A curling pothos (Epipremnum aureum) is still alive and well — it’s just stressed, and it’s telling you exactly what it needs. Curled leaves are one of the easiest plant problems to reverse, because the plant rarely does it without a clear reason.
Work through the six causes below in order, from most common to least, and stop at the first one that matches your plant.
Do this quick check first
Before diagnosing, feel the soil and look at the leaves closely:
- Soil feel: Push a finger 3-4 cm into the soil. Bone dry, barely damp, or soggy?
- Leaf feel: Are the curled leaves soft and limp, or stiff and crispy?
- Leaf undersides: Run a finger underneath — any webbing, specks, or discoloration?
These three observations narrow the cause down fast.
1. Underwatering (most common)
If the soil is dry and the leaves curl inward with crispy edges and a papery feel, your pothos has simply gone thirsty. Pothos stores water in its stems, so it tolerates missed waterings for a while — but once the leaves start curling, it’s been dry too long.
Fix: Give it a deep soak, not a splash. Water slowly until it runs out the drainage holes, wait 15 minutes, then water again so the whole root ball absorbs moisture. Going forward, water when the top inch of soil dries out — the same soil-checking method we cover in our spider plant watering guide works for every pothos.
2. Overwatering and root rot
Curling plus yellowing leaves and soggy soil points the other way: roots are sitting in water and struggling to breathe. Overwatered pothos often looks both curled and limp, and the soil stays wet for over a week.
Fix: Stop watering until the top few centimeters dry out, and empty the saucer immediately after every watering. If the pot has no drainage holes, repot into one that does. Lift the plant and check for brown, mushy roots — if you find them, trim the rot, refresh the soil, and water sparingly for the next month.
3. Low humidity
Pothos is a tropical plant, and heated or air-conditioned rooms pull moisture out of the air. When humidity stays low for weeks, leaf edges curl and tips turn brown and crisp — often on several leaves at once.
Fix: Set the pot on a tray of pebbles with water just below the pebbles (the pot must sit above the water line), or group it with other plants so they share humidity. A small humidifier nearby works best in very dry rooms. Avoid misting as a primary fix — it only raises humidity for a few minutes.
4. Too much direct sun and heat
Pothos wants bright, indirect light. Hours of harsh afternoon sun — especially through an unshaded south- or west-facing window — scorches leaves, and curling is one of the first signs alongside pale, washed patches.
Fix: Move the plant a meter or two back from the window, or filter the light with a sheer curtain. Morning sun is fine; intense midday and afternoon sun is not.
5. Cold drafts and temperature swings
Pothos prefers steady temperatures between about 18-27°C. A drafty window in winter, an air-conditioner vent blowing directly on the plant, or a radiator heating it from below all cause stress curling.
Fix: Pick one stable spot and leave the plant there. Move it away from vents, doors that open to the outside, and heat sources. If you rotate the pot for even growth, turn it slightly — don’t relocate it across the room.
6. Pests (spider mites and thrips)
If the soil, water, and conditions all look fine, check the leaf undersides again — this time for tiny moving specks, fine webbing at the leaf joints, or pale speckled stippling. Spider mites and thrips feed on the sap and make leaves curl and distort.
Fix: Rinse the plant thoroughly in the shower or sink, paying attention to the undersides, then treat with insecticidal soap or neem oil every 5-7 days for two to three weeks. Isolate the plant from your others while you treat it.
What to do right now
- Check the soil first — dry means water deeply; soggy means stop watering.
- Match the leaf symptoms — crispy = thirst, limp + yellow = overwatering, brown tips = dry air.
- Move it to bright, indirect light away from drafts and vents.
- Wait one to two weeks — new growth coming in flat means you found the cause.
Most curled pothos recover within a fortnight of the right fix. If your plant has bigger problems than curling, our monstera troubleshooting guide walks through the same diagnostic order for any houseplant — and the weekly plant care checklist turns all of this into a routine that prevents stress before it starts. New to houseplants entirely? Start with the 10 easiest houseplants guide — pothos is on the list for a reason.
