Stardew Valley: Preserves Jar vs. Kegs - Which is Better?

Stardew Valley is all about cultivating crops and making a living off the land — but there's more that players can do with their fruits and vegetables than simply selling them as-is. As players advance their Farming skill, they unlock crafting recipes for items that allow them to can, preserve, and ferment their produce into highly valuable artisan goods. Two such items that Stardew Valley players often craft in large quantities are Kegs and Preserves Jars. Both of these can be used to transform crops — particularly fruits and vegetables — into Artisan Goods that significantly multiply their value, potentially earning the player substantial profits. But which is better? What are the advantages and disadvantages of each option? Here's a detailed comparison of Kegs and Preserves Jars.

Updated January 8, 2025, by Demaris Oxman: The 1.6 update brought numerous changes to Stardew Valley, including several small tweaks and balancing changes. One significant update involved expanding the types of items that players can place in Kegs and Preserves Jars. For example, forage items like Leeks, Spring Onions, Hazelnuts, Winter Roots, and more can now be used to create Juice or Pickles. This guide has been updated to reflect any additional information that players will find helpful as they seek to make artisan goods on their farm.

Basics of Kegs and Preserves Jars

Both Preserves Jars and Kegs are essential for any player's farm, as they can turn produce and other items into valuable artisan goods. This is particularly profitable if players have the Artisan profession, which boosts the sell price of these goods by 40%. It's crucial to understand that the quality of the item placed in a Preserves Jar or a Keg does not affect the quality or sell price of the artisan product. For instance, a Jelly made from a gold-quality fruit will sell for the same price as one made from a normal-quality fruit. Therefore, it is advisable for players to use their lowest-quality items to make Artisan products in their Preserves Jars and Kegs.

Preserves Jars

Preserves Jars are used to produce canned products: Jelly, Pickles, Aged Roe, and Caviar. Players can obtain Preserves Jars as rewards from the Quality Crops or Rare Crops bundles at the community center, or as prizes from the Prize Machine. The crafting recipe for Preserves Jars is unlocked at Farming Level 4 and requires:

• 50 Wood
• 40 Stone
• 8 Coal

The following items can be crafted with a Preserves Jar:

Kegs

Kegs, on the other hand, are used to produce beverages. Some are alcoholic, such as Wine, Beer, and Pale Ale; however, Coffee, Juice, Green Tea, and Vinegar are also produced in Kegs. Farmers can obtain Kegs as rewards for completing the Artisan Bundle or Brewer's Bundle, or they may appear as prizes in the Prize Machine. To craft their own, players will learn the recipe at Farming Level 8:

• 30 Wood
• 1 Copper Bar
• 1 Iron Bar
• 1 Oak Resin

The following items can be crafted with a Keg:

Item Placed In Keg	Product	Base Sell Price
Any fruit	[fruit name] Wine	3 x [base fruit price]
Any vegetable except for Hops or Wheat	[item name] Juice	2.25 x [base item price]
Any Forage item with a positive energy value, other than Mushrooms
Hops	Pale Ale	300g
Wheat	Beer	200g
Honey	Mead	200g
Tea Leaves	Green Tea	100g
Coffee Bean (5)	Coffee	150g
Rice	Vinegar	100g

Kegs or Preserves Jars: Which Is Better?

Pros & Cons of Kegs

As players can see in the tables above, goods produced in Kegs generally result in greater profits than those produced in Preserves Jars. Wine, for example, is the much more profitable choice for fruit. It's also worth noting that the alcoholic beverages made in Kegs (Wine, Beer, Pale Ale, and Mead) can be placed in a Cask to age them, increasing their quality and thus their sell price. An Iridium-quality artisan product will sell for double the price of a normal-quality one.

However, while Kegs produce much higher-value products, they are also more expensive to craft. Crafting Kegs en masse requires first forging many metal bars, crafting several Tappers, and waiting for them to yield Oak Resin. Additionally, if players plan to age their Keg products in Casks, they must purchase their home's final upgrade for 100,000g (and potentially craft additional Casks from wood and hardwood). Kegs also take much longer than Preserves Jars to reach their end product — and that's not considering any aging time.

For seasoned Stardew Valley players, the undertaking of crafting Kegs may well be enjoyable, and potentially not even difficult. However, Preserves Jars also have their advantages, and shouldn't be overlooked.

Pros & Cons of Preserves Jars

Because they require only basic materials, Preserves Jars are cheap and easy to craft. They can help farmers earn plenty of money in the early years on their farm, especially before learning the crafting recipe for Kegs. Many players do tend to phase out their Preserves Jars once they have crafted a fair number of Kegs, due to the lower sell values of Jellies and Pickles.

However, it's worth keeping some around. Preserves Jars take much less time than Kegs to yield their product. This quicker turnaround means that they can be just as profitable, especially for low-value, high-yield crops like Blueberry. Generally, if a fruit's base price is 50g or less, it is more profitable to put it in the Preserves Jar because of its lower processing time. The same is true for vegetables with a base price of 200g or less.

It's also worth noting that some items that cannot be placed in Kegs can be placed in Preserves Jars, and vice versa. For example, players can choose to place their fruit harvest in either a Keg or a Preserves Jar. However, only a Preserves Jar can increase the value of Roe, and only a Keg can make an artisan product out of Honey. With this in mind, having both Preserves Jars and Kegs on one's farm is essential for players who focus on growing crops and making artisan goods.