The most popular fruit in America is the banana. Americans consume more bananas than any other fruit, with apples being second. A recent report from the grocery delivery app InstaCart confirmed this. They deliver more bananas to customers than any other fresh fruit.
Did You Know? 🍌
The banana is officially the most popular fruit in America, beating out even the apple for the #1 spot! But being the favorite is just the beginning of its story.
Go Beyond the Peel: Discover 5 Surprising Banana Facts You Never Knew →
Most Popular Fruit In America Survey Data
According to data from Statista covering 2022, 63% of survey respondents had purchased bananas in the last year. Apples and grapes came in second, at 58% and 52%, respectively. The average American eats around 25 to 30 pounds of bananas each year, which is significantly more than any other fruit. Compare this to 15 to 20 pounds of apples. Other survey data from The Packer Fresh Trends, and Fyffes confirms this position.
Why Do Americans Prefer Bananas?
There are several factors that may account for this preference. Bananas are especially affordable compared to other fruits. A pound of bananas sells for around 65 cents a pound (approx. 3 bananas), on average. The most inexpensive apples cost around $1.15 per pound.
Bananas are considered nutritious and are especially valued for their potassium content. They are portable and convenient to eat on the run. Bananas are also great for cooking, even when they are overripe, and they mix well with other fruits in fruit salads.
What about our Favorite FOOD? 🍌
Americans love their yellow fruit so much that the banana is the most-consumed fruit in the nation. But while bananas dominate the produce aisle, our favorite overall food is something else entirely. What are the biggest heavy-hitters in the American diet?
See Where the Banana Ranks: The Most Popular Foods in America in 2024 →
Bananas Have a History of Heavy Marketing
There is also no doubt that a long history of heavy marketing has solidified the banana’s position as the top American fruit. For example, in 1944, when the United Fruit Company created the first banana brand, Chiquita Bananas, they also created the first branded fruit mascot, Miss Chiquita, an animated anthropomorphized banana with a woman’s legs, wearing a dress. Television commercials featured Miss Chiquita singing a song about the virtues of Chiquita bananas.
Runners Up: Most Other Common Fruits
According to YouGov data, in the third quarter of 220, more Americans had a positive opinion of strawberries and grapes, at 85%, than bananas, at 84%. This is not consumption data, and it remains to be seen if bananas will fall out of the top spot. According to 2024 data from Statista, Apples and Oranges consistently give the banana a run for its money in terms of consumer preference. In other words, just about every other common fruit has a chance of ousting the banana at any one time.
Despite our love affair with the banana, Americans do not eat as much fruit as health guidelines suggest. According to available data, in 2022, the average American ate 116 pounds of fruit. On average, consumption lies around 115 pounds a year of fresh fruit, but a lot of this fruit data may include fruit juice.
