Weeping fig vs Kentia palm

Ficus benjamina · Howea forsteriana

Pet safety: Kentia palm is listed non-toxic to cats and dogs; Weeping fig is toxic (proteolytic enzyme, psoralen). If the two are sold under the same name, a mislabelled plant is a genuine risk in a house with animals.

Why these two get mixed up

Kentia palm is recorded here as a pet-safe alternative to Weeping fig, so the question is usually whether the swap is actually a fair one.

Weeping fig (Ficus benjamina) — **Weeping fig** — Ficus benjamina. Photograph by KENPEI, Wikimedia Commons , CC BY-SA 3.0.

Kentia palm (Howea forsteriana) — **Kentia palm** — Howea forsteriana. Photograph by Black Diamond Images, Wikimedia Commons , CC BY 2.0.

	Weeping fig	Kentia palm
Scientific name	Ficus benjamina	Howea forsteriana
Family	Moraceae	Arecaceae
Light floor	Medium	Low
Water	7–12 days	8–14 days
Humidity floor	40%	40%
Mature height	36–120 in	48–120 in
Habit	upright	clumping
Growth rate	moderate	slow
Difficulty	Moderate	Easy
Toxic to pets	Yes	No
Typical price	$25–90	$60–250

Highlighted cells are where the two actually differ. Everything else they share.

The differences that matter

Pet safety

This is the difference that matters most. Kentia palm is listed non-toxic to cats and dogs; Weeping fig is toxic (proteolytic enzyme, psoralen). If the two are sold under the same name, a mislabelled plant is a genuine risk in a house with animals.

Light

Kentia palm tolerates low light; Weeping fig needs medium as a floor. Put the second in the first's spot and it stretches and declines.

Difficulty

Kentia palm scores 1 of 5, Weeping fig scores 3. undemanding on light and water, and famous for dropping every leaf after being moved a metre. The plant is not dying; it is objecting.

Habit

Weeping fig grows upright; Kentia palm grows clumping. That decides where each one physically works.

Not even related

Weeping fig is Moraceae, Kentia palm is Arecaceae. They share a shop label and nothing else — different families, different continents, different care.

Which should you buy?

With a cat or dog in the house, take Kentia palm. The other is toxic, and if the shop label is wrong you will not know which you have brought home.
In a dim room, take Kentia palm.
If you forget to water, take Kentia palm, which goes 10 days between drinks.
If it is your first plant, take Kentia palm, at 1 of 5.
For a small shelf, take either.

Full entries

Weeping fig — care fields with sources, toxicity with every authority consulted, propagation and diagnosis. Kentia palm — the same.

Sources

This database's own care records for Ficus benjamina and Howea forsteriana — every figure compared above.
Royal Botanic Gardens Kew, Plants of the World Online — accepted names and families for Ficus benjamina and Howea forsteriana
ASPCA Animal Poison Control — toxicity classification for both, cited on each species entry
Photographs: Wikimedia Commons, individually credited and licensed above

Compiled and edited by Tony Valcarcel · 2026-09-12
Every comparison above is drawn from a recorded field. Where the honest distinguisher is visual we show both photographs rather than describing a leaf we have no field for. How this is sourced.