What Fruit & Vegetables Are Cheapest Each Season in NZ
Fresh produce is the most volatile part of a grocery bill — the same tomato can cost three times as much in July as it does in February. The single biggest thing you can do to spend less on fruit and vegetables in New Zealand is to buy what's in season. Seasonal produce is cheaper because it's grown locally in abundance, and it tastes better because it hasn't been stored for months or shipped in. Here's what to buy through the year.
Summer (December – February)
The cheapest and best time of year for fresh produce. Stone fruit and berries are at their peak and salad vegetables are abundant:
- Fruit: strawberries, blueberries, cherries (December), peaches, nectarines, apricots, plums, watermelon and rockmelon.
- Vegetables: tomatoes, capsicum, courgettes, sweetcorn, cucumber, lettuce, green beans and new-season potatoes.
This is the time to eat salads, make preserves, and freeze berries while they're cheap.
Autumn (March – May)
Harvest season for orchard fruit and hearty vegetables — great value and great for cooking:
- Fruit: apples, pears, feijoas, kiwifruit, grapes, persimmons and tamarillos.
- Vegetables: pumpkin, kumara, mushrooms, broccoli, cauliflower, silverbeet and leeks.
Autumn is peak apple and feijoa season in NZ, so both are at their cheapest — perfect for baking and lunchboxes.
Winter (June – August)
Citrus and brassicas carry the winter table, and they're excellent value while summer produce is dear:
- Fruit: oranges, mandarins, lemons, grapefruit, kiwifruit and (in season) avocados.
- Vegetables: broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage, brussels sprouts, kale, spinach, leeks, parsnip and swede.
Winter is the time for soups and roasts built around cheap root vegetables and brassicas. Avoid tomatoes, capsicum and berries now — they're at their most expensive.
Spring (September – November)
The lean season for stored fruit, but the start of fresh greens and the famous spring asparagus:
- Fruit: late citrus, first strawberries (late spring), rhubarb and stored apples.
- Vegetables: asparagus, new potatoes, spring onions, lettuce, spinach, peas and broad beans.
Asparagus is the spring bargain — cheap and abundant for a few weeks, then gone, so buy it while it's here.
Buy These Any Time of Year
A handful of everyday vegetables stay cheap and available all year round, and they're the backbone of budget cooking in NZ:
- Potatoes — a 5kg bag is always one of the cheapest foods by weight.
- Carrots — a 1kg bag lasts for weeks and barely changes in price.
- Onions — a bagged staple that stores for months.
- Bananas — consistently cheap and stable year-round.
Tips for Saving on Produce
- Buy loose, by the kilo — pre-packed and pre-cut produce carries a convenience premium.
- Freeze the gluts — berries, corn and beans freeze well when they're cheap in summer.
- Cook to the season — plan meals around what's cheap this month rather than fighting the calendar.
- Compare stores — produce prices vary between Pak'nSave, New World and Woolworths, sometimes a lot.
- Don't fear "imperfect" ranges — where stores sell class-2 fruit and veg, it's cheaper and just as good for cooking.
Check Today's Produce Prices
Prices move week to week, so it pays to check before you buy. Basket NZ tracks live prices across all three supermarkets — see the cheapest apples, potatoes, tomatoes and more, or browse the whole Fruit & Veg category.
Compare fresh produce prices →
Related reading: Budget grocery shopping in NZ · How to save money on groceries