Monstera Drooping? 7 Causes, How to Diagnose and Fix Each One

A drooping Monstera is almost always responding to one of seven conditions: underwatering, overwatering with root rot, insufficient light, low humidity, cold or draught stress, fertiliser salt buildup, or a root system that has outgrown its pot.

Most of these are fixable within days once you have identified the right cause.

The diagnosis is where most people go wrong. Underwatering and overwatering produce nearly identical symptoms at first glance: limp leaves, wilting petioles, general loss of rigidity.

Treating for the wrong one makes things worse. My own Monstera drooped badly one January, and I made it considerably worse by watering it more heavily for a week before I realised the actual problem was that I had moved it away from the window when I rearranged the furniture. It needed light, not water.

This guide works through every major cause of Monstera drooping with the specific diagnostic detail you need to identify which problem you are dealing with, and the practical steps to fix each one.

Why Monstera Leaves Droop: What the Plant Is Actually Doing

Monstera deliciosa is a tropical climbing plant from the rainforests of Central America.

Its large, flat leaves are held upright by water pressure inside the leaf cells, a mechanism called turgor pressure.

When anything disrupts the plant’s ability to maintain that pressure, whether from too little water in the roots, too much water that has rotted them, or environmental stress that causes the plant to lose moisture faster than it can replace it, the leaves lose their rigidity and droop.

The symptom, drooping, is the same regardless of cause. That is what makes diagnosis critical.

The fix for underwatering is the opposite of the fix for overwatering, and applying the wrong one can take a stressed plant into serious decline fairly quickly.

How to Diagnose Why Your Monstera Is Drooping

Before doing anything, check these diagnostic indicators. The pattern and context of the droop tells you which cause you are dealing with.

1. Underwatering: The Easiest Fix, But Easy to Misread

Underwatering is the most common cause of drooping in Monsteras that are otherwise in reasonable positions, and it is the most straightforward to resolve.

The plant loses more water through its leaves than the dry soil can replace, turgor pressure drops, and the leaves go limp.

The classic presentation is leaves that droop without yellowing, soil that is dry all the way through, and a plant that looks generally deflated rather than discoloured.

The petioles, the stems that connect each leaf to the main stem, lose their rigidity before the leaf blades themselves show obvious distress.

The reassuring thing about underwatering is that most Monsteras recover remarkably quickly once watered correctly.

I have seen badly drooped plants perk up within a few hours of a thorough soak.

How to water a drooping Monstera correctly

Water thoroughly until water runs freely from the drainage holes. Do not give it a small top-up and stop. The whole root zone needs to be reached.

Allow excess water to drain completely, then do not water again until the top two to three inches of compost feel dry when you press a finger in.

For severely dried-out soil that has become hydrophobic and is repelling water rather than absorbing it, set the pot in a basin of room-temperature water for 20 to 30 minutes.

This allows the compost to rehydrate from the bottom up, which is far more effective than pouring water from the top of soil that has shrunk away from the sides of the pot.

Our Monstera watering schedule guide covers the full seasonal variation in detail, but the principle that matters most is using soil moisture as your cue rather than a fixed calendar interval.

Conditions in a UK home in January are very different from July, and the same watering frequency will underwater in summer and overwater in winter.

2. Overwatering and Root Rot: The Most Dangerous Cause

Overwatering is the most frequently misdiagnosed cause of Monstera drooping, and the most damaging if left unaddressed

A waterlogged plant looks like an underwatered one, because the end result is the same: the roots cannot deliver water to the leaves.

The difference is that in overwatering, the roots are failing not because there is too little water but because they are being deprived of oxygen in saturated soil.

I killed multiple plants in my first year of growing houseplants, and every single one died from overwatering.

Not from neglect, but from what I thought was attentive care. I watered on a schedule, I kept the soil consistently moist, and I drowned them.

Understanding that “watering well” means letting the soil cycle between moist and slightly dry, not keeping it perpetually wet, was the single most important thing I learned.

The distinction between overwatering and underwatering is in the soil. Check it at root depth, not just the surface.

If the compost is wet and stays wet for days after watering, something is wrong.

If there is a musty, sour, or unpleasant smell coming from the base of the pot or the soil itself, root rot has already started.

Overwatering without root rot

If the soil is consistently soggy but there is no smell, the roots may still be intact. Stop watering entirely.

Allow the compost to dry out significantly before watering again. Check that the drainage holes are clear and not blocked.

If the pot sits in a saucer, empty it after every watering so the plant is never sitting in standing water.

If the potting mix is dense and slow to drain, water is likely sitting at the root zone regardless of how you water.

Incorporating perlite into the mix, or switching to a more aerated compost, makes a significant difference. For more on this, see our article on what soil to use for a Monstera.

Diagnosing and treating root rot

If the soil smells foul, remove the plant from its pot and inspect the roots. Healthy Monstera roots are firm, white or cream in colour, and snap cleanly when bent.

Rotted roots are brown, dark grey, or black, soft and mushy to the touch, and may break apart without resistance.

The smell confirms it: root rot has a distinctive unpleasant odour that is impossible to mistake once you have encountered it.

Cut away all visibly affected root tissue with clean, sterilised scissors or secateurs. Trim back to firm, healthy root material even if this means removing a significant proportion of the root system.

Dust the cut surfaces with a sulphur-based fungicide powder, or allow them to dry for an hour before repotting.

Repot into fresh, well-draining compost in a pot with clear drainage holes.

Do not return the plant to the original pot without washing it thoroughly with a diluted bleach solution first, as Phytophthora and other fungal pathogens that cause root rot can persist on pot surfaces.

Our full guide to fixing root rot in a Monstera covers the recovery process and aftercare in detail.

In brief: keep the repotted plant in bright indirect light, water very conservatively for the first two to three weeks, and do not fertilise until new growth confirms the plant is recovering.

3. Insufficient Light: A Common Cause That Develops Slowly

Insufficient light causes a more gradual droop than watering problems, which is why it tends to go unnoticed until the plant has been in a poor position for months.

The mechanism is different too. Rather than a sudden collapse caused by a water imbalance, low light causes the plant to slow its growth and reduce its overall metabolic activity, and the leaves gradually lose their firmness and vigour.

My own Monstera, which now occupies a solid corner of the living room, spent its first winter in a position I thought was fine: about three metres from a south-facing window.

The leaves drooped slightly through January and February, and I kept checking the soil, adjusting watering, checking the humidity.

None of it helped. Moving it to within a metre of the window in March fixed the droop within two weeks without changing anything else.

The signs of light-related drooping are usually accompanied by other indicators. The leaves may be smaller than they should be, or fewer new leaves are appearing.

Growth may have slowed or stopped. The plant may be leaning noticeably toward the nearest light source.

The leaves look dull rather than glossy, and the overall colour may be a medium green rather than the deep, rich green of a well-lit plant.

What counts as enough light for a Monstera

Monstera deliciosa evolved as an understorey plant in rainforest environments where it receives dappled, filtered light rather than direct exposure.

In a home environment, this translates to a position within one to two metres of a window that receives good daylight for most of the day, without direct harsh summer sun hitting the leaves for extended periods.

East-facing windows are ideal in the UK: bright morning light, no harsh afternoon sun. South-facing windows work well with a sheer curtain to filter the strongest light.

West-facing windows work in summer but may receive too much direct afternoon sun. North-facing positions in the UK provide insufficient light for a Monstera to thrive, particularly through autumn and winter.

For more detail on positioning, see our full guide on where to place your Monstera and our article on whether Monstera like direct sunlight.

Using a grow light to supplement

In a UK home through winter, even a well-positioned Monstera can struggle with the reduction in daylight hours.

A full-spectrum LED grow light positioned 30 to 60 centimetres above the plant for 10 to 12 hours per day provides meaningful supplemental light and can prevent the winter droop that many UK houseplant owners see regardless of positioning.

See our guide to the best grow lights for Monstera for specific recommendations.

4. Low Humidity: Worse in Winter Than Most People Realise

Monstera deliciosa evolved in an environment where relative humidity regularly exceeds 70 to 80 percent.

Most UK homes sit at 40 to 50 percent in summer, and when central heating runs through autumn and winter, indoor humidity can drop to 30 percent or below.

The Royal Horticultural Society recommends keeping tropical houseplants away from radiators and heat sources precisely because of this.

Low humidity drooping looks different from underwatering drooping. The soil is moist, and watering does not help.

The leaf edges and tips may show browning or crispness. New growth may emerge smaller and less developed than expected.

The overall appearance is of a plant that is losing moisture from its leaves faster than it can replace it, which is exactly what is happening: dry air draws moisture from the leaf surface continuously.

My living room in a UK January typically sits at around 35 percent relative humidity with the heating running. That is well below what a Monstera wants.

A cheap humidity gauge from a garden centre shows you the actual level rather than leaving you guessing, and it is one of the more useful purchases I have made for my plant corner.

How to raise humidity effectively

A dedicated cool-mist humidifier is the most reliable solution. Positioned near the plant and set to maintain 60 percent relative humidity, it makes a consistent, measurable difference.

Group several plants together near the humidifier and the effect is compounded through natural transpiration from all the leaves.

A pebble tray, a shallow tray filled with gravel and water positioned beneath the pot, allows slow evaporation to raise the local humidity around the plant.

The pot itself should sit above the water level, not in it. This costs nothing and provides a passive humidity boost that works particularly well for the area immediately around a smaller plant.

Regular misting of the leaves helps remove dust and can provide brief relief, but does not raise ambient humidity in any sustained way.

For a full examination of whether misting is worthwhile, see our article on misting Monstera for humidity.

The short answer is that misting is a supplement, not a replacement for better ambient humidity.

See our full article on the ideal humidity for a Monstera for specific targets and seasonal advice.

5. Cold Temperatures and Draught Stress

Monstera deliciosa is a tropical plant with no tolerance for frost and only marginal tolerance for temperatures below about 12 to 15 degrees Celsius.

In UK homes, cold stress is more often the result of specific microenvironments rather than a cold room overall: a windowsill that becomes very cold on winter nights, a position near a draughty external door or old single-glazed window, or a plant placed in a conservatory that is not heated overnight.

Cold stress drooping tends to appear suddenly without any obvious change in care, which is the key diagnostic sign.

The leaves go limp and may look slightly water-soaked or translucent at the margins. If the cold exposure has been severe, the affected leaf tissue may darken and collapse.

The soil and watering schedule have not changed. What has changed is the temperature at that specific location.

A common scenario I encounter in plant groups online, and made myself in my first winter with a Monstera, is moving the plant closer to a window in winter to increase light, only to place it directly behind a radiator or near a heat source.

The plant then alternates between cold from the glass and dry heat from the radiator, neither of which it handles well. Both the cold and the dry heat simultaneously stress it.

Warming up a cold-stressed Monstera

Move the plant to a warmer location and keep it there. The target indoor temperature range for a Monstera is 18 to 27 degrees Celsius.

Avoid positions within 60 centimetres of an external wall during cold nights, near draughty windows or doors, or directly above or beside a radiator.

Do not increase watering during cold recovery. Cold-stressed roots absorb water slowly, and additional watering while the plant is not actively growing risks adding root rot to the existing problem.

Water lightly once, check the soil is draining properly, then wait until the temperature stabilises before returning to normal care.

For more on year-round care including protecting your plant through the colder months, see our guide to caring for your Monstera in winter.

6. Over-Fertilisation and Salt Buildup

Over-fertilising is a less common but genuinely damaging cause of Monstera drooping that tends to catch people out when they are trying to encourage more growth.

The mechanism is the same as with overwatering in terms of visible symptoms: the roots cannot absorb water effectively, and the leaves droop despite the soil appearing adequately moist.

What happens in the soil is a process called osmotic stress. Excess fertiliser salts accumulate in the compost and raise the concentration of solutes around the roots.

This draws moisture out of the fine root hairs through osmosis rather than allowing the plant to absorb it, producing the same symptoms as drought even when water is present.

The process is sometimes called fertiliser burn.

The signs that distinguish over-fertilisation from other causes include browning of leaf edges and tips that appears after a period of heavy feeding, a white or pale crust on the surface of the compost or around the drainage holes (salt deposits from evaporated water), and drooping that does not respond to watering.

If the last few times you watered you also added liquid fertiliser, this is worth investigating.

How to fix fertiliser salt buildup

Flush the soil thoroughly. Water the pot heavily with plain room-temperature water and allow it to drain freely. Repeat this three or four times in succession.

The goal is to leach the accumulated salts out of the compost through the drainage holes. For a container-grown plant, do this over a sink or outside so the water can drain completely away.

If there is a visible crust on the soil surface, remove the top inch or two of compost and replace it with fresh material before flushing.

Withhold all fertiliser for the remainder of the current season. When you do resume feeding, use a balanced liquid fertiliser at half the recommended strength.

For guidance on the correct feeding approach, see our article on the best fertiliser for Monstera.

The general rule is to feed every two to four weeks through spring and summer at half strength, and stop entirely through winter when the plant is not actively growing.

7. Root Bound: When the Pot Has Run Out of Space

A root-bound Monstera is one that has outgrown its pot to the point where the roots fill every available space, have begun circling the inside of the container, and can no longer absorb water and nutrients effectively.

The result is a plant that droops despite apparently correct care, because the root system physically cannot function as it should.

When I finally repotted my Monstera after nearly three years in the same container, the root mass had moulded completely to the shape of the pot.

The roots had been circling the bottom for a long time.

The new growth in the weeks after repotting into a larger container with fresh compost was noticeably more vigorous than anything the plant had produced in the preceding twelve months.

The diagnostic signs are relatively clear. Roots emerging from the drainage holes at the base of the pot are a reliable indicator.

Water that drains unusually fast, running straight through the pot without moistening the compost, suggests the root mass has become so dense that water is channelling around it rather than being absorbed.

Growth has slowed significantly despite the plant receiving adequate light, water, and feeding.

For more detail on when to act and when to wait, see our article on whether Monsteras like to be root bound.

There is a moderate degree of root binding that does not cause immediate problems, and repotting too frequently into pots that are too large creates its own issues with excess wet compost around the roots.

How to repot a drooping root-bound Monstera

Choose a new pot that is 5 to 7 centimetres wider in diameter than the current one.

Too large a pot means too much compost stays wet around the roots after watering, increasing the risk of root rot. Too small and the plant will be root-bound again within months.

Remove the plant gently and loosen the root ball by massaging the outside of the roots with your hands. Trim any roots that are visibly circling, damaged, or dead.

Place the plant in the new pot with a layer of fresh compost underneath, fill around it with well-draining potting mix, firm it gently, and water thoroughly.

Our full repotting guide covers the step-by-step process including aftercare.

Repot in spring if at all possible. Spring repotting allows the plant to settle into its new container as the growing season begins, which accelerates recovery.

Avoid repotting in winter when growth is slow and the plant will take much longer to establish.

Could Pests Be Causing Your Monstera to Droop?

Pests are not the most common cause of drooping in Monsteras, but a severe infestation can weaken a plant enough to cause loss of leaf rigidity.

Spider mites, which thrive in hot, dry conditions, can infest the undersides of leaves and draw enough sap to stress the plant noticeably.

Thrips can damage developing leaves and cause a general decline in plant vigour.

If drooping is accompanied by stippling or silver streaking on the leaf surfaces, webbing on the undersides of leaves, or small insects visible on the stem or leaf undersides, pests should be investigated alongside the other causes.

Our guides to the most common Monstera pests and how to get rid of thrips on Monstera cover identification and treatment.

Quick Diagnostic Reference

Frequently Asked Questions

Why is my Monstera drooping even after watering?

If your Monstera is drooping despite being watered, the most likely explanation is that the roots are unable to absorb water rather than that there is not enough water present.

This can happen for several reasons: root rot has damaged the roots and they can no longer function, fertiliser salt buildup is causing osmotic stress, the root ball has become so compacted it cannot absorb water efficiently, or the plant is cold-stressed and the roots are not actively absorbing.

Adding more water to a drooping Monstera that is already in moist or wet soil is likely to make the problem worse.

Check the soil moisture at root depth, the smell, and when the plant was last repotted or fed before reaching for the watering can.

How long does it take a drooping Monstera to recover?

Recovery time depends entirely on the cause. Underwatering, where the plant is otherwise healthy and simply dry, can resolve within a few hours of correct watering as the leaves rehydrate.

Light-related drooping may take a week or two to show obvious improvement after repositioning, as the plant adjusts to its new conditions.

Root rot recovery takes considerably longer, often several weeks, as the plant needs to regenerate root tissue before the leaves can fully recover.

The thing to watch is new growth. A Monstera that is recovering will produce new growth relatively promptly once the underlying problem is resolved.

If the plant is not producing any new leaves and existing leaves are continuing to deteriorate after several weeks, the cause has not been fully addressed.

Should I cut off drooping Monstera leaves?

Not immediately. A drooping leaf that still has green tissue and is attached to a healthy-looking petiole is still functioning and should not be removed.

The plant will draw nutrients from it as it recovers. Remove a leaf only if it has yellowed completely, turned brown and crispy throughout, or shows signs of disease or rot that might spread to healthy tissue.

Our guide to pruning a Monstera covers when and how to remove damaged leaves without stressing the plant further.

Can my Monstera recover from root rot?

Yes, in many cases, if the rot is caught before it has affected more than half the root system.

The key steps are removing all visibly rotted roots, repotting into fresh compost with good drainage, and then reducing watering significantly while the plant regenerates.

A Monstera that has had a severe root system reduced will take time to produce new growth, but most healthy specimens with a functional growing tip will recover given correct conditions.

If the main stem at soil level feels soft, dark, or mushy, the rot has progressed to the stem itself and the prognosis is significantly worse.

In that case, taking healthy stem cuttings and propagating those is a better option than trying to save the original plant.

Our article on how to revive a dying Monstera covers the recovery steps and when to accept that propagation is the better route.

My Monstera is drooping and the leaves are turning yellow. What does that mean?

Drooping combined with yellowing usually points to a root problem rather than a simple environmental issue.

The two most likely causes are overwatering or root rot, where the compromised root system cannot deliver nutrients to the leaves, causing them to yellow as well as droop, or a severe nutrient deficiency in a plant that has not been fed or repotted for a long time.

Underwatering alone tends to cause wilting without yellowing until the stress is severe and prolonged.

If yellowing is present alongside drooping, check the soil carefully for waterlogging and smell before doing anything else.

For more on discolouration alongside drooping, see our articles on why Monstera leaves turn yellow and why Monstera leaves turn brown.

Is it normal for Monstera to droop after repotting?

Some temporary drooping after repotting is entirely normal. The root system has been disturbed and the plant takes a few days to settle into new compost and re-establish its normal water absorption.

Keep the plant in its usual position, water once to settle the compost, and then leave it alone for several days. Most plants recover within a week without any intervention.

If drooping persists for more than two weeks after repotting and the soil is moist, it may be that the new pot is significantly larger than the old one, resulting in too much wet compost around the roots.

A brief check of the root ball and the drainage are worth doing at that point.

Key Takeaways

1. Diagnose before acting. Underwatering and overwatering produce near-identical symptoms and require opposite treatments. Check the soil moisture and smell at root depth before doing anything else.
2. Overwatering is the most damaging cause and the most frequently misdiagnosed. A foul smell from the soil is the clearest sign that root rot has started. Inspect the roots before watering again.
3. Light loss in winter is a cause of drooping that UK growers often miss. A position that works in summer may be inadequate in January. Moving the plant closer to the window or adding a grow light often resolves winter droop without any change to watering.
4. Low humidity worsens in winter with central heating. UK homes with radiators can drop to 30 percent relative humidity, well below what a Monstera needs. A humidity gauge costs very little and removes the guesswork.
5. Existing drooping leaves will not fully recover if the underlying cause is severe. Once leaf tissue is damaged, it does not reverse. But a plant with healthy roots and growing tip will produce new, healthy leaves once conditions improve.
6. Repot every one to two years in spring. A root-bound Monstera cannot absorb water efficiently regardless of how well you water it. Fresh compost and adequate root space are essential maintenance.
7. Cold stress appears suddenly without a change in watering. If drooping appeared overnight or after a change in season, check the temperature at the plant’s specific location, not just the room temperature.
8. Never fertilise a drooping plant until you know the cause. If the drooping is from root damage, fertiliser adds salt stress to an already compromised root system.
9. After fixing the cause, be patient. Recovery takes time proportional to the severity of the problem. Judge progress by new growth, not by how quickly existing leaves perk up.

Final Thoughts

Almost every drooping Monstera I have encountered, including my own, was responding to something fixable.

The plant is telling you something is wrong, and it is usually straightforward once you know what to look for.

The most important habit to build is checking the soil before responding to drooping.

Press a finger two to three inches into the compost and note what you find. Dry and crumbling means underwatering. Wet and smelling means overwatering or worse.

Moist and fine means the problem is environmental, and you need to look at light, temperature, or humidity.

Monsteras are genuinely resilient plants. My own has come back from a cold winter, a period of neglect when I moved house, and at least one bout of what I suspect was early root rot from overwatering in its first year.

Given the right conditions, they recover well. The key is identifying what is actually wrong before treating it.

If you found this helpful, you might also enjoy our articles on why Monstera leaves curl, Monstera adansonii care, and a comparison of Pothos vs Monstera if you are deciding which plant suits your space.