The 9 Best Aerogarden Models (2023 Review)

No more harmful chemicals leaching into your favorite greens. Grow healthy, all-natural veggies, herbs, fruits, and more right in the comfort of your living room. There’s one AeroGarden model that doubles as a side table! 

Check out the 9 Best AeroGarden model and start taking control of what you eat.

9 AeroGarden Reviews For Successful Indoor Gardening

No matter where you fit in the hydroponic world, there is an AeroGarden that is right for you. Grow as many or little plants as you want at home. And grow anything any time of the year. Here are 9 AeroGardens with the best reviews.

Still unsure which AeroGarden model is the best for you? Check out our unbiased reviews below starting with our top pick:

Our pick for the best AeroGarden model is the AeroGarden Bounty Basic. 

This indoor garden is the perfect mix of tech and variety. It’s the most basic model that operates on vacation mode and connects to wifi. Plus, it has enough deck space for nine plants that can grow up to 2 feet.

Another cool thing about this model is that you can access over 140 gardening tips right at the control panel. You can even adjust the light time to match what you’re planting.

Plus, you don’t have to use a siphon because the water reservoir is removable. Just carry the basin to the sink and clean it from there. Easy peasy.

As we said, this is the ultimate choice for those that want automated features to go with a good variety of plants. It is perfect for intermediate hydroponic gardeners. Exploring the growing parameters of plants is fun. 

This unit’s vacation mode keeps your plant alive for at least two weeks – a handy feature if you travel often. You can always monitor it remotely, thanks to the wifi connection. It’s a sweet deal for something that doesn’t cost a fortune.

You’re now familiar with all the Aerogarden categories, great! Let’s get to our best picks of the bunch. We’re starting with our budget pick, the AeroGarden Harvest.

New hydroponic gardeners will love this system because you can grow six plants while keeping the tech to basics. When you’re done with your first seed pod kit, you can mix and match the ones you really like. That way, you can have a steady supply of your favorites all year round. 

The controls and indicators are basic. You just have to worry about feeding and watering. Plus, the big tank size means fewer of those tasks. There is no need to pay extra for high-tech features, especially if you’re just starting your hydroponic gardening journey.

The Aerogarden Harvest is a budget-friendly option that offers a good mix of pod space, growth height, and basic control. 

The AeroGarden Farm 24XL is a slight upgrade from the regular farm model. It has a higher growth height capacity so that you can have 3-feet tall plants. But that means you need more floor space because the entire thing is HUGE! 

You can put it up on a bench, so you don’t have to bend too low to maintain it. And don’t worry about not being able to see the control panel on top. You can check that on your phone. 

This model is our premium pick because it has all the bells and whistles to go with the maximum planting space. You don’t have to use up all the pods at once. But it’s great to have all that room to fully grow bigger plants like tomatoes, peppers, or other fruiting vegetable plants.

Just keep in mind that this farm setup needs more attention. I’m not talking about watering or feeding. I’m talking about trimming. You have to keep the plant growth under control, especially the roots. You have to keep cutting them to keep them from blocking the filters, pumps, or tangling up with the other plants’ roots.

But hey, if you transitioned into this system, you’re already a hydroponics pro! Enjoy all the fresh veggies.

The AeroGarden Farm 24XL is best for advanced hydroponic gardeners who don’t mind paying a lot for an all-in-one setup. You need quite a bit of know-how to work this system. It’s very high tech which helps you with monitoring this beast of a garden. But when everything is established, you need constant maintenance to keep the plants growing well and not too big.

Featuring three pod slots, a watering hole, and an adjustable grow light arm, the Sprout Garden is the most basic AeroGarden model on our list. 

Unlike its bigger (and more expensive) brothers, you won’t rely on a high-tech control system to monitor days or light levels. Instead, you’ll get a simple water window. Yup, that’s it. But, you’ll be glad to know that the light flashes red when your plant is thirsty for more nutrient solution – because nothing says “pay attention to me” better than an insistently blinking red light, right? 

Sprout Garden also comes with a 3-pod herb set consisting of parsley, basil, and dill. Although you can get other types of pods, you’d want to make sure that they don’t grow more than 10 inches. Why? Taller plants will block the growth lights. 

Later on, you can use the Aerogarden Sprout for exactly that purpose, sprouting. You can always move them into a bigger pot and sprout new plants. But make sure the plant starts growing well and has well-established roots. Tomatoes are good for transplanting because they grow tall.

If you’re a hydroponic newbie, this Aerogarden is perfect for you. It’s small enough to keep on your kitchen counter without taking away much prep space. And all the basic indicator signals are easy for beginners to understand. 

Now, if you want a hydroponic system with more indicator lights and can grow six 12-inch tall plants, the AeroGarden Harvest 360 is an exceptional choice. 

As mentioned, it can simultaneously grow six plants. The choices are the same as the Sprout Garden. But you can grow slightly bigger plants with this model. The LED grow light extends 2 inches taller for more headroom. You can even go a bit longer without having to prune your plants. 

Although you still get basic controls with this model, you’ll get two indicator lights for food and water and a light switch. But just take note that you can’t dim the lights. The best part is they are all front and center for convenient monitoring. And the lights still blink when you need to add water or nutrients.

You get more space to experiment with different varieties, but it’s still simple enough to maintain. With the larger water tank, you don’t have to add water as often, and Since it can accommodate more pods, you also get twice the yield. 

Still, with the Harvest category, let’s check out the AeroGarden Harvest Elite model. This gives you your first taste of the LCD control panel. Ooooh, what do those extra buttons do?

For this model, you get the lamp power button and the water/nutrient indicator button. You also get an actual screen that records time, days of planting, and a food timer. Its detailed setup gives you more control over the lighting requirements of your plants. Two more buttons help you navigate through the settings.  

You can even set the light duration depending on what you’re growing. For example, herbs need 17 hours of light every day. There’s also a vacation mode, so you can go away for up to two weeks without your plants dying. 

Pod-wise, you still get six pods for this AeroGarden Harvest Elite model. It’s just more automated and even wider than the 360 version. There is more spacing between pods, so your plants have more room to grow. It also makes it easier for you to prune the plants evenly. You don’t end up just cutting from one side, and the middle of the garden gets crazy.

The Elite model of the Harvest AeroGarden is great for intermediate plant growers. You can start to experiment with the different light settings or set the environment that is best suited for your plants. You can do so much more with those extra buttons.

A collaboration between Miracle-Gro and Aerogarden, the Miracle-Gro Twelve is a garden and furniture in one!

The end product looks like you have a plant resting conveniently below a table. So you have a hydroponic garden, light fixture, and table all rolled into two sq. feet of space. Talk about value for your money?

This whole thing is very sleek. All the wires go through the table frame, so you don’t have to worry about tangled cables or wet cables. 

Planting is a bit different for this one. There are only four plant spots for this garden, but you can grow 2-3 seeds in each slot. Plus, they don’t have to seed. You can use established seedlings since this unit’s pods aren’t like the typical, small AeroGarden pods. 

The cherry on top of this awesome gardening unit is the high-tech monitoring system. You don’t have a display or indicators in the unit itself. Everything is very low-key. 

But how do you monitor the light and water status, you ask? 

You do it like any other gadget of the 21st century, with your phone. Yup, you download the app, and that becomes your control panel. If you someone else looking over your plants while you’re on a long trip, you’ll need to ask to download the app too. 

The MG-12, as people would call it, is a great option for minimalist gardeners. Seriously, the design is awesome, and you wouldn’t know that it’s a hydroponic setup unless they told you. It’s also perfect for growing bigger plants indoors like tomatoes because there’s a higher growth clearance.

Once you’re an expert at harvesting, go the bountiful route with the AeroGarden Bounty Elite Garden model. This unit holds nine pods so that you can grow more variety and more plants. 

You can also grow taller plants like tomatoes since the lamp extends up to 2 feet. But make sure you grow other tall-growing plants with the tomatoes. Otherwise, the shorter plants won’t get enough light, stunting their growth. They’ll eventually wilt and die.

The control panel of this is fully automated. You can even get notifications directly on your phone. 

The AeroGarden Bounty Elite is the perfect setup for plant geeks with a tech side. You’ll enjoy playing around with the light and pump settings. It includes a sunrise and sunset function that mimics the natural sunlight cycle. 

The AeroGarden Farm 24Plus Garden is pretty much a tiny farm in your living room! 

You can grow 24 plants in this setup. It even has a frame to support a trellis for taller plants. Two pod decks with their individual tanks are available so that you can have leafy greens in one tier and tall herbs and tomatoes in the other. The lights are separate, too, so you can adjust one side without bothering the other. 

See, the term farm really fits, right?

It’s a smart farm too. You can hook it up to your wifi and let Alexa do things for you. She can tell you the status of the water and nutrients. Plus, the overhead lamps work automatically too. You don’t need to fuss around with adjustment knobs or manually pulling the light up and down. 

The only setback is that this unit won’t fit on your kitchen counter. It’s best placed on the ground like a regular farm setup. It’s not the easiest on the back, but you get many more benefits for that one sacrifice. 

If you have a big table next to a blank wall, that’s a good spot for it too. It’s not the prettiest placement, but it saves you from bending over every time you have to harvest.

This AeroGarden model is for a big family or even a small restaurant. You can get several of these units and stack them up for even more production, like a vertical garden. Plus, this is great for those that want to grow an assortment of plants but just want one setup for everything. 

The only thing you can’t grow is root veggies. You can germinate them here, but you have to transplant them.

AeroGarden Buying Guide: Everything You Need To Know 

All AeroGardens work on a hydroponic system. So there’s no debate about aquaponics vs. hydroponics with this brand. Each unit has pod slots, an adjustable grow light, and a reservoir. Check out which combination works best for what you need in your indoor garden.

AeroGarden Pods

AeroGarden units use special seed pods for their systems. They use a Sphagnum peat medium that is great for absorbing water and plant nutrients (1). You get a free seed kit when you buy a unit, but you can also get them separately. 

AeroGarden guarantees germination for all seed kits. If yours doesn’t grow within 30 days, just call customer support, and they’ll send you new seed pods.

The popular seed kits for starters are the herb and salad seed kits because they grow the fastest. Plus, you can eat them. You can get them in sets of 3, 6, 9, or 12, depending on the unit that you get. 

For example, the AeroGarden Sprout Garden has three pod slots, perfect for either an herb garden or a flower garden. The gourmet herb seed kit includes Genovese basil, curly parsley, and dill. 

You can plant your own seeds if you want, but you have to use the pods made by Aerogarden. Otherwise, it won’t fit well, and you end up with algae or complications in the operation because they aren’t compatible.  

Growth Height

Choosing your seed pods is extremely important. Even though any AeroGarden seed pod grows in the units, some grow bigger than others. That’s why there are labels on the seed pods. It shows what plant it is and how tall it grows.

“But why is it so important to choose the right seed pods?”

Almost every unit has an adjustable LED grow light. But they also have a growth limit. That means the lamp only extends a certain height. If you grow plants taller than your lamp, well, then then they won’t grow properly. 

Taller plants like tomatoes grow better in the taller units like the AeroGarden Bounty Basic that extends to 24 inches high.

The plants grow really fast in a hydroponic setup. So you need to prune or often harvest after the one-month mark. Pruning makes the plant grow fuller instead of taller and keeps the plants neat (2).

Maintain your plants by harvesting good leaves for eating and taking out browning leaves. Otherwise, your plants start to overcrowd, making it harder to harvest. I mean, check out just how fast they grow!

So, choose plants that you actually like to eat or have around. That way, it naturally gets used up, and you continuously prune to eat on demand. 

LED Grow Light 

One of the most important parts of each Aerogarden is the LED grow light. All units have one that provides plants with the full spectrum of light (3). 

It mimics natural sunlight, which is super important for indoor plants growing in hydroponic systems. They use this wavelength for optimal food production and even flowering. 

Now you might think that the light takes up so much electricity because it seems to be on all the time. But it doesn’t. The LED grow lights consume between 10 and 60 watts of power. And they stay on for an average of 16 hours a day. 

The AeroGarden Farm 24Plus Garden has two separate lamps for each pod deck, giving you more control over your plants’ lighting requirements. For instance, if you have short plants, you can lower the LED growth lights. 

At the same time, you can grow tall herbs like dill and fruit-bearing plants like pepper or eggplant in the other pod deck. You can raise the LED grow light without bothering the shorter plants. 

Control Panel and Other Features 

All AeroGarden models operate in the same hydroponic system. They have a pump that circulates nutrient-powered water throughout the setup.

The basic models from the sprout to the harvest have indicator lights that blink, telling you when to refill things. They suit the non-tech-savvy planter moms and dads. 

Advance models like the Bounty to the Farm have automated systems. These models have LCD screens that show the plant cycle days and a countdown timer to the next nutrient refill. 

You can even connect some models to your wifi network so you can get notified from your phone. Let’s face it; we look at our phones more than anything else. So that’s the best way to remind you to do things. If you’re extra lazy, you can get the models that are Alexa-enabled. Use voice controls to ask for status updates.

The Miracle-Gro® Twelve™ Indoor Growing System is the most unique model on the list because it has an adjustable grow light. And it doesn’t have a control panel on the unit. But the lights blink differently when you need to refill or if there’s an error in the pump. Plus, it has its app that acts as the control panel via your phone.

One of the best features of the later models is the vacation mode. Because the last thing you want is to spend on a hydroponic system and have your plants die the moment you go on a trip. 

Running on vacation mode means the system uses the bare minimum amount of water to keep the plants alive. This way, they extend the water they have, and they stay alive until you get home.