20 Winter Vegetables Ranked by Fiber Per Dollar

Every price comes from one place, which keeps the comparison even. The national averages are drawn from the USDA Economic Research Service's Fruit and Vegetable Prices dataset, which reports what shoppers paid per pound in 2023 using retail scanner data. Organic products are excluded, and 2023 is the most recent year available.

Because those prices are three years old, each one was brought forward to August 2026 using the matching item index in the Bureau of Labor Statistics consumer price files. Fresh vegetables other than potatoes rose 6.6 percent over that stretch, potatoes 5.7 percent and canned vegetables 10.7 percent, while frozen vegetables were flat.

Fiber values and waste percentages come from the SR Legacy records in USDA FoodData Central, one named record per vegetable. Each record lists grams of fiber per 100 grams of edible portion along with a refuse figure, which is the share of purchased weight that is normally trimmed away.

The arithmetic is short. A pound is 453.6 grams, so fiber per pound is the fiber value multiplied by 4.536. Divide that by the adjusted price and you have grams of fiber per dollar as bought. Multiply by the edible share and you have grams of fiber per dollar as eaten, which is the figure the ranking uses.

One choice deserves a plain explanation. The price dataset publishes its own yield factor, but that factor blends trimming with the water a vegetable gains or loses in the pot, which is why it rises above 100 percent for boiled kale and collards. Water does not add fiber, so we used a waste-only edible share instead. Where the dataset priced a product that is already trimmed, such as bagged spinach or ready-to-cook Brussels sprouts, no further waste was deducted.

Here is the complete worksheet, sorted from best value to least, so you can find a favorite before reading the countdown. Prices are per pound in August 2026 dollars, and the rank shift shows how many places a vegetable moved once waste was counted.

If you enjoy this kind of arithmetic, the same per-dollar lens has been turned on the breakfast aisle in our ranking of 20 cereals by fiber per dollar.

Nothing to trim, and still the priciest fiber on the list

Bagged spinach is the one vegetable here where waste is not the story at all. The dataset prices the washed, ready-to-use leaves sold in bags and clamshells, so every ounce is edible and the as-bought and as-eaten figures are identical.

What holds it at the bottom is the price. At $4.80 a pound it costs more than four times as much as carrots, and at 2.2 grams of fiber per 100 grams it carries a little less fiber than they do. Gathering 28 grams of fiber from bagged spinach alone would take about 2.8 pounds of leaves and cost $13.46.

A bunch of spinach with stems and roots still attached is a different purchase. The federal nutrient record assigns it 28 percent refuse, which would lower the figure to about 1.5 grams per dollar at the same shelf price.

The stalk takes a real bite out of the value

Broccoli is one of the pricier fresh vegetables in the ranking at $3.22 a pound, and it gives up more to trimming than most. The price data assume that 22 percent of a trimmed head is tough stalk and trimmings, which takes the figure from 3.7 grams of fiber per dollar as bought down to 2.9 as eaten.

That makes the effective price $4.13 per edible pound, the second highest on the list. It also sets up one of the few cases where the pre-cut version wins. Florets cost only a few cents more per pound than whole heads in the same dataset and carry no waste, so they work out to roughly 3.6 grams of fiber per dollar.

A modest trim on a modest fiber count

Radishes lose only about 10 percent of their weight to stem ends, rootlets and trimmings, so waste is not what places them here. The limiting factor is that they are mostly water, with 1.6 grams of fiber per 100 grams, level with celery and just above acorn squash at the low end of the ranking.

At $1.97 a pound, that comes to 3.3 grams of fiber per dollar as eaten, and about $8.45 to reach 28 grams. Radishes hold their position in both columns, sitting 18th whether or not waste is counted. They earn their place in a winter kitchen for crunch and color more than for fiber economy.

How the head is trimmed at the store decides everything

Cauliflower shows how much the answer depends on what the store has already removed. The federal nutrient record lists 61 percent refuse for cauliflower, a figure that describes a head still wrapped in its heavy leaf stalks. The price data describe a fully trimmed head and assume that only 8 percent of it is inedible.

We used the 8 percent figure, because that is the product the price belongs to, and it puts cauliflower at 3.7 grams of fiber per dollar. A head sold with a thick jacket of leaves delivers less, and at the full 61 percent the figure would fall to about 1.6.

Pre-cut florets remove the question but not the cost. They averaged close to twice the per-pound price of heads, which works out to roughly 2.1 grams of fiber per dollar.

The biggest drop in the ranking, and it is all liquid

On the shelf price alone, canned beets look like a strong value at 5.9 grams of fiber per dollar, good for ninth place. Then the can gets opened. Beets fall seven places once waste is counted, the largest move of any vegetable here.

The reason is the packing liquid. For canned vegetables that are drained, the Economic Research Service's documentation assumes that 65 percent of a can's gross weight is solid vegetable and 35 percent is liquid. That turns a $1.39 pound into an effective $2.14 per edible pound.

Canned prices have also climbed faster than fresh ones since 2023, which nudged beets one place lower than they would otherwise sit. Fresh beets have no price record in the dataset, so they could not be ranked alongside.

The row with the widest margin of uncertainty

Acorn squash is inexpensive at $1.32 a pound, but its thick rind accounts for 24 percent of the purchased weight, and its raw nutrient record shows just 1.5 grams of fiber per 100 grams. Together those put it at 3.9 grams of fiber per dollar as eaten, three places lower than its shelf price suggests.

This is also the entry we hold most loosely, and it is worth saying why. The federal record for baked acorn squash lists 4.4 grams of fiber per 100 grams, nearly three times the raw value, which is a wider gap than water loss in the oven can explain. The two records were built from different samples.

Using the baked record and the dataset's own estimate that a pound yields about 0.46 pounds of cooked squash, the figure would be 6.9 grams per dollar, enough to place acorn squash near fifth. The honest reading is that it belongs somewhere between the middle and the lower third of the table.

Two federal sources disagree on how much gets trimmed

Celery is cheap by the pound at $1.41 and low in fiber at 1.6 grams per 100 grams, so it was never going to finish high. Where it lands inside the bottom half depends on how much of the bunch counts as waste.

The nutrient record puts refuse at 11 percent for roots and trimmings, which gives 4.6 grams of fiber per dollar. The price dataset draws on an older yield handbook and assumes 27 percent is lost to leaf ends, the root end and trimmings. At that level celery would sit at about 3.7 grams per dollar, three places lower.

The difference comes down to habits. Leaves and inner stalks that go into a soup pot are not waste, and a household that uses them is closer to the higher figure. Pre-cut celery sticks cost about twice as much per pound and come in near 2.6 grams per dollar.

A trimmed green at a trimmed-green price

Turnip greens are the first of four leafy greens that sit together in the middle of the table. The dataset prices them in a form sold without refuse, so the full pound is edible, and at $3.17 a pound with 3.2 grams of fiber per 100 grams they return 4.6 grams of fiber per dollar.

They rise three places once waste is counted, and it is worth being clear about why. Nothing about turnip greens improved. Other vegetables around them lost ground to rinds and can liquid while the trimmed greens stayed put.

A whole bunch with root crowns and tough stems is another matter. The nutrient record assigns it 30 percent refuse, which would bring the figure to about 3.2 at the same price.

The most fiber per pound, at the second-highest price

Kale has the highest fiber value in the ranking at 4.1 grams per 100 grams, which works out to 18.6 grams in every edible pound. If this were a list of fiber density, it would be at the top.

Price is what moves it to twelfth. At $3.81 a pound, kale is the second most expensive vegetable here after bagged spinach, and reaching 28 grams of fiber from kale alone would cost $5.73, more than twice the cost of carrots. As with the other greens, the price is for kale sold without refuse, and a bunch with thick stems and midribs would come in closer to 3.5 grams per dollar.

For a look at the same foods through a different lens, our ranking of 50 foods by fiber per calorie shows where leafy greens tend to shine.

The freezer aisle holds its ground

Mustard greens appear here in frozen form because the dataset has no fresh price for them. A frozen block is already washed, trimmed and chopped, so there is no waste to deduct, and at $2.92 a pound with 3.3 grams of fiber per 100 grams it returns 5.1 grams of fiber per dollar.

Two things worked in its favor. It climbed three places when waste was counted, for the same reason turnip greens did. And frozen vegetable prices were essentially unchanged between 2023 and August 2026, while fresh and canned prices rose, which was enough to lift it one place past fresh kale.

Frozen greens do release water as they cook, and the dataset estimates that a pound yields about three-quarters of a pound once cooked and drained. That changes the weight on the plate rather than the fiber in it.

High fiber, high price, almost no waste

Brussels sprouts carry 3.8 grams of fiber per 100 grams, second only to kale and collards among the 20, and the price data treat them as trimmed and ready to cook. That keeps the as-bought and as-eaten figures the same at 5.3 grams of fiber per dollar.

The price of $3.24 a pound is what keeps them at the midpoint of the ranking. Loose sprouts that still need their outer leaves pulled away lose about 10 percent by the nutrient record's estimate, which would put them near 4.8 grams per dollar.

Frozen Brussels sprouts were priced about 5 percent lower per pound than fresh in the 2023 data, and frozen prices have held steady since then, so the freezer bag is a reasonable option to compare when the fresh price runs high.

A manageable rind and a steady price

Butternut squash gives up 16 percent of its weight to seeds, rind and trimmings, noticeably less than acorn squash, and the nutrient record and the price data happen to agree on that number. At $1.35 a pound with 2.0 grams of fiber per 100 grams, it returns 5.6 grams of fiber per dollar as eaten.

That works out to an effective $1.61 per edible pound. Butternut slips one place when waste is counted, and it sits in a tight cluster with red cabbage and canned pumpkin, all three within a tenth of a gram of each other.

Winter squash is also one of the vegetables whose price follows the calendar. If that side of the grocery bill interests you, our month-by-month pricing of in-season and off-season produce traces how wide those swings run.

The same waste as green cabbage, at a higher price

Red cabbage loses the same 20 percent to outer leaves and core that green cabbage does, yet it finishes six places lower. Two small differences add up. It averaged about 50 percent more per pound, at $1.34 against $0.88, and its nutrient record shows slightly less fiber, 2.1 grams per 100 grams against 2.5.

The result is 5.7 grams of fiber per dollar as eaten, down from 7.1 as bought, a drop of three places. It remains good value by the standards of this list, sitting comfortably above the median of 5.2. It simply is not the bargain its green sibling is.

The can with nothing to pour off

Canned pumpkin and canned beets make a useful pair, because they move in opposite directions. Beets fall seven places when the liquid is drained. Pumpkin rises three, because it is a solid pack and the whole can is used.

At $2.30 a pound it is not cheap, and canned prices have risen faster than fresh ones since 2023. But with 2.9 grams of fiber per 100 grams and a full 100 percent edible share, it returns 5.7 grams of fiber per dollar, ahead of both fresh winter squashes on the list.

This figure is for plain canned pumpkin. Pumpkin pie filling is a different product with added ingredients, and it was not priced here.

Low in fiber, low in price, and that is enough

Onions have one of the lower fiber values in the ranking at 1.7 grams per 100 grams. They reach sixth place on price and thrift alone. At $1.13 a pound, with only 10 percent lost to stem ends and papery skins, they return 6.1 grams of fiber per dollar as eaten.

It is a helpful reminder of how a per-dollar ranking works. A vegetable does not need to be rich in fiber to deliver it cheaply. It needs to be inexpensive and mostly edible, and onions are both.

The price here covers ordinary bulb onions. Scallions, shallots and pearl onions were excluded from the dataset's average and tend to cost considerably more per pound.

The leafy green that breaks out of the pack

Collards are the only leafy green in the top five, and they get there on a combination the others lack. They carry 4.0 grams of fiber per 100 grams, nearly level with kale, at $2.65 a pound, which is more than a dollar less. That gives 6.9 grams of fiber per dollar, and a cost of $4.08 to reach 28 grams.

The caveat is the same one that applies to kale and turnip greens, and it is larger here. The price is for collards sold without refuse. Whole bunches with thick stems are assigned 43 percent refuse in the nutrient record, the highest of any vegetable we looked at apart from untrimmed cauliflower. At that level the figure falls to about 3.9 grams per dollar.

So the form matters a great deal. Trimmed or bagged collards at the average price are a strong value, and stemmy bunches at the same price are an ordinary one.

The peel is the whole story

Sweet potatoes are where waste matters most in absolute terms. As bought, they deliver 11.0 grams of fiber per dollar, third on the list. The nutrient record describes the raw, pared vegetable and assigns 28 percent of purchased weight to parings and trimmings. Deduct that and the figure drops to 7.9.

That is the largest loss of fiber per dollar anywhere in the table, and it raises the effective price from $1.24 to $1.72 per edible pound. It also means the answer depends on a habit. A sweet potato baked and eaten skin and all loses very little, and its value moves back toward the as-bought figure, which would be enough to challenge for first place.

We ranked the peeled version because that is what the fiber record measures. If the skins are staying on in your kitchen, sweet potatoes are a better value than fourth place suggests.

The cheapest edible pound on the list

Potatoes are ranked with the skin on, because both the price data and the nutrient record describe them that way. With nothing deducted, a $0.97 pound stays a $0.97 pound, the lowest effective price of all 20, and it returns 9.8 grams of fiber per dollar.

Potatoes also gave us a chance to test the method. They are the only fresh vegetable here with a live national price, and the Bureau of Labor Statistics average for white potatoes was $0.976 per pound in August 2026. Our adjusted figure from the 2023 data was $0.974, a difference of two-tenths of a cent.

Peeling changes the picture. The nutrient record assigns 25 percent to parings and trimmings, and at that level potatoes would return at most 7.3 grams per dollar, landing just behind sweet potatoes.

Where you shop moves these numbers too, and our comparison of grocery stores on nutrition per dollar looks at how far the same basket can stretch.

First on the shelf, second on the plate

Green cabbage is the cheapest vegetable in the ranking at $0.88 a pound, and on the shelf price it is the clear leader at 12.9 grams of fiber per dollar. This is the entry that shows why the second column matters.

A head of cabbage loses about 20 percent of its weight to outer leaves and core. That takes the figure to 10.3 grams per dollar as eaten and raises the effective price to $1.10 per edible pound. It is still an excellent value, with 28 grams of fiber costing just $2.72. It is simply no longer first.

The margin is slim, about a quarter of a gram per dollar, and a head with tight, clean outer leaves could easily close it. It is fair to see cabbage and carrots as sharing the top of the table, with potatoes close behind.

The best value once the waste is counted

Whole carrots take first place by doing everything reasonably well. They cost $1.07 a pound, carry 2.8 grams of fiber per 100 grams, and lose only 11 percent to crowns, tops and scrapings. No other vegetable on the list combines a price near a dollar with that fiber value and that little waste.

The result is 10.5 grams of fiber per dollar as eaten. Using the Food and Drug Administration's Daily Value for fiber of 28 grams purely as a yardstick, that amount would take about 2.5 pounds of carrots and cost $2.65. The same 28 grams from bagged spinach costs roughly five times as much.

Carrots also held first place when we reran the numbers a different way, using cooked fiber values and the dataset's own cooking yields. Baby carrots are the convenient alternative, with no waste at all, though their higher price brings them to about 8.1 grams per dollar.

If you are curious how these amounts compare with what people typically eat, our look at fiber intake by age puts the 28-gram figure in context.

Step back from the individual rows and a pattern comes through. Five of the top six vegetables cost less than $1.25 a pound, and none of them is unusually rich in fiber. The roots, the cabbage and the onions win on price and on how little of them gets thrown away.

The vegetables with the most fiber per pound tell the opposite story. Kale, collards and Brussels sprouts each carry more than 17 grams of fiber in an edible pound, well ahead of carrots at about 11, and their prices of $2.65 to $3.81 a pound place them in the middle of the table.

The same approach works for other nutrients, and our ranking of 25 foods by protein per dollar follows it through the rest of the store.