Sure, electric air purifiers are great, but what about the original air-purifying “devices?” Good old air-purifying houseplants have been taking our carbon dioxide and other pollution and chemicals and turning it into oxygen since, well, the dawn of time. Whether you’re already a houseplant parent or are just getting into the indoor gardening hobby (welcome!), there’s an air-purifying plant perfect for sprucing up your indoor spaces.

Whether at home or at work (and doubly so if those are the same place), most of us spend the vast majority of our time indoors, so it matters if the air we're breathing is clean. However, most of us can't really tell whether our indoor air is clean or not, sans those living with asthma or other breathing conditions, perhaps.

But imagine if you were inside 100% of the time. And floating through oxygen-deprived outer space like, say, an astronaut. Then, clean air would absolutely be on the top of your list.

That's the precise reason why NASA teamed up with the Associated Landscape Contractors of America in 1989 to research ways to clean the air in space stations. It was already well-known that plants could absorb carbon dioxide and release oxygen through the act of photosynthesis, but the researchers were hoping to find out if they could do even more.

According to NASA's Clean Air Study, the initial testing of a dozen different potentially air-purifying indoor plants — including the peace lily, Chinese evergreen, bamboo palm, and gerbera daisy — found that certain plants may provide a natural way of removing up to 90% of volatile organic pollutants from our air by pulling them into and trapping them within their own roots and cells. They're then broken down in the soil or simply stored in the plant.

The only caveat? You'd probably need hundreds of the best air-purifying indoor plants in your home to achieve maximum effectiveness. That may be a welcome challenge for some plant lovers, but it's probably not ideal for most folks. However, every little bit helps, so having even a few of the best air-purifying plants could still have an impact. (Not to mention they’re more natural and cost-effective than electric air purifiers, too.)

NASA's initial study pumped benzene, formaldehyde, and trichloroethylene into small spaces with common house plants to see how the plants would be able to combat indoor air pollution and effectively remove these carcinogens — substances that can cause cancer in humans — from the air. While you probably (hopefully?) don't have a cabinet full of these contaminants ready to spray around your home just for funsies, these volatile organic compounds (or VOCs) can be found within a lot of common household products — far more than you may even realize.

VOCs are man-made chemicals often used in and produced by the manufacture of things like paint, pharmaceuticals, and refrigerants. So you'd encounter these in your home when you're painting, of course, but they can also be emitted when using cleaning supplies and pesticides. But even stuff like copiers, printers, Wite-Out, permanent markers, nail polish, air fresheners, photographic solutions, and craft materials such as glues and adhesives can emit VOCs, making air-purifying indoor plants a great fit for home offices and art hobby rooms.

NASA admits that more research is needed when it comes to plants eliminating or reducing VOCs. But researchers have found that air-purifying indoor plants can also effectively reduce mold, mildew, and bacteria by releasing phytochemicals that suppress them.

The presence of houseplants in our living and working spaces can also be incredibly soothing and stress-relieving — like nature's little antidepressants. This therapeutic mood-boosting and fatigue-fighting effect can help us feel more productive, and may even enhance concentration and memory. This isn't because they release anything special into the air, however, but simply because they're nice to look at and care for.

So, not only do air-purifying plants do the heavy lifting to enhance our indoor air quality and make it better for us to breathe, but they also double as really incredible home decor, too! Beauty and brawn rolled into one? We love to see it.

The best indoor plants for clean air include the peace lily, spider plant, snake plant, Boston fern, bamboo palm, golden pothos (aka Devil's Ivy), aloe vera, Chinese evergreen, English ivy, rubber plant, flamingo lily, and money plant — or money trees. Chrysanthemum (aka "mums") and gerbera daisy are also fantastic indoor plants that clean the air — and they’re quite pretty, to boot — but are more difficult to ship, so you may want to pick them up locally or grow them yourself with seeds.

Gerbera daisies, English ivy, and snake plants, in particular, have larger surface areas that are ideal for sucking the bad stuff out of the air. That said, any of the best air-purifying indoor plants that grow big and tall (or long) and/or have large leaves should be an effective choice to act as a natural air purifier in the home. Snake plants also tend to be really easy to care for — requiring just a little indirect light and water only when its soil is completely dry — so no worries if you haven't got a green thumb.

With that in mind, we’ve rounded up a selection of the best air-purifying plants you can buy to combat indoor air pollution in your home. Whether your indoor conditions are chock full of direct sunlight and bright spaces or shaded corners and indirect light, you’re sure to find the perfect air-purifying indoor plants among this list of the best indoor plants for clean air.

This selection of six randomly chosen air-purifying indoor plants is curated to include at least three unique varieties of greenery out of the following: parlor palm, pothos, peace lily, snake plant, aralia, Schefflera, peperomia, marginata, dieffenbachia, and coffee plant. They all arrive in lightweight, 4-inch grower's pots with drainage holes. However, keep in mind that if you regularly have children or animals in your home, some of these varieties may not be kid- or pet-safe. So be sure to do your research on the individual varieties that you receive if this is a concern.

This 6-inch potted peace lily — aka spathiphyllum — ships with blooms and a little foliage just beginning to show. They're grown with care by a small family-owned and operated facility and are generally pretty easy to care for once you get them in your home. They add the perfect amount of greenery to any room and can also be brought outdoors when the weather allows. However, despite its sweet-sounding name, it should be noted that the peace lily is poisonous to cats and dogs, and toxic if ingested by children. It can also cause skin irritation in adults, so hands off!

The aglaonema — or Chinese evergreen — thrives in humid, low-light conditions so it's the perfect plant for dark and occasionally steamy areas like the bathroom. (That's not to say you can't keep them in other rooms, however; you'll just need to mist the leaves from time to time so they don't turn brown.) This particular Chinese evergreen is of the Sparkling Sarah variety, meaning that it has gorgeous flecked foliage in shades of pink and green, and bright pink stems that are sure to liven up your space. It arrives in a 6-inch container and stands about a foot tall from table to its top leaves.

This golden pothos — better known as Devil's Ivy — arrives in a six-inch grower pot ready to be replanted in, ideally, a hanging planter. This is because, as it grows, this vining plant will form beautiful cascading tendrils full of leaves that'll suck the impurities right out of the air. They tend to like bright spots — but not necessarily direct sunlight — so they're perfect to hang near windows with sheer curtains that diffuse the sun’s rays. (It's a whole Instagram-worthy vibe.) They're one of the easiest house plants to grow, and also do well in sunlit bathrooms thanks to their love of moisture.

Better known as the spider plant, the chlorophytum comosum is one the best indoor plants for clean air, and it's also one of the easiest to keep alive. It's durable and hardy and will tolerate a range of light, soil, and moisture conditions, so it's almost (almost!) unkillable. Even better, spider plants are totally safe for pets — though cats do love to eat them. It doesn't cause them any harm (it actually has a mildly hallucinogenic effect like catnip), but it's just annoying for you. Fortunately, they're just as happy living on your desktop as they are perched high above in a hanging planter, so you have a lot of freedom when it comes to decorative placement.

This live aloe vera succulent arrives in a 3.5-inch pot, measuring at least eight inches from tabletop to tallest tip. Not only will it help the indoor air quality in your home, but it can also be used for at-home therapeutic skincare purposes. The leaves of the aloe vera plant contain a gel that has been used for centuries to heal and soften your skin. (It's especially great for sunburns!) Just be aware that the tips of the plant may get bent in transit. However, aloe tends to grow out of damage quite quickly, so it shouldn't be of much concern as long as you have a little patience.

Also called flamingo lily, painter's palette, or laceleaf, the anthurium is a beautiful plant that will look perfectly pretty in any room of your home. With a smattering of heart-shaped, salmon-colored leaves, the plant loves indirect light — but not direct sunlight or heaters. The flamingo lily also thrives in humid areas, like the bathroom or even the kitchen, as long as it's far from heat sources. But no matter where you place it, it's easy to water, requiring just six ice cubes, once per week. (The ice cubes ensure that the roots absorb the water evenly.) Just be aware that, while beautiful, flamingo plants are definitely toxic to dogs and cats. It can also cause burning of the mouth and lips if eaten by humans of all ages, too.