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This article was updated in December to update prices and link to all the online florist's Christmas shops.
No matter the occasion, flowers are a timeless way to show you care. So whether you can’t be with a loved one for their birthday, want to arrange a surprise knock at their door or find a show-stopping Christmas gift, why not send a bouquet of the best blooms?
These days, however, Google is awash with online florists vying for your business, making it tricky to choose a company you can trust.
To help you make this important decision, the Good Housekeeping Institute (GHI) put 20 brands to the test, to find the best online flower delivery services for all needs and budgets.
Behold, our tried and tested pick of the 17 best online flower delivery services in the UK:
Discover the GHI's pick of the best plant delivery services here.
As well as using any provided flower food, there are plenty of steps you can take to ensure you enjoy your blooms for longer.
Firstly, look for bouquets that contain flowers still in bud, as this means they will arrive earlier in their life cycle and you’ll be able to enjoy the petals opening.
When your flowers arrive, trim the stems by a couple of inches, cutting them at a diagonal angle – this helps the flowers absorb as much water as possible. Refresh the water every few days too, and re-trim the stems by 1cm when you do this.
Before putting the flowers in your vase, remove any leaves that will sit below the waterline. If left, they can go mouldy and cause the water to become discoloured.
Check accompanying care instructions, as they may contain guidance specific to your blooms. For example, roses are often sent with guard petals intact – these outer petals aren’t as vibrant as inner petals but protect the flowers in transit, and can be gently removed so your bouquet looks its best.
Lastly, showcase them away from direct light and radiators to avoid them drying out prematurely.
After testing a total of 133 bouquets, we’ve found the best online flower delivery services to suit you – whether you’re looking to go all out on a luxury bouquet or are looking for something impactful yet affordable. Scroll on to discover all you need to know about our winners, and how our experts reached these verdicts.
Need-to-know: Bloom and Wild’s website is a dream to navigate, offering a seamless browsing and ordering experience. Its bouquets are just as good; they arrived safely and impressed testers by looking beautiful for three weeks. As a result, our panel said they would use this company again and recommend it to friends and family.
Best bits: Luxury gifts can be added as thoughtful extras — our favourites include the Cowshed hand cream and Prestat chocolates — and the pet toxicity warnings on listings were appreciated by cat and dog owners.
B&W also has a chic line up of vases and varies their bouquets according to what's in season, making it easier than ever to find the perfect gift. Their adorable mini Christmas trees deserve an honorable mention, too.
Downsides: Its delivery options aren’t as extensive as some, and next-day delivery isn’t available for all bouquets due to their seasonality. But all orders arrived on the day we’d selected, making this a minor qualm.
This bouquet: £60 Price range: £19 - £100 Letterbox options: Yes Subscription available: Yes Christmas shop: Yes Delivery options: Free next day delivery with Royal Mail tracked or Premium DPD delivery for chosen days, time slots and Sundays
Bouquet tested: Sunshine Rose Mix
Need-to-know: Specialising in voluminous, hand-tied bouquets, use Flower Station’s colour and flower species filters to find something that’s just to your loved one’s taste. On test, we found ordering straightforward and our panel was delighted with their rose-filled deliveries; they all arrived well-packaged on their nominated day.
Best bits: The bouquet we ordered to the GHI lasted a good five days beyond its advertised seven-day lifespan. And if you’re based in London, the delivery options are second to none – it’s available around the clock.
Downsides: Outside the capital, you’ll have to plan ahead as deliveries are limited to Tuesday-Saturdays. There were also fewer stems in our bouquet than the website claimed. Our panel weren’t put off by this though – all said they’d use the service again.
This bouquet: £29.99 Price range: £29 - £695 Letterbox options: No Subscription available: No Christmas shop: Yes Delivery options: Tracked delivery nationwide, same day delivery in London
Bouquet tested: Lip Locked Carnation
Need-to-know: If you want to send a bouquet bursting with your love’s single favourite flower, then FlowerBx is the delivery service to turn to. You can filter your search according to species and even by stem size if you’ve got a particularly tall vase you’re keen to fill. Every bouquet is also available in several sizes – their amaryllis are top of our wishlist!
Best bits: Our collection of carnations lasted for close to a month thanks to their long stems and care guidance detailing the perfect place to trim them. All bouquets arrived on time, complete with plant food, and were in top health. We were equally impressed with the customer service, who had been in touch ahead of delivery to tell us the colour would be slightly different to the image online.
Downsides: There are some restrictions for delivery outside of London; simply enter an address before browsing and the site will filter the bouquets that are eligible, to avoid disappointment.
This bouquet: From £45 Price range: £30 - £2750 Letterbox options: No Subscription available: Yes Christmas shop: Yes Delivery options: Free standard delivery and next day available nationwide. Same day and timed delivery available in London.
Need-to-know: Working with its national and international network of florists, every bouquet ordered from Interflora is made and delivered locally. As a result, there’s more variation in the final product than many of the services on our list. However, all our panel received beautiful arrangements that meant they would recommend it to others.
Best bits: Most of the gift cards were hand-written resulting in correctly spelt messages. They also deliver far and wide, and have chic arrangements (featuring dried and fresh flowers!) available to order up until the 24th December if you need a last-minute Christmas gift.
Downsides: The website doesn’t have as many filters as some, but there are some bouquets available that cater to allergies or personal taste, including lily and rose-free options. We’d have liked more detailed care instructions with the bouquets too – for example, there wasn’t any guidance on removing the roses’ guard petals.
This bouquet: £40 Price range: £40 - £200 Letterbox options: No Subscription available: Yes Christmas shop: Yes Delivery options: Next, same day and future deliveries, Monday to Saturday. Delivery passes also available for reduced costs.
Need-to-know: For £12, you can join Appleyard privilege and receive free tracked delivery for a whole year. You’ll make your money back in just over two orders – ideal if you frequently buy blooms. The flowers are well-worth sending too; our panel commented on their stunning, balanced look.
Best bits: We liked the seasonal selection of flowers on offer, and recipients enjoyed the flora for 17 days, so you know you’ll get your money’s worth. Rest assured, they arrived safely with detailed care instructions and plant food.
Downsides: There are postcode restrictions, with further restrictions in place around special occasions. In London, however, they offer same day delivery, so check delivery options for your date and destination before browsing.
This bouquet: From £36.99 Price range: £22.99 - £244.99 Letterbox options: Yes Subscription available: Yes Christmas shop: Yes Delivery options: Same day delivery in London, next day delivery nationwide
Need-to-know: Bunches offer next day delivery, seven days a week for just £2.99, so pick this brand if you need to get out of a sticky last-minute gift situation. The website has filters for occasion, type of flower and colour, and there’s a handy selection of payment options including Apple Pay and Google Pay. Our panel was pleased with the way the flowers looked and lasted, too.
Best bits: We liked how the bouquets came with care instructions covering both general care and detailed guidance for the different species in the bunch. You can also earn discounts by collecting ‘Posy Points’ with your purchases.
Downsides: The bouquet ordered to the GHI was smaller than advertised and while all the bouquets on test arrived safely, our panel had mixed experiences with the packaging, reporting that the aqua pack was dry in some instances and difficult to remove safely in others.
This bouquet: £27.95 Price range: £19.95 - £43.50 Letterbox options: Yes Subscription available: Yes Christmas shop: Yes Delivery options: Next day delivery or guaranteed courier delivery
Need-to-know: If you’re conscious about the environmental or social impact of your flowers, shopping with ethical florist Arena may ease your concerns. It claims to source all its flowers from Fairtrade-certified farms and vetted ethical suppliers, while two trees are planted for every bouquet ordered, to offset emissions. There’s no single-use plastic in packaging either.
Best bits: Our panel loved their deliveries, all telling us they’d use Arena again; bouquets arrived well-packed and watered, and most of the greeting cards were spelt correctly. Flowers stayed fresh for between 10 and 12 days in our panel’s homes and the website gave a detailed breakdown of the bouquet ordered, right down to the quantity of each flower included.
Downsides: Some of the foliage started to turn after a few days. There are delivery restrictions around special occasions and there were few search filters on the website.
This bouquet: £40 Price range: £22 - £90 Letterbox options: Yes Subscription available: Yes Christmas shop: Yes Delivery options: Free next day delivery nationwide with some postcode exceptions
Need-to-know: One of the first to offer a flower subscription, Freddie’s Flowers is ideal if you’re looking for a gift that keeps on giving, or to treat yourself to a regular dose of floral joy. Their subscription service is flexible, so you can pause, stop and restart as suits. Now you can send one-off bouquets to lucky loved ones too, with four different, seasonal designs available to choose from each month.
Best bits: These bouquets are smile-raisers from the moment you unbox them. The flowers have long stems and are carefully packaged in recyclable packaging, meaning they arrive undamaged and have lengthy lifespans (over two weeks for some testers).
They’re oozing with wow-factor, and for each unique blend of buds you receive clear care instructions and comprehensive flower arranging guidance – including a video with Freddie himself – so you can showcase them at their best. One for aspiring florists.
Downsides: On-site information about the subscriptions is sparse if you don’t set up an account, and there’s only one bouquet design available each week. Some will love this element of surprise (you receive a preview and can opt-out if it’s not for you), but it isn’t ideal if you want more choice over the blooms heading your way. Cancelling your subscription can’t be done online either; you have to email or call, which adds faff factor.
This bouquet: £35 Price range: £25 - £55 Letterbox options: N/A Subscription available: Yes Christmas shop: Yes Delivery options: For subscriptions, the cost is included in bouquet price; choose between weekly, fortnightly and monthly deliveries. For gifts, next day costs £5, but otherwise, it's free.
Need-to-know: Haute sells real head-turners, from the hand-tied bouquets to the hat box offerings. Our panel was delighted, and our experts found the website easy to navigate. Plus, you can order up to six months in advance – perfect if you’re a planner.
Best bits: The packaging was notably impressive – each orchid had its own water supply and were in a protective plastic sleeve. The bouquets arrived with two doses of plant food and Haute offers clear instructions both online and with the delivery, so the recipient can make the most of their beautiful blooms.
Downsides: The bouquet’s longevity varied across our panel; it lasted up to 14 days for some, but others had to remove wilting flowers after just five days. At the GHI, ours lasted for 10 days without requiring any pruning. Trimming the stems every couple of days and removing any guard petals should help prolong the lifespan though.
This bouquet: £60 Price range: £25 - £100 Letterbox options: Yes Subscription available: Yes Christmas shop: Yes Delivery options: Next day delivery nationwide, seven days a week
Our pick: The Waitrose Florist Emma Bridgewater Jug: Christmas Edition
Need-to-know: Delivering seven days a week and with a website that lets you filter by colour, species and occasion, we found a lot to praise about Waitrose’s service. Our panel was suitably wowed by their bouquets, which they enjoyed for between 10 and 14 days, and there’s lots of variety among seasonal offerings, so you can tailor your order to suit your giftee.
Best bits: From Biscuiteers treats to Neal’s Yard smellies, if you wish to add a bonus gift to your order, Waitrose’s selection is top-notch. Packaging was premium, too – our bouquets were safely tucked away in sturdy boxes.
Downsides: The bouquets were a little smaller than advertised, but this didn’t impact their overall effect. The flower food was missing from some of our deliveries too.
This bouquet: £75 Price range: £20 - £75 Letterbox options: Yes Subscription available: No Christmas shop: Yes Delivery options: Next day delivery seven days a week and same day available Monday to Saturday
Need-to-know: With an affordable selection of bouquets, Serenata sells something for everyone. The website has a nifty array of filters too, letting you search according to everything from colour to flowers under £30.
Best bits: Our panel’s posies perfectly imitated the website listings, which also detail the number of stems and varieties that will be included. Delivery was timely and you can order up to three months in advance.
Downsides: The packaging was a tad too big for the bouquets, meaning some of the more delicate flowers arrived slightly damaged.
This bouquet: £44.99 Price range: £24.99 - £74.99 Letterbox options: Yes Subscription available: Yes Christmas shop: Yes Delivery options: Free standard delivery, premium courier delivery
Need-to-know: With all bouquets coming in under £50, Flying Flowers offers plenty of cheer without a high price tag. The savings don’t stop there either as most are available with free delivery.
Best bits: The flowers arrived with plant food, outliving their seven-day freshness claim by an impressive 10 days. The website was easy to navigate and order from, too.
Downsides: Our panel said the bouquets looked a tad smaller than they’d expected based on the picture online, and there was quite a lot of plastic in the packaging, but it did keep the flowers well protected on route.
This bouquet: £27 Price range: £27 - £48 Letterbox options: Yes Subscription available: Yes Christmas shop: Yes Delivery options: Seven days a week, standard Royal Mail or DPD tracked
Need-to-know: With links to florists in 17 countries around the world, Eflorist offers ways to reach loved ones as far afield as Australia. And wherever you’re ordering to, the site tells you the earliest that each bouquet can be delivered, and they’re all fairly affordable.
Best bits: Each bouquet is available in three different sizes giving you the flexibility to edit your order according to your budget. They are made by local florists and the handwritten gift notes were a thoughtful detail. Our deliberate spelling mistake was also corrected for every order and testers were pleased with the quality – some of the bouquets lasted for three weeks!
Downsides: Some of the panel felt their bouquets were smaller than the advertised images and came with fewer stems.
This bouquet: £39.99 Price range: £19.99 - £54.99 Letterbox options: Yes Subscription available: No Christmas shop: Yes Delivery options: Next day delivery nationwide, seven days a week
Need-to-know: Like Interflora and Eflorist, Floom supports independent florists, however, as well as offering Floom’s own collection, each florist lists their unique designs and business information, so you can choose which company you’d like to give your money to.
Best bits: Hand-delivered by the florists, our panel told us their bouquets looked even more impressive in real life – in fact, one said it was the best they’d ever received. We found the website easy to order from too; put your delivery postcode in first and then browse according to species of flower, occasion, colour and even delivery date. There are plenty of luxe offerings and our panel’s flowers lasted between seven and 16 days.
Downsides: The local nature of the website means that not every bouquet you see will be available to send to your loved one. And some of our panel’s bouquets were left in safe places without calling cards. The bouquet we received at the GHI had a slightly different number of stems than was ordered, too.
This bouquet: £48 Price range: £7 - £500 Letterbox options: No Subscription available: No Christmas shop: Yes Delivery options: Seven days a week, including same day, delivered by the florist
Our pick: The Firecracker Bouquet
Need-to-know: A one-stop gift shop, Funky Pigeon boasts 77 bouquets for you to choose from and lets you send flowers at the same time as personalised cards and gifts. The posies themselves arrived right on time and flourished for between seven and 14 days for our panel, who were all pleased with their blooms.
Best bits: The packaging was secure and bouquets arrived well-watered, while ordering from the website was a doddle thanks to comprehensive filters and extensive choice of flowers and gifts. Plus, seven-day delivery is available.
Downsides: The length of the flowers' stems wasn’t as long as we'd have liked, which limits the number of times you can trim the ends. The arrangement we received at the GHI also contained fewer stems than advertised.
This bouquet: £27 Price range: £18 - £40 Letterbox options: Yes Subscription available: No Christmas shop: Not yet Delivery options: DPD tracked delivery seven days a week
Bouquet tested: Rose and Freesia
Need-to-know: Prestige’s bouquets looked as good on our doorstops as they did online, arriving securely packaged to prevent any damage to the buds. The website has an extensive selection of ways to browse, whether you’re looking for birthday gifts or seasonal offerings, and we found our way around the website easily too.
Best bits: Prestige often has lots of great offers available, so you can find the right bouquet at a price that suits your budget. We also liked the selection of charity bouquets, with 25% going towards Cancer Research UK.
Downsides: One of our panel received a bouquet with some browning flowers but Prestige’s customer service was impressive, swiftly arranging a replacement.
This bouquet: From £34.99 Price range: £19.99 - £59.99 Letterbox options: Yes Subscription available: Yes Christmas shop: Yes Delivery options: Next day delivery, seven days a week
Our pick: Cath Kidston The Dreamer
Need to know: Known for its personalised cards, adding flowers to your Moonpig order makes your loved one’s delivery thoughtfully unique. The range of vibrant bouquets and gifts available would make the perfect treat.
Best bits: The website is easy to navigate with a wide array of filters including species and colour. Helpfully, you can also order multiple gifts and send them to different addresses in one order. Our panel’s bouquets arrived on the correct day and were well packaged, reflecting the images online.
Downsides: You can’t add a vase to your order if one isn’t already included. Our panel had a qualm with the courier service too; some bouquets were left in safe spaces without knocking on the door first, even though the recipients were in.
This bouquet: £38 Price range: £18 - £145 Letterbox options: Yes Subscription available: No Christmas shop: Yes Delivery options: Nominated day courier delivery
We only tested flower delivery services with nationwide delivery options, sending out over 100 bouquets to a panel of readers across the UK, from 20 different brands. The panel rigorously judged each brand on the quality of its delivery service, as well as the look and freshness of the flowers from arrival to expiry. Afterwards, they shared their experience with us via a detailed questionnaire.
At the GHI, we also ordered a bouquet from each of the 20 services to assess their websites and ordering processes. The best ones were intuitive to navigate with strong imagery and clear product descriptions. Our experts considered the range of payment options and noted the selection of delivery options. We also timed how long the bouquets remained fresh.
To make our list, bouquets had to arrive safely, in good condition and on time. Our panel noted where flowers were left if they weren’t in when delivered, and shared their verdict on how effectively the packaging protected their flowers.
Our testers rated the “wow factor” of each bouquet upon arrival, too. Clearly, this is subjective, but the overall effect – flowers and arrangement – had to get the thumbs up. They reported back on extra touches such as ribbons and care instructions. Plus, they judged how well the bouquet lived up to its marketing photos.
We also deliberately made a spelling mistake in our gift cards, to see whether they would be corrected by the service. Most weren’t amended, so reread your message before completing your purchase!
Testing the longevity of our flower deliveries at the Good Housekeeping Institute from day one to day nine.
Hannah is our senior homes writer, specialising in reviewing the latest kitchen appliances, cleaning products, mattresses and bedding, and crafting equipment. Hannah has written about hundreds of products, from air fryers to smoothie makers to pillows, and is committed to finding the most reliable and best value for money buys. Hannah is also interested in sustainability in the home and has completed a course with the University of the Arts London in sustainable textiles, so she can help cut through the noise on what’s green and what’s not. Hannah helps to uncover the best cleaning hacks too, with a focus on easy, natural solutions. Hannah has an MA in Magazine Journalism and has previously worked as a freelance lifestyle and women’s sports journalist, working for Stylist, Sky Sports and more. Hannah has also previously worked in a florist and can normally be found caring for her house plants or sewing something new for her home or wardrobe. You can find Hannah on Instagram on @sewnbyhan
Blossom is our Senior Homes Tester. Passionate about finding the best home products and appliances for our readers, she has tested everything from blenders to pizza ovens. Blossom enjoys delving into the intricacies of products and refining testing protocols for hundreds of items. Innovative items like robot vacuum cleaners and wine coolers are among her favourite tests to date, and her most notable accomplishment is toasting 360 slices of bread in a determined bid to find the best toaster. In her free time, Blossom openly admits to being a music geek and indulges her creative side through crocheting, baking, singing and writing.
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