With the long-awaited early access release of Coral Island, farming sim fans are clamoring to get a start with the new Southeast Asian-inspired farming sim centered around a large, vibrant community, exciting adventures, and a strong community trying to recover after a recent oil spill knocked the once coveted tourist destination to the bottom of the rankings list. Now on the verge of being bought out by an oil company, players have no shortage of things to do to grow and improve their farm, while still finding ways to restore the town to its former glory.

However, despite the many ways to pass the time in Coral Island, farmers won’t get very far without growing crops. In addition to being the most reliable way for farmers to earn money, certain crops will be needed for offerings and unlocking new areas and features in the game, so knowing which crops to plant early on is important if players want to have the best start they can.

Updated on November 29, 2023, by Megan Smith: Coral Island has finally been released fully on not only PC but also PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X/S. The Nintendo Switch version of the game is planned for 2024. With many players purchasing the total for the full release, many may be wondering what are Coral Island's best crops to start with. While this does include exploring the best spring crops on Coral Island, this article also includes ideas for both summer and fall. Winter isn't included as players won't unlock seeds for this season until the next in-game year. Most of the crops mentioned can be purchased and used by a farmer that has a Town Rank of F though some of them may require a higher rank.

13 Cranberry

Season: Fall

While at first, the sales prices of cranberries in the Fall may not seem that tempting, something players should remember when planting this crop is that it grows back multiple times. While some crops are planted once, grown, and then harvested. Meanwhile, players wait 5 days for their cranberries and then can harvest them again every 2 days.

If the player plants them on the first day of fall, this would mean the player can gain multiple harvests of cranberries before the season is over. This berry can be processed and turned into jam if the player is looking for an extra boost of money.

12 Turnip

Season: Spring

Aside from being the first type of seeds players are gifted with when they move into their new farm, turnips are a cheap and easy crop to plant a lot of early on. In addition to being inexpensive to buy, planted turnips have a growth time of only 4 days, making them a quick way to make money off of a harvest, even if they don’t sell for as much as more expensive crops would.

Beyond simple money-making as one of the best spring crops, the spring offering bundle will need a turnip before the player can complete it, so they’ll need to plant a turnip at some point either way.

11 Wheat

Season: Summer

Wheat is another crop that at first may not seem worth the time in Coral Island when there are so many better options during summer. However, wheat is not only great for making a bit of extra money but is also a vital ingredient for a few recipes.

Once the wheat has grown after 5 days, it can be processed into wheat flour at a mill to be used to create a Fruit Tart or Basil Pesto. Alternatively, it can even be put into a keg to make beer. Both of which sell better than the regular crop.

10 Daisy

Season: Spring

One of the first flowers players will be able to grow, the daisy is another worthy investment for farms just starting out. On Coral Island, daisies are another cheap and easy seed to grow for new farmers that will take 4 days to grow.

While they also don’t sell for much, the ease of access and short growth time make it another great crop for fast harvests and profit, and one player will need for the spring crop offering. As a flower, daisies can also be used to make honey when players unlock the bee house recipe.

9 Sunflower

Season: Summer

Flowers arguably don't make much of a direct profit in Coral Island, though another great investment that can be made during summer, even in the first year, is the purchase of sunflowers. Sun Flowers will take a total of 8 days to grow and then can be directly sold for a decent profit.

Like many flowers in the game, if players are willing to wait a little longer, they can then put these flowers into their beehive to have them turned into Sunflower Honey which will give them even more of a profit than directly selling the flowers would.

8 Carrot

Season: Spring

Once players have made a decent amount of money with their first harvests, carrots are a good crop to choose for players who want to step toward wider profit margins with their harvests.

While the seeds are slightly more expensive than turnips and daisies and take a few more days to grow, players will make almost twice as much money from harvests in comparison. Additionally, carrots are needed to complete the spring crop offering and can be pickled once players gain the ability to craft mason jars.

7 Cauliflower

Season: Spring

Cauliflower is a slower and more expensive option that will require more patience from farmers looking to make money. However, unlike the much faster options players have at their disposal early on, cauliflower in Coral Island will sell for nearly twice their purchase price and, so long as players are willing to wait 10 days for their harvest to grow, will be generously rewarded for their patience.

Another benefit of growing cauliflower is that early-game quests won’t need them for anything, so players are free to sell all of their cauliflower without missing out on other benefits.

6 Sugarcane

Season: Spring

Unlike other starting crops, sugarcane won’t be available to purchase at the beginning of the game, as Starlet Town will need a town ranking of at least D before the seeds show up in the general store.

However, so long as players prioritize making offerings early on, it’ll be easy to improve the town rank with plenty of days in spring to spare. Once they’re planted, sugarcane will take 5 days to grow, but will stay planted after harvest and only take 1 day before they’re ready to be harvested again. They can then be processed into other things to make a larger profit.

5 Cucumber

Season: Spring

Cucumber is another spring crop in Coral Island that will require an E rank before it’s available for purchase in the town’s general store. It takes much longer for the initial plant to grow since it will be ready in 9 days, but the player can collect the vegetable again every 3 days.

Beyond simple money making, players will need to grow at least one cucumber of bronze quality or higher in order to unlock new diving areas, that will allow them to improve their crop quality further.

4 Radish

Season: Spring & Summer

Unlike most crops, radishes have the advantage of being able to grow in both spring and summer, making it an excellent choice if players don’t want to pause their farming in the last few days of spring. Radishes also require an E rank to plant and are only a little less expensive than cauliflower.

However, radishes will grow slightly faster and still make nearly 50g as a base profit. If players invest in upgrading their seed qualities or use fertilizers to up the quality of their harvests, radishes become a reliable way to make a lot of money for the warmer half of the year.

3 Blueberry

Season: Summer

By the time summer rolls around, players should have a decent foothold as their farm starts to get off the ground and run more smoothly. Even so, summer is still an early season in the game, and starting with a decent number of blueberry plants is a must.

In addition to being required for the summer offering, after growing fully in 10 days, players can pick even more blueberries when they return to the crop every 4 days. This means that players are likely to get several handfuls of the fruit during summer.

2 Melon

Season: Summer

Melons are definitely a crop players will take longer to acquire, but should definitely be prioritized during summer if the player has a town rank of E. They are one of the most expensive and slow-growing seeds of the season, costing 130g each and taking 12 days to grow.

Although they may cost a bit to purchase the seeds and take so long to grow, the overall profit from creating a whole field of them at the start of summer is well worth the wait and care these fruits need to grow. Using fertilizer is even more likely to make sure players get even more of a profit than usual.

1 Hot Pepper

Season: Summer & Fall

Hot peppers are another crop Coral Island players should prioritize if they plan to finish their shrines’ summer offering in the first year. Hot peppers are a moderately cheap seed option, take 6-7 days to grow, and will regrow every 3 days for the rest of summer.

Considering the quick growth time, short buffer period between harvests, and high selling price, hot peppers are an easy and reliable source of income that will require little work to maintain and continue to give the player profit until the end of the Fall season.