When are tomatoes in season? The answer depends entirely on where the tomato comes from. A homegrown tomato has a real, short season.
A grocery store tomato barely has one at all. This guide covers both, using data from state agriculture reports and federal trade figures.
It also covers why a tomato bought in January tastes nothing like one picked in August.
The short version
Home garden tomatoes peak from July through September across most of the United States, according to University of Georgia Extension. That window follows planting after the last frost and ends at the first fall frost.
Store tomatoes are a different story. Florida and California together supply about two thirds of the nation’s fresh tomatoes.
Their combined seasons already stretch across most of the year. Imports fill in the rest.
Mexican greenhouse tomatoes now cover the months and regions domestic growers cannot reach. That is a major reason tomatoes sit on shelves every month of the year.
When home garden tomatoes are actually in season
University of Georgia Extension puts it plainly. Tomatoes reach their peak harvest between July and September.
That window shifts by region. Gardeners in the South often transplant earlier than gardeners further north. Southern states clear their last frost date sooner.
The season always ends the same way. Frost kills the plant, and any green fruit left on the vine has to ripen indoors instead.
Florida: the state most winter tomatoes come from
Florida ranks first in the nation for fresh market tomato production. Its season runs from October through June, according to University of Florida research.
Two peaks stand out inside that window. Florida tomatoes peak in April and May, then again from November through January.
That season exists specifically because Florida avoids the frost that shuts down northern gardens. It also means Florida is essentially out of the market during peak home garden season. Other states step in to cover that gap.
Florida’s production has fallen sharply in recent years. State output dropped from 1.56 billion pounds in 2000 to 950 million pounds in 2015. That is a decline of nearly 40 percent.
California and the states that fill the summer gap
California grows fresh tomatoes in some county nearly every month except winter, based on a California agricultural market profile. San Diego County leads spring and fall production, while Fresno County takes over in summer.
That summer window matters because it lines up with when Florida goes quiet. Georgia, North Carolina, Ohio, Tennessee, and Virginia also produce fresh tomatoes in the summer months, according to University of Florida research.
Their summer season lands exactly when Florida is out of the market.
Together, these states cover most of the calendar. The gaps that remain get filled by imports instead.
Why grocery stores never seem to run out
Imports used to run opposite the domestic season, filling in mainly during winter. That pattern has changed.
The US Department of Agriculture’s Economic Research Service reports why. Greenhouse growing technology now makes tomatoes, especially cherry and grape types, available all year regardless of season.
Mexico drives most of that shift. Mexican greenhouse tomatoes made up almost 84 percent of all greenhouse tomato imports by 2017.
That totaled 1.8 billion pounds. It was up from roughly 300 million pounds in 2005.
Greenhouse tomatoes overall accounted for about 56 percent of all imported fresh tomatoes that year. They also made up close to 32 percent of the entire US domestic supply, imports included.
Domestic growers now supply a shrinking share of the total. Their portion of the market fell to 42 percent by 2017, and the trend has favored imports since.
Consumers responded by eating more tomatoes overall. Fresh tomato availability per person averaged 20.7 pounds a year between 2010 and 2017. That is up from about 12 pounds in the early 1980s.
Why a winter tomato tastes different from an August one
Gardeners on a Garden.org forum thread debated this at length. One argument centers on breeding. Commercial growers favor firm, high yield hybrids bred to survive mechanical harvest rather than deliver flavor.
Several forum members pointed to picking practices too. Commercial tomatoes are typically picked green.
They get treated with ethylene gas afterward so they turn red before reaching the store shelf. Not every grower in that thread blamed the industry alone.
One member argued that growers are simply meeting consumer demand for tomatoes every month of the year. Nobody is forcing bad tomatoes on anyone, in that view.
Whatever the cause, the pattern holds up against the production data. Winter tomatoes travel further, get picked less ripe, and rarely come from the peak season states this guide covers.
So when should you actually buy tomatoes
The clearest answer combines both calendars covered here. Home garden tomatoes and the states supplying fresh market tomatoes overlap most heavily from June through September.
That overlap is not a coincidence. Summer is when frost free growing conditions exist almost everywhere at once.
Backyard gardens and Georgia and Tennessee farms all benefit at the same time. Outside that window, a tomato on the shelf tells a different story.
It was more likely grown far away. It was picked underripe, or shipped from a greenhouse built specifically to ignore the calendar.
Frequently asked questions
When are tomatoes in season in the US?
Home garden tomatoes peak from July through September. Commercial supply runs closer to year round once Florida, California, other summer states, and imports are combined.
What month do tomatoes taste best?
Most gardeners and the production data both point to summer, roughly June through September. That is when the most tomatoes are grown close to where they are sold, with the least travel time.
Why can I buy tomatoes in the grocery store in winter?
Florida’s season runs October through June, and greenhouse imports from Mexico now supply tomatoes all year. Those two sources cover most of the months domestic garden tomatoes cannot.
Are winter tomatoes less flavorful than summer ones?
Many gardeners say yes. The reasons trace back to breeding for durability, mechanical harvesting, and picking fruit green for gas ripening.
Not everyone agrees on who is responsible for that tradeoff.
Does California or Florida grow more fresh tomatoes?
Florida ranks first nationally in fresh market tomato production, though its output has declined in recent years. Florida and California together supply about two thirds of the country’s fresh tomatoes.
The bottom line: when are tomatoes in season? For a home garden, July through September, ending at the first frost. For the grocery store, nearly every month, thanks to Florida’s long season and California’s near constant supply.
A wave of greenhouse imports from Mexico closes whatever gap remains.
For picking your own harvest at the right moment, see our when to pick tomatoes guide. For why a tomato bought off season often disappoints, see our why grocery store tomatoes taste bland guide. For timing your own planting date, see our when to plant tomatoes calculator guide.
SOURCES
University of Georgia Extension, Home Garden Tomatoes fact sheet. https://site.extension.uga.edu/g-hop/files/2022/11/Tomatoes.pdf
University of Florida, EDIS, FE1027: The US Tomato Industry, An Overview of Production and Trade. https://journals.flvc.org/edis/article/download/105009/118652/
United States Department of Agriculture, Economic Research Service: Imported Greenhouse Tomatoes From Mexico Illustrate the Growing Diversity in Fresh Market Tomatoes. https://www.ers.usda.gov/amber-waves/2019/may/imported-greenhouse-tomatoes-from-mexico-illustrate-the-growing-diversity-in-fresh-market-tomatoes
University of California, Davis, Agricultural Issues Center: Commodity Profile, Tomatoes, Fresh Market. https://cail.ucdavis.edu/wp-content/uploads/2019/01/agmr-profile-FreshTomatoes-2005.pdf