The 11 Most Expensive Flowers in the World in 2024

Light pink, peach and orange color rose Juliet flower in the garden. Juliet rose flower.
© LIN MEI CHEN/Shutterstock.com

Written by Patrick MacFarland

Published: March 14, 2024

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Flowers have been known throughout history as an offering of romance, condolences, or even peace. Sometimes you give flowers when you are thankful for something. These structures in flowering plants have been life-changing for many people. When you’re going to buy flowers for someone, you may notice that there are affordable flowers and there are more expensive flowers. There could be various reasons why they are expensive, but usually, you’ll save the more expensive flowers for your loved one or a special occasion. Let’s take a look at the 11 most expensive flowers in the world in 2024. With this knowledge, you will know which flowers to buy for special occasions throughout the year.

Hydrangea

The hydrangea is native to Asia and the Americas, especially China and Japan.

©George Cade/Shutterstock.com

It is arduous to cultivate these flowers, which is why the hydrangea (Hydrangea), which is also known as a hortensia, is an expensive flower. They come in a variety of colors including pink, white, blue, and purple. Hydrangeas cost about 6 or $7 per stem. These flowers are perfect as a birthday gift or if you want to give thanks to someone.

Gloriosa

Gloriosa Superba or Climbing Lily

The gloriosa is native to sub-Saharan countries, South

Africa

, and the Indian subcontinent.

©Passakorn_14/iStock via Getty Images

There are various names for the gloriosa (Gloriosa) is known as, including the flame lily, the glory lily, and others. These lilies are extremely expensive. If you’d like to give your loved one a gloriosa lily, you’ll have to cough up around $10 per stem. The reason is that they’re quite rare and the Harvest and blooming are difficult. And, one word of advice, make sure you keep these flowers away from children and pets because they are extremely toxic.

Lisianthus

lisianthus flowers in garden

The Lisianthus is native to Mexico, the Caribbean, parts of South America, and also warmer regions in the United States.

©AyahCin/Shutterstock.com

These bright flowers are known to be quite expensive. The reason why the lisianthus (Eustoma) is expensive is because there is a lot of maintenance that is required for them to survive and bloom. There are about 7-10 stems in each bouquet, which can cost you around $100. This comes out to around $10-$14 per stem!

Lily of the Valley

These beautiful white flowers are native to several regions around the world including North America and Asia.

©iStock.com/rustamank

The lily of the valley (Convallaria majalis) is expensive because it can be quite delicate to handle. They also have a very short lifespan, which means that caring for them requires a lot of maintenance. A bouquet of Lilies of the valley runs around $100, which comes to be around $15 per stem.

Gardenia

This beautiful flower is native to several regions around the world including Africa and Madagascar, among others.

©iStock.com/ANCHASA MITCHELL

The gardenia (Gardenia) is famous for its scent and for being a popular flower among the wealthy — celebrities like Billie Holiday and Hattie McDaniel even wore them on their hair. Gardenias are extremely expensive. Because you can’t buy just one stem and you have to buy the entire plant, you can expect to pay anywhere between $20 to $50 per plant.

Tulip

Landscape with tulips, traditional dutch windmills and houses near the canal in Zaanse Schans, Netherlands, Europe

Tulips are native to Asia, even though they are famous for being a symbol of the Netherlands.

©Olena Znak/Shutterstock.com

They are the national flower of the Netherlands because there are fields upon fields of tulips (Tulipa) in the country. At one point in time, a few hundred years ago, a single tulip cost $5,700. Today, tulips are much more reasonable —  a bouquet of 15 tulips will cost around $30, which means a stem will be around $2.

Saffron Crocus

Paella is one of the most famous dishes of Spain and it contains saffron.

©ThomasLENNE/Shutterstock.com

The saffron crocus (Crocus sativus) is one of the most expensive flowers in the world and the only reason behind it is that from the flower, the stigma is taken to produce the spice saffron. Saffron is usually called red gold and it takes about 150,000 of these flowers to produce one kilogram of saffron. One gram of saffron costs around $10.

Gold of Kinabalu Orchid

This orchid only exists in one place in the entire world: the Kinabalu National Park in Malaysia.

©yakonstant/Shutterstock.com

Discovered in 1987, because this flower looked so exotic, people tried to smuggle these orchids out of the country. In fact, one plant can cost a whopping $5,000. The Gold of Kinabalu Orchid (Paphiopedilum rothschildianum) is also known as Rothschild’s orchid and takes several years for one bloom to grow.

Shenzhen Nongke Orchid

Globe map focused on China. Globe map focused on Russia. Close up map China. Close up map Russia. Globus with Asia and Russian Federation.

The Shenzhen Nongke Orchid, which blooms every four to five years, was developed in China.

©Artem Kontratiev/Shutterstock.com

This orchid is not natural at all. It was developed in a Chinese laboratory by the Shenzhen Nongke Group corporation. The research involved was arduous and it took eight years to create this awe-inspiring orchid. When it was sold at auction in 2005, it sold for a whopping $200,000.

Juliet Rose

The Juliet Rose hails from England.

©Galina Bolshakova 69/Shutterstock.com

David Austin developed this exquisite rose. Known as the Juliet Rose, it took 10 years to cultivate and it finally was shown in 2006 at the Chelsea Flower Show. It cost Austin about $4.3 million to cultivate, but you can buy it from Austin’s website for around $26 per stem.

Kadupul Flower

Queen of the night flower ( Epiphyllum oxypetalum - Kadupul flower )

The beautiful flower hails from Sri Lanka.

©K.K.T Madhusanka/Shutterstock.com

This flower is so rare that it only blooms once a year at night. Before the night is over, the flower dies. That’s it, this cactus flower is awe-inspiring and stunning, but it only lasts for just one night. That is why the Kadupul flower is priceless. People have tried to pluck it from where it has been planted, but once it does it cannot bloom and it will die.


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About the Author

Patrick Macfarland is a writer at A-Z Animals primarily covering travel, geography, and history. Patrick has been writing for more than 10 years. In the past, he has been a teacher and a political candidate. He holds a Bachelor's Degree in Political Science from SDSU and a Master's Degree in European Union Studies from CIFE. From San Diego, California, Patrick loves to travel and try new recipes to cook.

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