Best artificial plants for every room — the complete Australian guide

Best plant: Faux olive tree 180–210cm, or faux fiddle leaf fig 160–180cm depending on interior style.

The living room is where a large faux tree has the most impact. Scale is everything here — a tree that looks bold in isolation will look correct once surrounded by furniture, ceiling and light. Position in a diagonal corner at 45 degrees to both walls, beside rather than directly behind the sofa, or flanking a fireplace in matched pairs.

For Hamptons and coastal interiors: the faux olive tree at 180cm minimum. For contemporary and Scandi interiors: the faux fiddle leaf fig at 160–180cm. For coastal and tropical: the faux birds of paradise at 160cm+.

How many: One large statement tree is more powerful than multiple smaller ones. A single 180cm tree in the right position will have more impact than three 120cm trees arranged together.

Best plant: Faux olive tree 120–160cm, or a faux bamboo tree for a more serene, nature-inspired quality.

Bedrooms benefit from greenery that creates calm rather than drama. The scale is typically smaller than a living room — a 180cm tree in most Australian bedrooms will feel too dominant. A 120–160cm faux olive tree beside a bedside table, in a corner beside a wardrobe, or flanking a window creates quiet presence without overwhelming the space.

The faux bamboo tree with its real bamboo trunk is particularly suited to bedrooms — the slender vertical form and gentle foliage create a spa-like calm that suits the purpose of the room. Position beside a bedhead or in a corner opposite the bed where it's visible on waking.

Avoid: Very large, dramatically shaped trees — birds of paradise, for example, are too bold for most bedroom contexts. Choose species with a gentle, upright form rather than sprawling or dramatic foliage.

Best plant: Faux ficus tree 160–180cm beside the table, or faux kiku flower arrangements as a table centrepiece.

Dining rooms benefit from greenery that adds warmth and texture without competing with the table setting or disrupting conversation. A faux ficus tree positioned beside a dining table — not at it — adds organic texture and height without intruding on the dining experience. Its fine-leafed canopy creates gentle visual interest from a seated position.

For the table itself, our faux kiku flower arrangements in a ceramic or stone vase are the most effective choice — a considered floral centrepiece that never wilts, doesn't shed pollen and looks identical at the beginning and end of every dinner.

Positioning: In a corner beside rather than between the table and a wall. The tree should be visible from the seated position but not obstruct movement around the table or sightlines across it.

Best plant: Small faux potted plants on a bench or shelf, or a faux herb-style arrangement if counter space allows.

Kitchens in Australian homes are rarely large enough to accommodate a statement tree — and the proximity to cooking means any large plant would collect grease and particulate matter quickly. Small faux potted plants on open shelving, a windowsill or the end of a kitchen bench add freshness and visual interest at a scale appropriate to the space.

If the kitchen opens to a dining or living area, position the statement tree in that adjacent space rather than in the kitchen itself — it will be visible from the kitchen and the effect will be more powerful at that distance than a plant crowded into a tight kitchen corner.

Cleaning note: Small faux plants near cooking areas will collect more grease and dust than plants elsewhere in the home. Wipe down monthly with a slightly damp cloth to maintain their appearance.

Best plant: Small to medium faux plant 60–120cm, chosen for its form rather than its species.

The bathroom is one of the spaces where faux plants have the clearest practical advantage over real ones. Humidity, temperature variation, typically poor natural light and the difficulty of watering — all the constraints that make real bathroom plants difficult to maintain — are entirely irrelevant to faux plants.

Small faux olive trees at 90–120cm work beautifully beside a freestanding bath or in the corner of a generous ensuite. In smaller bathrooms, a single faux stem arrangement in a slim vase on the vanity adds the freshness of greenery without taking floor space. The key constraint is size — bathroom floor space is limited and a plant that looks proportional in the space is more important here than anywhere else in the home.

Style note: Bathrooms suit plants with soft, organic forms rather than bold architectural ones. An olive tree or ficus works well; a fiddle leaf fig or birds of paradise is typically too graphic for a bathroom context.

Best plant: A tall, slender faux tree for narrow hallways; a substantial 180–240cm statement tree for double-height entries.

Entries and hallways are the most underutilised spaces in Australian homes for faux plants. A well-chosen tree in the entry sets the tone for the entire home — it is the first thing visitors see and the last thing they notice on leaving.

For narrow hallways: a slender faux bamboo tree or a compact olive tree in a tall, narrow pot. The key is choosing a tree with a vertical rather than spreading form — you need height without width in a confined corridor. For double-height entries: a 210–240cm multi-branch olive tree in a substantial pot is the most impactful single décor choice available. It fills the vertical space, creates immediate warmth, and requires no maintenance.

Our large faux plant collection includes options from 160cm to 240cm suited to entries of every size.

Best plant: Faux fiddle leaf fig 120–160cm, or a faux olive tree 120–160cm for a Zoom-backdrop effect.

The home office has become one of the most important rooms in the Australian home — and the Zoom-call backdrop has made the plants visible behind a desk more culturally significant than they were previously. A quality faux tree visible in the background of video calls creates a positive impression of a professional, considered workspace.

Position the tree behind and to one side of the desk rather than directly behind the chair — this creates depth in the frame. A 120–160cm faux olive tree or fiddle leaf fig is the ideal scale for most home office contexts, visible in a video call without dominating the room.

The practical advantages of faux plants are particularly relevant in home offices — no watering disrupting work, no leaf drop to clean up, no pollen or soil to aggravate allergies in a space where you spend hours at a time.

Best plant: One large 180–240cm statement tree, positioned to anchor the living zone and visually separate it from the dining area.

Open-plan spaces benefit from large faux trees that earn their scale. A 180cm tree that reads as a statement piece in a standard living room becomes a moderate-sized plant in an open-plan space with 2.7m+ ceilings. Size up — 210cm or 240cm trees are appropriate for large open-plan Australian homes.

Strategic positioning can use a large faux tree to create informal zone separation between living and dining areas — positioned at the natural transition point between the two functions, it creates a visual anchor without the rigidity of a physical partition. Our Faux Giant Multi Branch Olive Tree at 230–240cm is specifically designed for this kind of large-format, open-plan application.