Can plants really fix your office echo?

Spoiler: yes. And they’ll look great while doing it.

If your office sounds like a cave, you’re not imagining it. All that concrete, glass, and open space? It turns your meeting room into a sound tunnel. Not ideal for Zoom calls or thinking. The sound of your team brainstorming shouldn't feel like it’s bouncing off the walls—and yet, that’s exactly what happens in most modern workspaces.

Let’s talk about why that happens and what you can actually do about it. 

Why does your office echo in the first place?

Let’s get a little nerdy for a second (promise it’s worth it). Sound travels in waves. When those waves hit something, one of three things happens: they’re absorbed, they’re diffused, or they bounce right back. Hard, flat surfaces—like glass, concrete, metal, or hardwood—are notorious for reflecting sound. That means the sound waves don’t get “caught” by anything. They just keep going, bouncing from wall to wall to ceiling and back again.

That’s where echo comes from. It’s your voice (or your coworker’s) bouncing around a space with nowhere to go. Over time, all those little reflections layer up, creating what we call reverberation. That’s the kind of echoey, hollow sound that makes a room feel uncomfortable to be in—especially if you’re trying to have a conversation or lead a meeting.

Materials like carpet, fabric, and acoustic panels absorb sound. They trap the energy in the wave and stop it from bouncing. But guess what else does that? Plants.

So how do plants help, exactly?

It turns out, your ficus is doing more than just sitting there looking cute. Plants can help soften sound by absorbing and diffusing it. They aren’t solid like a wall, but that’s exactly what makes them useful. Their textured leaves, flexible stems, and even the soil they’re planted in all contribute to reducing ambient noise.

Broad-leafed plants like fiddle-leaf figs and philodendrons are especially good at scattering sound waves, breaking up the pattern of reverberation. Think of them as soft, leafy buffers that work with the shape and layout of your space. Even their placement makes a difference—positioning them in corners or against flat, reflective surfaces helps break up long sound paths.

They’re also naturally porous. The fibrous surface of leaves, the volume of soil, and the spaces between branches all act as mini sound traps. Unlike flat, hard materials that reflect sound cleanly, plant surfaces are irregular and soft, making them great at soaking up sound instead. 

Why should you actually care?

Clear sound isn’t just about acoustics—it’s about communication, concentration, and comfort.

If your meeting room echoes back even a split second of someone’s voice, it becomes harder for people to focus and stay engaged. Even a few milliseconds of repeated reflection can muddy speech and increase cognitive load. Over time, that constant background noise and echo makes it harder for our brains to process information. It forces people to listen harder, which leads to mental fatigue.

Good sound changes how people feel. It’s one of those invisible things that just makes the room feel “right.” And plants can help get you there.

What kind of plants are best for sound?

We’re glad you asked, because not all plants are created equal when it comes to acoustics. The best ones are big, dense, and have plenty of surface area. Think:

• Ficus lyrata – Those iconic fiddle-shaped leaves aren’t just trendy. They’re wide and sturdy, making them great for catching and dispersing sound.

• Sansevieria – Also known as snake plant. Tall, architectural, and perfect for corners. They’re tough, too, so you won’t have to worry about maintenance.

• Areca palm – These are full and fluffy, offering lots of volume. That means more surface area to break up sound.

• Philodendron – Fast-growing and forgiving. They’re great for filling larger spaces and adding natural texture to echoey areas.

Why plants instead of acoustic panels?

Sure, acoustic panels work. But they also come with their own set of downsides: they’re expensive, they often require installation, and let’s be honest—they rarely blend into your space. They solve a problem, but they don’t improve your space in any other way.

Plants, on the other hand, do more than one job. They soften sound, improve air quality, and make your space feel alive (literally). There’s something about a touch of green that changes the energy in a room. It calms people down. Makes things feel more human. More welcoming.

How can we help?

When you work with Benji’s, we make sure your plants are doing the most. That means helping you pick the right ones based on light, ventilation, and layout—then making sure they thrive in their new home.

We’d love to help you pick the right plants for those noisy corners. Every office is different, so we’ll look at your space, consider how it functions, and recommend options that look good and actually work.

Book your free consultation here.

— No pressure. Just plant talk.