Summary
- The most profitable season in Stardew Valley is Fall, followed by Summer and Spring, offering a wide variety of crops.
- To maximize profits, players should consider key factors like seed cost, planting timing, and building placement.
- Stardew Valley offers a diverse range of highly profitable crops, such as strawberries, starfruit, and ancient fruit, that can yield substantial returns.
While Stardew Valley is a game that encourages patience and going at one's own pace, it can be frustrating to figure out which crops are worth the time of investment without a guide. In Stardew Valley, no two crops are equal, and some of Stardew Valley's best crops make a significantly better profit than others.
Harvest Moon Vs. Stardew Valley: Which Is Better?
In gaming's farming sim genre, Harvest Moon and Stardew Valley are two of the biggest names. Which one is better?
Each season has a variety of offerings for the player, but Fall takes the cake for the overall most profitable season, followed by Summer and Spring. Thanks to the 1.5 update, the choice of crops has widened and slightly changed the way of making money. However, most of the most profitable crops Stardew Valley has to offer are not necessarily restricted to the endgame of Ginger Island, so players are spoilt for choice when deciding which fruits and vegetables they decide to grow.
Updated by Usama Ali on March 19, 2025: There are plenty of ways for players to earn gold in Stardew Valley, but for farmers who really want to bring in the dough, some crops stand above the rest. While artisan goods like wine and cheese are highly profitable options, the foundation of any successful farm lies in its produce. Players can turn their fields into a goldmine and bring their dream farm to life by strategically planting and cultivating the most profitable crops in the game. This guide highlights the most valuable crops one can grow on their farm in Stardew Valley to boost their overall earnings.
33 Before Buying Seeds In Bulk
Be Knowledgeable
There are a few things every player should keep in mind when looking to maximize profits with Stardew Valley' s best crops. It's not enough just to have enough money to purchase the seeds – veteran players know to prepare ahead of time with useful buildings, an efficiently planned plot of land, and the right tools and food for long days of farming.
- Day of the Month: The value of some crops comes from getting multiple harvests in a season. Plant seeds that continually produce crops early in a season to maximize profits.
- Sprinklers: These are crafted with the Farming skill or earned for certain quests, and they water crops automatically every day in the nearest 4, 8, or 24 tiles, depending on tier.
- Buildings: Build a Shed at an easily accessible location for farm supplies, storage, artisan goods, furnaces, etc.
- Farm Layout: Plan plots with Fences to mark corners, and mark Sprinkler locations too. Count each unused square to be in the plot – this is the maximum number of seeds for this plot.
- Cost Calculation: For each planned plot, multiply the number of tilled squares by the cost of each seed –, this is how the player will have to invest in each plot.
After taking these planning steps, add or remove squares in each plot to reach a total that comes as close to the current Gold total as possible. This maximizes investments, and as long as players are diligent and tend to their crops every day they will see their Gold total grow exponentially, as the number of seeds they can buy the next season increases.
32 Green Bean
Seed Price: 60g
|
Seed Vendor |
Base Crop Value |
Base Tiller Value |
Season |
Grow Time |
Additional Harvests |
|
Pierre's |
40g - 80g |
44g - 88g |
Spring |
10 days |
3 days |
Green Bean s are an excellent vegetable to grow in Stardew Valley. They take 10 days to mature into their first harvest but then regrow on the third day after that until the end of the season (or forever if planted in the greenhouse). This means that a single seed can yield as much as 528g from an initial investment of 60g.
Players need to be careful when planting green beans, however, because they grow up a wooden pole that the player cannot walk through. Beginning players may make the mistake of trapping themselves or making watering more of an annoying chore for the season if they do not keep this in mind.
31 Powdermelon
Seed Price: N/A
|
Seed Vendor |
Base Crop Value |
Base Tiller Value |
Season |
Grow Time |
Additional Harvests |
|
Pierre's |
60g - 120g |
66g - 132g |
Winter |
7 days |
N/A |
Powdermelon is the only crop that can be grown outside during winter, which already makes it valuable. In addition to this, the seeds don't cost the player money as they have to be dug up, given by the raccoon's wife, found in treasure chests while fishing, and other ways. This means that the decent selling price is purely profit for the player.
Powdermelons are also one of the five crops — along with pumpkins, melons, Qi fruit, and cauliflower — that can become giant if left in a 3x3 grid once mature. Getting a giant powdermelon means having even more fruit to sell, and makes it an even better way to make money.
30 Potato
Seed Price: 50g
|
Seed Vendor |
Base Crop Value |
Base Tiller Value |
Season |
Grow Time |
Additional Harvests |
|
Pierre's |
80g - 160g |
88g - 176g |
Fall |
6 days |
Potential to pick multiple at once |
Potatoes are a staple of many diets in the real world, and it follows that they are great crops to grow in Stardew Valley. They are a great Spring crop to grow in any Spring, especially during Year 1, since potato seeds are slightly cheaper than other seeds.
Whenever the player harvests a potato, there is a chance (which depends on the map seed and the player's luck for the day) to harvest an additional potato. This adds to the profit that players can make since one seed can easily yield at least two or three vegetables.
29 Yam
Seed Price: 60g
|
Seed Vendor |
Base Crop Value |
Base Artisan Value |
Season |
Grow Time |
Additional Harvests |
|
Pierre's |
160g - 320g |
176g - 352g |
Fall |
10 days |
N/A |
Since the Fall is the most profitable season, it's difficult for a small crop like Yams to stand out against iconic pumpkins or mass-produced wheat that can feed animals in the coming winter. However, even the base sell price of a
Yam will net a 100g profit from a single seed. This value doubles with top quality Yams, even if players don't have the Artisan profession. Yam seeds can also be purchased from the first year onwards, so players can use them to turn a profit from their first Fall season.
Yams can also be combined with sugar to make Glazed Yams, which sell for 200g or make for a great gift for most of the villagers in the valley. For a simple way to start generating profits, Yams are not a bad place to look.
28 Summer Spangle
Seed Price: 50g
|
Seed Vendor |
Base Crop Value |
Base Tiller Value |
Season |
Growth Time |
Addidional Harvests |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Pierre's |
90 - 180 g |
99 - 198 g |
Summer |
8 days |
N/A |
Summer Spangles bloom over eight days and add a nice splash of color to the farm. These flowers fetch a base price of 90g. However, the real money comes from turning them into Flower Honey. Placing Bee Houses within range of Summer Spangles is a great way to produce
Summer Spangle Honey, which can be sold for 280g per jar.
The Artisan profession further boosts the selling price of Summer Spangle Honey to 392 g, turning these delicate flowers into liquid gold. Though selling the flowers directly provides a small return, investing in beehives is a great way to make use of Summer Spangles.
27 Tomatoes
Seed Price: 50g
|
Seed Vendor |
Base Crop Value |
Base Artisan Value |
Season |
Grow Time |
Additional Harvests |
|
Pierre's |
60g - 120g |
66g- 132g |
Fall |
10 days |
Every 4 days after the initial harvest |
Tomatoes take ten days to grow, but then produce more crops every four days afterward. This means that planting a
Tomato on the first day of Fall will grant the player at least five tomatoes since each harvest has a 5% chance of getting extra crops.
With a base sell price of 60g, this means that players will gain only 10g from their first Tomato, but will continue to reap the rewards throughout the season. With the Artisan profession, the profits from tomatoes become even greater. As a key ingredient in many meals that players can cook, Tomatoes can also turn a profit if players fancy themselves to be professional chefs.
26 Radish
Seed Price: 40g
|
Seed Vendor |
Base Crop Value |
Base Tiller Value |
Season |
Growth Time |
Additional Harvests |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Pierre's |
90 - 180 g |
99 - 198 g |
Summer |
6 days |
N/A |
Radishes grow in just six days, offering a quick turnaround for early Summer earnings. With a base selling price of 100g, these root vegetables provide a modest income. Planting Radishes on the first day of Summer paves the way for multiple harvests, maximizing their potential within the season.
Even though they aren't the highest-paying crop, their quick growth makes them a reliable source of early-game cash. Radishes are also used in a couple of recipes, which can increase their value if players would rather sell cooked dishes. A Radish Salad sells for 300 g while a Red Plate sells for 400 g each.
25 Eggplant
Seed Price: 20g
|
Seed Vendor |
Base Crop Value |
Base Artisan Value |
Season |
Grow Time |
Additional Harvests |
|
Pierre's |
60g - 120g |
66g- 132g |
Fall |
5 days |
Every 5 days after the initial harvest |
With an initial growth time of only five days, Eggplants mature faster than other crops that continue to regrow and produce, although their regrowth time of an equal five days is longer to balance this out. If planted on the first day of Fall, players can get five Eggplants in the season.
They can be sold for up to 132g with the Artisan profession or can be pickled for a value of 170g, which increases the base value of an
Eggplant to a profit of 150g since the seeds are so cheap. The combination of cheap seeds and regrowth makes Eggplants a profitable vegetable to sell.
24 Corn
Seed Price: 150g
|
Seed Vendor |
Base Crop Value |
Base Artisan Value |
Season |
Grow Time |
Additional Harvests |
|
Pierre's |
50g - 100g |
55g - 110g |
Summer & Fall |
14 days |
Every 4 days after the initial harvest |
Corn seeds are so expensive that it takes three harvests of base-quality
Corn to recoup the investment. What makes corn great is that three harvests are barely getting into the crops' growing time. Corn grows throughout two seasons in the year, which makes the initial cost a great investment for income over time.
Players who plant Corn on the first of Spring can expect eleven harvests from it, which can net the player over 1,100g from a single seed. This is a great profit for a plant that is widely available from the second season of the first year on the farm.