stars and review counts are from the amazon.co.uk listings in this comparison. This is not a laboratory test.

  1. RHS, Indoor palms (retrieved October 2026)
  2. RHS, Hardy palms (retrieved October 2026)
  3. RHS, Chamaedorea growing guide (retrieved October 2026)
  4. RHS, Peat-free compost choices (retrieved October 2026)
  5. RHS, Fungus gnats (retrieved October 2026)
  6. GOV.UK, Sale of horticultural peat to be banned (retrieved October 2026)
  7. TheyWorkForYou, written answer 19 March 2026 (retrieved October 2026)
  8. BSI, PAS 100:2018 composted materials (retrieved October 2026)