LetPot vs Click and Grow: Plant Count, Pod Costs and Upkeep

For the most plant sites per dollar in the 9-site and 12-site pairing, LetPot's LPH-SE gives you 12 sites for $119.99, while Click and Grow's Smart Garden 9 gives you 9 for $174.97 on sale. If you want the lowest cost per pod, LetPot's blank sponges are cheaper per piece, but you add the seeds and the nutrient yourself. Run one tray before you rely on either for microgreens.

Disclosure: this page is monetized. Some links may be affiliate links, and if you buy through one, Microgreens Guru may earn a commission at no extra cost to you. Prices below were read from the makers' US pages on November 7, 2026, and they change.

The closest matches, side by side

You are choosing between two different methods, so start by lining up what each machine holds. Plant count is the closest fair first comparison, though it is not an exact match.

So, a 27-plant Click and Grow rack has three 4 L tanks to fill, while a 21-site LetPot is one garden. Keep that in mind when the plant counts look close.

How tall and how wide: measure your counter

The Smart Garden 9 page gives the light height as 15.8 inches with one extension arm or 23.2 inches with two. It lists the footprint as 23.6 x 7.5 inches with one extension. The light is 13 W and the tank holds 4 L.

For the Smart Garden 27, Click and Grow's Smart Garden 27 page lists the plant stand at 47 inches wide, 26 inches deep and 10.3 inches high, and describes the assembled unit as 5 feet 3 inches tall. Confirm the assembled light height with Click and Grow, and measure the shelf or counter and the clearance above it, before you order.

On the LetPot side, the LPH-SE listing on Amazon shows 16 x 7 x 9.8 inches, a 24 W LED, a 5.5 L tank and a light the seller says adjusts up to 30 inches. That is a seller claim, so check it against the unit you receive.

What the machines cost

These are US prices from the makers' pages and the Amazon listing, read November 7, 2026. Click and Grow shows a sale price and a regular price.

Check LetPot's LPH-Max page for its current price. The per-site figures are plain division of the listed price by the listed site count, and they do not account for what comes in the box. The Smart Garden 9 and 27 ship with starter pods (the Smart Garden 9 comes with three mini tomato, three green lettuce and three basil), according to the product page. The LPH-SE box holds 12 sponges, baskets, germination covers and A and B nutrients, per the Amazon listing.

What stocking it costs, pod by pod

Here the two systems stop being alike. Click and Grow pods are pre-seeded soil capsules, a growing medium with the seed and nutrients already inside. LetPot is an open hydroponic system: you set blank sponges in baskets, add two or three seeds per sponge according to LetPot's FAQ, and mix nutrient into the water.

Click and Grow's pod prices come from its subscription collection. The lower figures below are the prices shown in the subscription collection, and the subscription itself is optional; the maker also sells one-time purchases.

LetPot's replacement parts are priced per piece, and they are blank. According to LetPot's LPH-Lite page, a 172-piece pod kit costs $26.89 and 200 grow sponges cost $24.99, which works out to about $0.16 per listed piece and $0.12 per sponge. Hydroponic nutrient is $16.99; work out how many tank refills one purchase covers before you count it into your yearly cost.

The per-pod figures are not like for like

A Click and Grow pod arrives with seed and nutrients inside. A LetPot sponge arrives empty, and you still buy seed and nutrient. So, $0.12 against the $2.66 shown for the nine-pack in the subscription collection is not a fair contest on its own.

Judged only on the price of the replacement piece, LetPot costs less per pod. Add the cost of your own seed and your nutrient use per tank, and the gap narrows by an amount only you can work out.

Here is a way to run it. Decide how many pods you plan to grow in a year, then multiply. At the per-pod rates above, 10 Click and Grow pods come to about $49.83 from 3-packs or $33.28 from 9-packs at regular prices, and about $39.87 or $26.62 at the prices shown in the subscription collection. For every 10 LetPot sponges, the sponge cost is about $1.25, before seeds and nutrient.

Click and Grow also sells Grow Anything pods, which are seedless and made for your own seeds. The maker's page says they last four to six months before the nutrients run out. In the subscription collection, its 30-pack is $59.95 regular, about $2.00 a pod, or $47.96 on sale, about $1.60 a pod.

Pods and seeds: what each system expects

Click and Grow's standard pods are its own pre-seeded capsules. Its seedless Grow Anything pods are the way to use your own seeds.

LetPot describes its systems as open, with no pod lock-in and no subscription requirement. You can plant seeds you choose in sponges. LetPot sells a 172-piece pod kit and a 200-sponge pack.

If you want to choose your own seeds without a pod subscription, that points to LetPot. If you want to open a pack and plant it without choosing seeds or mixing nutrient, that points to Click and Grow. Neither is better until you say what you want from the machine.

Trouble and upkeep, as the product pages describe it

The Smart Garden 9 and 27 come with a companion app that offers timed plant-care tips and video tutorials, per Click and Grow's model guide. The Smart Garden waters passively: water moves from the tank through the pod, and the maker says its Smart Soil handles water, pH, oxygen and nutrients around the roots.

LetPot needs no subscription. The LPH-SE has app and Wi-Fi control, an automatic timer and a low-water reminder, according to the Amazon listing, and its pump circulates nutrient solution around the roots. You mix the nutrient, refill the tank and manage the sponges. LetPot's FAQ names mold, algae, clogged pumps, roots and Wi-Fi connection as its troubleshooting topics, and it sells green light-blocking stickers and clear germination covers for the seedling stage.

Read the setup steps and the troubleshooting pages for the exact model you are considering before you pay.

Can either one grow microgreens?

Their product pages talk about herbs, lettuce, tomatoes and flowers. So, run one tray and judge the result.

These are individual reports, not controlled trials. A Gardening Know How tester reported growing herbs and salad greens in an LPH-Max in 2026 in a personal test. A Gardening Know How reviewer reported growing lettuce, herbs and tomatoes in a Smart Garden 9 over four months in 2025 (see their review). House Beautiful described the Click and Grow as suitable for herbs, microgreens and leafy salads in a 2025 review, without giving a yield measurement.

Think about the geometry too. Each system grows in discrete sites: 12 sponges in the LPH-SE, nine pods in the Smart Garden 9. Confirm the model has enough shallow planting space for the trays you plan to grow. A trial will tell you how much each site gives you.

For the trial, sow the microgreen seed you plan to use, record the day you sow and the day you cut, record the weight of what you harvest, and write it down. That number is your own measured result to compare.

FAQ

Does Click and Grow work with my own seeds? Yes, through its Grow Anything pods, which are the seedless version of its plant pod. The maker says they last four to six months before nutrients run out.

Is the Click and Grow subscription required? No. The maker offers a pod subscription, but it is optional, and its product pages show ordinary one-time purchases as well. The lower per-pod figures above are the prices shown in the subscription collection.

Does LetPot sell its own pods? LetPot sells blank replacement sponges and pod kits, such as the 172-piece kit at $26.89 and 200 sponges at $24.99. You add seeds and nutrient, so the cost of a full crop is more than the sponge price.

How many germination covers does the LPH-SE come with? The LPH-SE box holds 12 germination covers, 12 light-blocking stickers and 12 sponges, one for each of its 12 sites, per the LPH-SE manual.

Before you decide

Here are three steps. Work out the per-pod cost for the system you are leaning toward, using the method above and your own pod count for the year. See how each handles pods and seeds: Click and Grow's pre-seeded capsules, or LetPot's open sponges with your choice of seed. And settle on the plant count you need, from the models compared here: 9 and 27 for Click and Grow, 12 and 21 for LetPot.

For more on the LetPot side, read the LetPot review and the AeroGarden vs LetPot post. Before you buy anything, measure the space, run one microgreens tray, and write down the harvest weight.

Sources

Prices, stock and specifications are as the linked pages showed them on 2026-11-07.

• Click and Grow's Smart Garden 27 page
• Smart Garden 9 page
• Amazon
• LetPot's FAQ
• subscription collection
• maker's page
• model guide
• LPH-Max
• review
• House Beautiful