Bananas are cheap, delicious, filled with nutrition, and are one of the most widely available fruits in all kinds of stores, including grocery stores, convenience stores, farmers’ markets, and you can even have them delivered.
One problem people face is that they don’t check what kind of banana they get, where they buy it from and may end up paying far too much when they’re on a budget.
If you’re curious about the average cost of bananas so that you can get the best deal, then keep reading so I can provide all the information you need.
Average Cost of Bananas in the United States
The average cost of a banana in the United States during 2021 was around $0.31 per banana, which is a slight price increase from 2020 when the average price per banana was $0.29. The 2021 price is one of the highest average prices for a banana in recent years.
It’s speculated that the average cost of bananas in 2022 is going to go even higher due to logistic issues faced for all products during COVID. The majority of US bananas come from South America and are not locally grown, which is the biggest issue.
As of January 2022, the average cost of a banana was $0.32, and $0.63 per pound, so we can already see the prices are going up quickly.
It’s also important to check the price per pound of bananas at a store as sizes can vary in general for the type of banana the store gets. So the price per pound is often a better indicator of value for money.
Average Cost Of Bananas By Store
The average cost of bananas across stores does vary, but what’s interesting is that you do get a variety of prices depending on which store you decide to go to; some are below the average price, such as Kroger, Walmart, and Wegmans.
Typical stores like Safeway and especially Amazon (and other delivery services) are above the average cost, so if you have the choice, it would be worth opting out of the more expensive stores as they may have overall higher prices.
Average Cost of Bananas
| Store | Per Banana | Per Pound |
| Kroger | $0.23 | $0.55 |
| Walmart | $0.21 | $0.52 |
| Amazon | N/A | $4.60 |
| Safeway | $0.36 | $0.89 |
| Wegmans | $0.12 | $0.49 |
Average Cost of Organic Bananas
| Store | Per Organic Banana | Per Pound |
| Kroger | $0.28 | $0.69 |
| Walmart | $0.34 | $0.68 |
| Amazon | N/A | $6.15 |
| Safeway | $0.50 | $0.99 |
| Wegmans | $1.38 | $0.69 |
Average Cost of Plantain
| Store | Per Plantain | Per Pound |
| Walmart | $0.25 | $0.50 |
| Safeway | $1 | $1.99 |
Price Increase Of Bananas By Year
When you compare the year on year price increases, it was reasonably steady for the past few years with slight increases and decreases but starting in 2021 the price went up sharply, and 2022 has seen an even sharper price increase of $0.63 per pound of bananas, which is consistent with other food items such as bacon.
| Year | Jan | % Change |
| 2022 | 0.63 | 5.50% |
| 2021 | 0.597 | 4.70% |
| 2020 | 0.57 | -1.00% |
| 2019 | 0.576 | 1.40% |
| 2018 | 0.568 | -0.90% |
What Increases The Cost Of Bananas?
The biggest impact on the cost of bananas is what store you’re buying them from and what type of banana you’re buying. Even amongst grocery stores, the prices vary, and when you start including convenience stores and online shopping, the prices go even higher.
The type of banana you buy also impacts the cost; most stores will offer regular bananas or organic bananas. If you opt for organic, then the price immediately increases across all stores.
Some stores also provide different types of bananas, such as plantains in many stores, and Walmart, for example, offers around 6 different varieties of bananas, which means you need to be careful what bunch of bananas you’re picking up and the specific price for that kind.
Banana Prices vs. Other Fruit
Even though bananas have been going up in price significantly since COVID started, they’re still one of the cheapest fruits that you can buy. In fact, bananas are the most consumed fruit across the US and are even cheaper than apples, which are $1.99 for the cheapest varieties.
| Fruits | Price Per LB |
| Banana | $0.63 |
| Bacon | $7.22 |
| Gala Apple | $1.99 |
| Pears | $1.52 |
| Navel Orange | $1.45 |
| Seedless Grapes | $2.20 |
| Grapefruit | $1.25 |
Most bananas that are imported to the US come from South America, which has been growing and supplying the US for many years. Bananas are easy and quick to grow, and the costs of production in most Souther American countries are much lower.
Grocery stores also need to deal with the fact that bananas ripen and go bad quicker than most other low-cost fruits, so it’s in the grocery store’s interest to offload bananas.
If a grocery store decided to stop selling bananas, it would likely result in consumers going elsewhere for the bananas and groceries overall.
Some stores may even be offering bananas as a loss leader to encourage coming to the store and then making money back on other purchases. This is similar to roasted chickens selling for cheaper than frozen chickens in most grocery stores.
World Banana Price Comparison
The top 5 countries with the most expensive bananas per lb are,
| Rank | Country | Price Per LB |
| 1 | South Korea | $1.51 |
| 2 | Switzerland | $1.36 |
| 3 | Japan | $1.30 |
| 4 | Denmark | $1.25 |
| 5 | Australia | $1.21 |
| 42 | USA | $0.63 |
The 5 countries with the least expensive bananas per lb are,
| Rank | Country | Price Per LB |
| 104 | Sri Lanka | $0.37 |
| 105 | Colombia | $0.35 |
| 106 | Russia | $0.33 |
| 107 | India | $0.30 |
| 108 | Pakistan | $0.25 |
Where Do You Get The Cheapest Bananas In The US?
Banana prices are fairly similar across the US, though larger cities have a higher cost overall due to rental prices being higher than smaller communities. You need to price check against the grocery stores to find the cheap price in your city and ensure that the price doesn’t fluctuate during the year.
Walmart offers some of the lowest banana prices in the United States, with Wegmans being closely behind, which makes sense as prices overall in both stores are lower for most products compared to other grocery stores in similar areas.
Safeway would be a better option for anybody looking for a larger variety of bananas, and they appear to offer 6+ different types of bananas, though none of them are cheaper per pound than a regular banana.
If you use a delivery service such as Instacart, you get convenience but higher costs for your bananas, such as buying a regular banana from Safeway through Instacart for $1.09 per pound, but if you go into a store, the prices are $0.89 per pound.
When you compare the average US price for Bananas, the US ranks around 42nd most expensive, out of 108 countries being tracked.
