Verdejar vs Greg: which app waters plants better?

Verdejar works out watering from the water a plant loses, like Greg, but does more with that sum: it tells you when and how much to water, learns from what you report about the soil, follows your local weather and adds a seasonal care plan, a journal and a diagnosis guide. And it is entirely free. In Greg, precision watering is part of the Super Greg subscription.

Verdejar is a new app, launched in 2026 on the App Store, available in English, Spanish, French and Portuguese, and it works in any country. This piece is by the Verdejar team; what we say about Greg comes from its App Store listing and an introduction published by House Plant Journal, checked in November 2026.

The science behind Verdejar’s watering

Verdejar’s engine uses evapotranspiration, the method the FAO (the United Nations food and agriculture agency) gives agronomists to estimate how much water a crop loses. The app applies it to every plant in your home: the species, the light in that corner, the pot (material, size and drainage hole), the compost and the season. If you choose to share your location, your real local weather comes in too, and a hot week changes the rhythm without you touching a thing. The weather data is real and current: your area’s temperature, air humidity and rainfall feed into the sum every day.

Then the app learns. When you water, you tell it how the soil felt, from “soaking” to “bone dry”, and it corrects its estimate for that plant. Within a few weeks it knows your pot, your window and the way you water.

Much more than a watering reminder

• It tells you how much to water, not just when: “half a glass”, “three glasses”, worked out from the size of the pot.
• A seasonal care plan: besides water, it reminds you to feed, turn the pot, clean the leaves and check for pests, each at the right time.
• Today on one screen: what’s overdue, what’s due today and a calendar for the month.
• Phone notifications, with a daily summary and a heads-up when the weather turns.
• Symptom-based diagnosis, by part of the plant (leaves, stem, soil and pot), with the likely causes and what to do.
• A journal for each plant, with notes, measurements and photos.
• Caring pays off: levels, 22 achievements and new pots to earn, plus friends to keep up with.

All of this is free. The only thing you can buy is decorative pots, which are optional and change nothing about watering.

And Greg?

According to its introduction, Greg starts from the FAO Penman-Monteith method and takes the species, the pot and the compost into account. Precision watering and smart reminders are part of Super Greg; the app also identifies plants from a photo and has a community.

Verdejar and Greg side by side

	Verdejar	Greg
Price	Free and complete	Free + subscription (Super Greg)
Watering based on the water a plant loses	✓	✓
Precision watering and smart reminders	✓ free	Paid
How much water to give each time	✓	—
Learns from the state of the soil	✓	—
Seasonal care plan	✓	—
Journal with notes and photos	✓	—
Symptom-based diagnosis	✓	—

Key: ✓ has it · “Paid” needs Super Greg · — not stated in the official information.

Who is Verdejar for?

For people who want the app to do the thinking: to know when and how much to water each plant, what to do each season and what’s going on when a leaf turns yellow. A pothos by a south-facing window and another in a dim hallway don’t drink the same, and Verdejar gives each its own rhythm. A ZZ plant, which goes a long time without water, gets a much slower one.

Quick questions

Is Greg free? It’s free to download, but precision watering and smart reminders belong to Super Greg.

Do I need to sign up? No. You open it and start; the account is created on its own, with nothing to fill in.

And the other apps?

We compared Verdejar with Planta, PictureThis and Blossom in the best plant care apps. Try below what Verdejar would say about your plant.

Sources: App Store (Greg listing) · House Plant Journal (Greg overview). The days between waterings come from the Verdejar watering engine.