Best Summer Crops Stardew Valley — Profit Rankings & Strategy

Quick Summary

• Best overall profit: Starfruit — 700g net per plant (requires Oasis access)
• Best Year 1 accessible: Blueberry — 520g net per plant (Pierre's, 80g seed)
• Best fast cycle: Hot Pepper — 40g sell, regrows every 3 days
• Best daily harvest: Hops — 25g sell, regrows every 1 day after maturity
• Best multi-season: Corn — 50g sell, continues into Fall without replanting

Summer in Stardew Valley lasts 28 days (Summer 1 through Summer 28). All crops listed below can be planted during Summer. Some — Corn, Wheat, and Sunflower — also grow in Fall and will not die when the season changes. Spring crops like Strawberry will die on Summer 1, and Fall crops like Eggplant cannot be planted until Fall 1.

Complete Summer Crop Reference

All data sourced from the Stardew Valley Wiki. Prices are base sell prices (no quality bonus). Growth time is days to first harvest. Harvest counts assume planting and watering on Summer 1. Crops planted and watered on day 1 first mature on day 1 + growth time (e.g. a 4-day crop first harvested on day 5).

* Corn continues into Fall — combined-season profit is much higher.

Not in Profit Ranking (Special Cases)

Best Crops by Category

Best Overall Profit: Starfruit

Starfruit has the highest raw-crop gold per day among the standard purchasable crops compared in this table, under base-quality, no-processing assumptions (25g/day). Each fruit sells for 750g, with seeds costing 400g at the Oasis. You can fit 2 harvests per season (first on day 14, second on day 27): net profit 700g per plant. However, Oasis access requires repairing the bus stop (Community Center Vault bundle or Joja form), making this a mid-to-late game crop.

Best Year 1 Accessible: Blueberry

Blueberry is the highest-profit crop available from Year 1 at Pierre's (80g seed). Each harvest yields 3 berries at 50g each (150g per harvest). With 13-day growth + 4-day regrowth, the first harvest is on day 14, then days 18, 22, and 26 — 4 harvests total: 12 berries × 50g = 600g. Net profit: 520g per plant (18.6g/day).

Best Fast Cycle: Hot Pepper

Hot Pepper matures on day 6 and regrows every 3 days — harvests on days 6, 9, 12, 15, 18, 21, 24, 27 = 8 harvests at 40g each. Seeds cost 40g at Pierre's. Net: 280g per plant (10g/day).

Best Daily Harvest: Hops

Hops matures on day 12 then regrows every single day. Harvests on days 12 through 28 = 17 harvests at 25g each = 425g. Seeds cost 60g. Net: 365g per plant (13g/day). Requires a trellis.

Best Multi-Season: Corn

Corn grows in both Summer AND Fall — the plant survives the season transition. First harvest on day 15, then every 4 days: days 15, 19, 23, 27 = 4 harvests. Summer-only profit is modest (50g net), but the real value is zero replanting cost for Fall.

Year 1 vs Year 2+ Strategy

• Year 1: Focus on Blueberry (best profit accessible), Tomato, Hot Pepper, and Melon. Red Cabbage seeds are at Pierre's starting Year 2, but can occasionally be found at the Traveling Cart or in Skull Cavern during Year 1 (luck-based). Starfruit requires Oasis access (bus stop repair).
• Year 2+: Add Red Cabbage (Pierre's, 100g seed → 260g sell) and Starfruit (Oasis, 400g seed → 750g sell). These dramatically increase total season profit.

For a complete Year 1 walkthrough including profit milestones, see the Year 1 100k Gold Guide.

Grow Time Quick Reference

Profit Calculation Methodology

Net Profit/Plant = (Harvests × Sell price per harvest) − (Seeds needed × Seed price)

Gold/day = Net Profit ÷ 28

Assumptions: planted and watered Summer 1, base quality (no silver/gold/iridium), no fertilizer, no Speed-Gro, no processing (kegs/jars). Calculations use each crop’s guaranteed base harvest yield. Random extra crop drops and random seed recovery are excluded unless explicitly stated. Single-harvest crops require a new seed each cycle. Multi-harvest crops need one seed for the full season. Crops planted on day 1 first mature on day 1 + growth days (e.g. a 4-day Wheat first harvested on day 5, not day 4).

FAQ: Can Strawberries Grow in Summer?

No. Strawberry is a Spring-only crop. Any Strawberry plant still in the ground on Summer 1 will wilt and die. Strawberry seeds can only be purchased at the Egg Festival (Spring 13) and grow exclusively in Spring. If you see search results suggesting Strawberries for Summer, they are incorrect — this is one of the most common Stardew Valley crop misconceptions.

Common Mistakes

• Planting Spring crops in Summer: Strawberry, Cauliflower, and Potato all die on Summer 1.
• Ignoring regrowth cycles: Blueberry and Hot Pepper produce more total gold over the season than high-price single-harvest crops like Melon, because they harvest multiple times from one seed.
• Overlooking Hops: Hops regrow every single day after the 11-day initial growth — 17 harvests at 25g = 425g per plant. It requires a trellis but is highly efficient.
• Assuming fixed Sunflower profit: Sunflower is excluded from the deterministic profit ranking because its economics depend on seed purchase source (Pierre 200g vs JojaMart 125g) and random seed recovery (0–2 seeds per harvest, averaging ~1). Sunflowers are typically grown for Community Center bundles, gifting, oil production, or aesthetics.

Related on StardewHub

• Year 1 100k Gold Guide — Use Summer profits to reach your Year 1 gold goal
• Community Center Complete Guide — Vault bundle unlocks the Oasis for Starfruit seeds
• Crop Profit Calculator — Calculate exact ROI with different fertilizer and quality assumptions

Updated for Stardew Valley 1.6. All crop data sourced from stardewvalleywiki.com.