The best time to buy grapefruit, from 19 years of U.S. government shelf prices.
Worth timing
Buy grapefruit in March if you can.
Over 2006–2024, grapefruit in March ran a typical 10% below the year’s trend price, and March was below it in 11 of 12 years. October is the dearest month (12% above): a 22-point swing, one of the biggest in the grocery store.
Grapefruit is a winter citrus crop (Florida, Texas, California), so late winter is when supply is deepest.
Typical price each month compared with that year’s trend, 2006–2024. The bar is the median year; the thin line spans the middle half of years.
| Month | Typical vs trend | Middle half of years | Years |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | −8% | −10% to −4% | 13 |
| February | −8% | −11% to −7% | 13 |
| March | −10% | −13% to −5% | 12 |
| April | −9% | −10% to −5% | 11 |
| May | −2.3% | −6% to −1.1% | 13 |
| June | +1.2% | +0.3% to +4% | 13 |
| July | +4% | +2.8% to +9% | 13 |
| August | +5% | +4% to +11% | 13 |
| September | +9% | +7% to +13% | 12 |
| October | +12% | +8% to +15% | 12 |
| November | +4% | +1.2% to +4% | 12 |
| December | −1.9% | −5% to −0.3% | 13 |
The U.S. average price of grapefruit (per pound) was $1.62 in September 2026 (down 4% from a year earlier). At today’s price level, the typical March price is about $1.33 and the typical October price about $1.66.
Each row is one year; the dot is the month grapefruit was cheapest relative to that year’s trend. March was the single cheapest month in 5 of 10 years; the rest of the time it moved around.
| Year | Cheapest month |
|---|---|
| 2018 | January |
| 2015 | March |
| 2014 | May |
| 2013 | January |
| 2012 | January |
| 2011 | March |
| 2010 | March |
| 2009 | March |
| 2008 | March |
| 2007 | February |
What else is cheap in March: what’s cheap in March. Fruit: strawberries (Jul), grapes (Sep), navel oranges (Apr), lemons (Mar), bananas (Dec), peaches (Aug), cherries (Jul). All 39 foods: the grocery price calendar.
March. Over 2006–2024 the U.S. average price of grapefruit in March was typically 10% below that year's trend, and below it in 11 of 12 years. October is the dearest month (12% above).
October, typically 12% above the year's trend price.
The U.S. average was $1.62 a pound in September 2026 (BLS Average Price Data).
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Average Price Data (U.S. city average, not seasonally adjusted), the shelf prices BLS collects every month for the Consumer Price Index, through October 2026. Seasonal pattern and every number on this page computed by Online List Maker; how.