How Long Do Grapes Last?

You’ve bought an extra bag of grapes to take advantage of a sale. Now it sits in the fridge, and you’re wondering how long do grapes last.

Or maybe you forgot about the bunch that’s in the fridge, and now you’re searching for ways to make them stay fresh for longer and not go bad.

Either way, it’s time to learn a bit about shelf life, storage practices, and signs of spoilage of grapes.

If that’s what you’re searching for, read on.

• Shelf life
• Spoilage
• Storage

How Long Do Grapes Last?

Grapes last for about 5 to 10 days in the fridge and between 2 and 4 days on the counter. That’s the gist of it.

Whether your grapes are going to end up on the lower or upper end of the spectrum depends on the fruit’s quality and freshness.

If the grapes were harvested and bagged a day or two ago, the stems are green, and the fruit plump, they’ll last quite some time.

On the other hand, if the bag sat in the produce section for three or four days, the grapes will keep for only a few days. And you’ll likely have to discard some of them.

	Pantry/On the counter	Fridge
Grapes	2 – 4 days	5 – 10 days

Shelf Life When Storing at Room Temperature

If you leave grapes on the counter, they keep for only a couple of days – usually between 2 to 4 days. It depends heavily on how old the grapes are and how they were handled in the grocery store or supermarket.

If for any reason you have to store your grapes at room temperature, check their quality every day (more on that later), and eat the fruits that are starting to soften. This way, you won’t end up with a bunch of bad grapes that you have to throw out.

How to Tell if Grapes Are Bad?

You can tell that grapes are bad if they’re soft to the touch, shriveled, have brown (or discolored) spots or bruises, or are moldy. The same is true if they give off a funny (often vinegar-like) smell.

Either of these characteristics alone is good enough to tell that these are bad grapes and should be discarded.

Water Loss

Once harvested, fresh grapes lose water over time. That’s true for pretty much all veggies and fruits.

If you dry them in a controlled environment, you get raisins, but that’s a different story.

That loss of water results in soft, or even shriveled grapes. Sometimes the skin breaks, and the fruit oozes water. If it gets to this point, discard the fruit.

Of course, grapes on the slightly softer side are okay to eat, but you need to get rid of them at some point. It’s up to you when that happens.

No need to overthink that – if your guts tell you these grapes aren’t good enough to eat anymore, toss them.

Mold on Grapes in the Fridge

Grapes that sit in the fridge for longer than a week often grow mold. Sometimes that starts after 4 to 5 days of storage, sometimes well over a week. But it happens eventually.

The mold spores find a good-enough environment to thrive, and they grow.

The way to deal with mold on grapes is to discard all nearby fruits. I usually cut off the vine an inch or so above the moldy one and throw it out. The rest of the grapes are okay to eat.

Of course, the advice above works if you only have a couple of moldy grapes.

If there’s a whole lot of mold in the bag, just ditch the whole thing. And consider cleaning that part of the fridge so that the spores don’t spread.

Assessing Grape Quality

Another thing that you should pay attention to is the freshness of the fruit. This way, you know if your grapes can still sit in the fridge or if you should use them as soon as possible.

This also helps you with choosing the best grapes in the grocery store.

To check grapes’ quality, look at the following:

• Stems. Green stems that hold the grapes well are optimal. If they’re turning brown and some of the grapes fall off on their own, hurry up.
• Grapes. They should be plump and full of color. If they’re starting to go soft and the color fades, they won’t last much longer.

How To Store Grapes

Main article: How to Store Grapes?

Keep grapes unwashed in a ventilated bag and in the fridge. Leave them on the stem so that they last as long as possible. Leaving the grapes on the counter in a fruit bowl is only an option if you know you’re going to finish them within 2 to 3 days.

Grapes usually come in ventilated bags, so that part is taken care of. If that’s not the case, you can always poke some holes in a regular plastic bag, or go with a freezer bag and leave the top open. Either give the grapes some airflow.

Last, leaving the grapes unwashed is recommended, but if you washed yours, it’s not the end of the world. Just make sure you dry them thoroughly before you refrigerate them, and you should be fine.