Indoor herb gardens have crossed from gadget novelty into useful kitchen infrastructure in the past five years. The two dominant systems (AeroGarden and Click and Grow) each take a different engineering approach to the same basic problem: grow fresh herbs and leafy greens in a kitchen, year-round, without natural sunlight and without a green thumb. Both succeed at the basic goal. The differences in growth speed, pod cost, light intensity, and tank refilling are significant enough that the right pick is different for different households.
The fundamental question is what you want from the system. Fastest growth and biggest harvests favor AeroGarden. Lowest maintenance and quietest operation favor Click and Grow. Lowest ongoing cost favors using either system with DIY pods. Most users do not investigate either of those tradeoffs before buying, then regret the choice within six months when one of them becomes friction.
How AeroGarden works
AeroGarden is a deep-water hydroponic system. The base is a reservoir holding 0.5 to 2 gallons of water depending on the model. Above the reservoir, plastic pod baskets hold seeds in inert sponge inserts. The roots grow down through the sponge and into the water below, where a small air pump aerates the reservoir to provide oxygen to the roots.
Above the pods, an LED hood provides growing light. The Harvest 360 has a 23-watt full-spectrum LED running 16 hours on, 8 hours off. The Bounty Elite has a 50-watt LED. Lights are bright enough that the kitchen often does not need other ambient light when an AeroGarden is on.
The user fills the reservoir, drops in pre-seeded pods, adds liquid fertilizer (included), and the unit takes over. The system notifies when water is low (about every 1 to 3 weeks) and when fertilizer is due (every 2 weeks).
The pre-seeded pods are AeroGarden brand and cost about 2 to 3 dollars each in 6 or 9 packs. The fertilizer is also proprietary, but third-party general hydroponic nutrients also work.
What AeroGarden does well: fast growth (basil in 4 weeks, lettuce in 3 weeks, tomatoes in 6 to 10 weeks), high yields (a single basil pod produces enough leaves for weekly use over 4 to 6 months), and visible water level monitoring.
Where AeroGarden falls short: noise (the air pump in the reservoir hums continuously), water refilling frequency (every 1 to 2 weeks), and the bright LED at full output is uncomfortably bright in a small kitchen at night.
How Click and Grow works
Click and Grow uses what they call Smart Soil pods, which are foam plugs of a peat-and-vermiculite substrate seeded with one variety, sealed with timed-release fertilizer. The pod sits in a plastic basket in the unit. A small reservoir below the pod wicks water up through the substrate by capillary action.
Above the pods, a small LED panel provides growing light. The Smart Garden 3 has a 6-watt LED. The Smart Garden 9 has a 12-watt LED. Both are dimmer than AeroGarden equivalents.
The user fills the reservoir, drops in the sealed pod, and walks away. No fertilizer additions needed (it is built into the pod). Water refills are needed every 2 to 4 weeks depending on the plant and ambient humidity.
The pre-seeded pods are Click and Grow brand and cost about 3 to 4 dollars each. Click and Grow also sells empty Plant Plugs at about 1 dollar each for users who want to grow from their own seed.
What Click and Grow does well: dead simple operation (no fertilizer, infrequent water refills), silent operation (no air pump), low light output that is not blinding at night, and clean aesthetics that fit on a kitchen counter without industrial appearance.
Where Click and Grow falls short: slower growth (about 25 to 50 percent slower than AeroGarden for the same crop), smaller harvests over the life of a pod, and the sealed pod design wastes substrate after each cycle.
Growth speed comparison
Basil from seed to first harvest:
AeroGarden Harvest 360 (20-watt LED, deep water hydroponics): 28 to 35 days.
Click and Grow Smart Garden 3 (6-watt LED, wicked substrate): 35 to 45 days.
Lettuce from seed to first cut:
AeroGarden: 21 to 28 days.
Click and Grow: 28 to 35 days.
Cherry tomato from seed to first ripe fruit:
AeroGarden Bounty (50-watt LED): 60 to 80 days.
Click and Grow 9 (12-watt LED): 80 to 100 days.
The difference compounds over a 6-month growing cycle. AeroGarden produces noticeably more total harvest weight per pod than Click and Grow.
Pod cost over time
The 3-pod AeroGarden Harvest 360 running continuously, replanting every 3 to 4 months on a basil cycle:
3 pods replaced 4 times a year = 12 pods a year at 2.50 dollars average = 30 dollars in pods per year.
The 3-pod Click and Grow Smart Garden 3 on a similar cycle:
3 pods replaced 3 times a year (slower turnover) = 9 pods at 3.50 dollars average = 32 dollars per year.
Both systems are similar in annual pod cost. The bigger ongoing-cost lever is whether you use proprietary pods or DIY them.
Click and Grow Plant Plugs (empty plugs at 1 dollar each) plus your own seed brings annual cost to about 9 dollars.
AeroGarden empty grow baskets and sponge inserts (third-party available) brings annual cost to about 5 to 10 dollars.
For a long-term user, switching to DIY pods after the first proprietary cycle saves 70 to 80 percent of the recurring cost.
Light intensity matters more than people realize
AeroGarden’s brighter LED is the single biggest reason for the growth speed difference. The Harvest 360’s 23-watt full spectrum LED at the canopy puts out roughly 200 micromoles per square meter per second of photosynthetically active radiation, which is comparable to bright outdoor shade.
The Click and Grow Smart Garden 3’s 6-watt LED puts out about 80 to 100 micromoles per square meter per second, which is closer to a partly cloudy day in the deep shade.
For basil, parsley, mint, and other Mediterranean herbs that evolved under full sun, the AeroGarden’s brighter light produces denser growth and more essential oils (which translate to stronger flavor). The Click and Grow herbs are usable but less aromatic.
For lettuces, kales, and shade-tolerant greens, the lower light of Click and Grow is fine. Those crops do not need full sun.
Noise
AeroGarden has a small air pump in the reservoir that runs continuously to oxygenate the water. The noise is similar to a small aquarium pump: about 35 to 45 dB at one meter, which is below conversational speech but audible in a quiet kitchen.
Click and Grow has no pump. The unit is silent except for the LED’s silent operation.
For users who run a kitchen office or sleep within earshot of the kitchen, this matters. The AeroGarden hum is not loud but it is constant.
The decision
Grow fast, harvest big, and replace pods on schedule: AeroGarden. The Harvest 360 at around 150 dollars is the standard pick. The Bounty Elite at 350 dollars is the next step up.
Grow set-and-forget, want silence, value clean aesthetics: Click and Grow. The Smart Garden 3 at around 130 dollars or the Smart Garden 9 at 200 to 250 dollars.
Want lowest long-term cost: either system with DIY pods. Click and Grow’s empty Plant Plugs are the easier DIY path; AeroGarden’s third-party sponge ecosystem is the deeper one.
Grow tomatoes and peppers seriously indoors: AeroGarden Bounty Elite is the only consumer system in this price range with enough light to ripen fruit in reasonable time. Click and Grow tomatoes ripen eventually but are a long wait.
Grow lettuces and shade-tolerant greens primarily: Click and Grow. The lower light is plenty for those crops, and the lower noise and aesthetic appeal pay off in daily use.
The most common mistake is buying the wrong system for the herb mix you actually use. Italian-style cooking with heavy basil, parsley, oregano: AeroGarden grows them noticeably better. Asian-style cooking with mint, cilantro, scallions: either system works, lean toward Click and Grow for quieter daily operation. Match the system to the crops and the household, and either one delivers genuinely fresh herbs in a kitchen that does not have a sunny window. See our methodology for our kitchen appliance testing protocols.
Frequently asked questions
AeroGarden vs Click and Grow: which grows herbs faster?+
AeroGarden grows faster. A basil seed in an AeroGarden Harvest 360 with the 20-watt LED hood typically reaches first harvest in 28 to 35 days from seeding. The same basil variety in a Click and Grow Smart Garden 3 reaches first harvest in 35 to 45 days. The difference comes from light intensity (the AeroGarden hood puts out roughly 40 to 50 watts of full spectrum LED, while the Click and Grow uses about 8 to 12 watts) and from the deep-water hydroponic root environment versus the limited soil pod. For users who want fresh herbs as fast as possible, AeroGarden wins.
Are the proprietary pods worth the ongoing cost?+
Click and Grow pods run about 3 to 4 dollars each. AeroGarden pods run about 2 to 3 dollars each. For a 3-pod garden running continuously through the year with replanting every 3 to 4 months, that is about 36 to 60 dollars per year in pod costs. Click and Grow does sell empty pods (Plant Plugs) that work with any seed at about 1 dollar each, which cuts the ongoing cost significantly. AeroGarden also sells empty grow baskets and sponge inserts for similar DIY use. For users committed to the system long term, switching to DIY pods reduces the recurring cost by 60 to 80 percent.
Can these gardens grow more than herbs?+
Yes, with limits set by the unit height and the lighting. AeroGarden offers tomato and pepper pods that grow into compact dwarf varieties of those plants in their taller units (Bounty, Harvest XL). Click and Grow offers tomato, strawberry, and chili pods. Real-world results: cherry tomatoes work in both systems but produce 3 to 8 tomatoes per plant rather than the 20 to 40 a soil garden produces. Strawberries are slow and low-yield. Lettuces and leafy greens work very well in both. The systems are optimized for high-turnover quick crops, not for full vegetables.
How much electricity does an indoor herb garden actually use?+
Modest. An AeroGarden Harvest 360 uses about 23 watts when the LED is on. Running 16 hours a day, that is roughly 0.37 kWh per day or 135 kWh per year, which is about 18 dollars at 0.13 dollars per kWh. A Click and Grow Smart Garden 3 uses about 10 watts at 16 hours per day, roughly 60 kWh per year or 8 dollars. Larger units (AeroGarden Bounty Elite, Click and Grow 9) use more, around 30 to 40 dollars per year. The electricity is not a meaningful ongoing cost for either style.
Is buying fresh herbs at the supermarket cheaper than running these gardens?+
Depends on usage. A package of fresh basil at the supermarket runs 3 to 4 dollars and wilts in 3 to 5 days. A household using fresh herbs weekly buys 4 to 6 packages a month, about 15 to 25 dollars. A 200 dollar AeroGarden with 60 dollars a year in pods produces continuous basil, parsley, mint, and cilantro for 2 to 3 years. The payback is 12 to 18 months for routine herb users. For a household that buys fresh herbs once a month, the supermarket is cheaper. For weekly users, the indoor garden saves money and produces noticeably fresher herbs.
