Learn about different tomato varieties and choose the best tomato type to grow in your vegetable garden this year.
No summer garden is complete without ripe, juicy tomatoes. Fortunately for us, tomatoes are abundant and prolific producers, so there are almost always plenty of tomatoes available for sauces, sandwiches, and salads.
But did you know that some tomatoes are better for certain uses than others?
If you’re trying to decide what kinds of tomatoes you want to grow in your garden this season, you’re in the right place! There are hundreds of different tomato varieties to grow, and it can be pretty overwhelming to narrow down which ones you want to grow.
This post will break down all the different types of tomatoes you can grow in your garden and explain the best uses for each type of tomato. I’ll also share my favorite varieties and where to get seeds.
Ready to start growing? Check out my complete guide to growing tomatoes from seed to harvest for step-by-step instructions on starting seeds, caring for seedlings, and getting the best-tasting tomatoes.
What to Consider When Choosing Tomato Varieties
Before diving into the different types, think about these questions:
Growing space and method:
- Do you want to prune tomatoes to control their size or let them run wild?
- Do you have a large space to allow tomatoes to grow freely or do you need them to be more compact?
- Are you growing in the ground, raised beds, or containers?
How you’ll use them:
- Will you eat all the tomatoes fresh, or do you plan on preserving a lot of the harvest?
- Do you want tomatoes all season long or one big harvest for canning?
These answers will guide you toward the right tomato types for your garden.
Indeterminate vs. Determinate Tomatoes
All tomatoes, whether cherry or beefsteak, fall under two main categories: indeterminate and determinate. Understanding the difference is crucial for choosing the right varieties.
Understanding Indeterminate Tomato Types
Indeterminate tomatoes are vining plants that can grow up to 10 feet tall and will continue to produce fruit throughout the entire growing season (as long as they are healthy and happy!). This category of tomato is the one that is known for needing to be pruned, wreaking havoc on flimsy tomato cages, and taking over garden beds and pathways with its wild growth habit.
Growth habit: Can grow 6-10 feet tall (or taller!), need sturdy support, and benefit from pruning
Best for:
- Gardeners who want tomatoes all season long
- Those with vertical growing space
- Fresh eating and continuous harvests
To remember: “Indeterminate” = “undetermined” height and number of fruit
My favorite indeterminate varieties:
- Sun Gold Cherry – The sweetest orange-yellow cherry tomato you’ll ever taste. Incredibly prolific.
- Italian Heirloom – Despite the generic name, the flavor is outstanding. My go-to paste tomato.
- Kellogg’s Breakfast – Big, meaty slicer in a beautiful yellow-orange color
- Barry’s Crazy Cherry – Huge trusses of pale yellow tomatoes, super productive
- Amish Paste – Massive paste tomato that produces reliably
- Climbing Trip-L Crop – Warning: this plant gets HUGE, but the harvest is worth it
- Costoluto Genovese – Gorgeous red, ribbed tomato with rich flavor
Determinate Tomatoes in the Garden
Determinate tomatoes, on the other hand, are smaller and tend to produce one big crop of tomatoes before fizzling out. This type of tomato may also be called a “bush tomato” and is mainly used for canning and preserving. It’s also great for small spaces and should not be pruned.
Growth habit: Compact, don’t need pruning, easy to cage
Best for:
- Small spaces and container gardens
- Canning and preserving (you get lots of tomatoes at once)
- Gardeners who want less maintenance
To remember: “Determinate” = “determined” height and number of fruit
My favorite determinate varieties:
- Roma – Classic paste tomato, reliable and productive
- Subarctic Plenty – Great for short growing seasons
- Cherry Falls – Productive small plant, perfect for containers
- Patio Choice Yellow – Compact and cheerful
Semi-Determinate Tomatoes
You may also run across tomatoes that are labeled as “semi-determinate.” As the name suggests, it’s something in between indeterminate and determinate tomatoes that will produce fruit throughout the growing season but be smaller and more compact than indeterminate tomatoes.
Think of them as the best of both worlds for gardeners with moderate space.
Types of Tomatoes by Use
Beyond growth habit, different tomato varieties are categorized by how you’ll use them. Each type has characteristics that make it perfect for specific purposes.
Paste Tomatoes
Paste tomatoes are flavorful, thick-walled tomatoes, with dense flesh, less gel, and few seeds, which helps them cook down into homemade tomato paste (where the name comes from!) or sauce more quickly.
Typically, these types of tomatoes have less moisture, which also helps to create a thicker sauce and makes these types of tomatoes great for dehydrating.
Sometimes paste tomatoes are also called plum tomatoes for their shape.
Best for:
- Homemade tomato sauce and paste (they cook down quickly)
- Canning
- Dehydrating
- Salsa
Three of my favorite paste tomato varieties are:
- Italian Heirloom Tomato: (indeterminate) although it has the most generic sounding name, the flavor is anything but. It’s my favorite paste tomato!
- Amish Paste: (indeterminate) a huge paste tomato that always produces well for me
- Roma: (determinate) classic paste tomato that’s reliable and great for canning
Slicer Tomatoes (Beefsteak)
Slicer tomatoes, as the name implies, are big, round tomatoes that are meaty, juicy, and rich; they are perfect for making tomato sandwiches or adding to a grilled hamburger. Slicers are known for growing huge fruits, sometimes up to two pounds per fruit!
Best for:
- Tomato sandwiches
- Hamburgers and grilled dishes
- Fresh eating
- Anywhere you want a substantial tomato slice
A few of my favorite slicer tomatoes include:
- Climbing Trip-L Crop: (indeterminate) this plant gets huge!
- Kellogg’s Breakfast: a big, meaty slicer in a beautiful yellow-orange color
- Costoluto Genovese: gorgeous red, ribbed tomato that’s delicious
Salad Tomatoes (Cherry, Grape, Pear, etc.)
Salad tomatoes are small tomatoes with thin skins, typically eaten whole and used for fresh snacking, salads, or skewers. They can be as large as 3 inches in diameter or as small as a currant, as in the case of spoon tomatoes.
This category includes the “fruit” shapes like cherry, grape, pear or teardrop, and also cocktail tomatoes.
Cherry tomatoes are incredible when they’ve been slow-roasted like in this recipe.
Best for:
- Skewers and appetizers
- Fresh snacking straight from the garden
- Salads
- Roasting (they’re incredible slow-roasted!)
My favorite salad and cherry tomato varieties are:
- Sun Gold Cherry: (indeterminate) always sweet and prolific
- Barry’s Crazy Cherry: (indeterminate) huge trusses of pale yellow tomatoes
- Cherry Falls: (determinate) a productive, small plant, great for containers
- Stupice: (indeterminate) early producer, great for short seasons and cool climates
- Black Strawberry: (indeterminate) beautiful color
A Rainbow of Tomato Colors
Tomatoes come in way more colors than just red! Each color has a different flavor profile based on acidity levels.
- Red tomatoes: Classic flavor, higher acidity, tangy and bright
- Pink tomatoes: Mild, sweet, lower acidity
- Yellow/Orange tomatoes: Sweet, fruity, low acidity. The sweetest tomatoes I’ve grown are in this category (like Sun Gold).
- Green tomatoes (when ripe): Tangy, unique flavor. Not to be confused with unripe tomatoes!
- Black/Purple/Blue tomatoes: Rich, complex, smoky flavor. Higher acidity. Black Beauty is one of the most acidic I’ve grown.
- Bi-colored/Striped tomatoes: Vary by variety, often beautifully patterned
- White/Cream tomatoes: Very mild, almost neutral flavor. White Tomesol is the mildest tomato I’ve ever tasted.
I’ve definitely found this to be true.
The sweetest tomato we’ve grown is the Sungold cherry, which is orange-yellow, while the most acidic has been Black Beauty (a purply black tomato).
The most mild-tasting tomato I’ve grown is a super-pale, almost creamy white color, called the White Tomesol.
How to Use Different Colors:
- Italian-style sauces and sandwiches: I prefer a balance between acid and sweet (red, pink, or bi-colored)
- Salsa: More acidic tomatoes work best (red, black/purple)
- Snacking and salads: The sweeter, the better (yellow, orange, pink)
Experiment with different colors to find what appeals to your taste!
Heirloom vs. Hybrid Tomatoes
Heirloom tomatoes are open-pollinated varieties that have been passed down through generations. Seeds saved from heirlooms will grow true to type.
Pros of Heirloom Tomatoes:
- Superior flavor (most tomato connoisseurs swear by heirlooms)
- Unique varieties with interesting histories
- Can save seeds for next year
Cons of Heirloom Tomatoes:
- May require more care
- Less disease resistance
- Sometimes less productive than hybrids
Hybrid tomatoes are crosses between two different varieties, bred for specific traits like disease resistance, productivity, or uniformity.
Pros of Hybrid Tomatoes:
- More vigorous, robust plants
- Better disease resistance (look for codes like “VFN” for disease tolerance)
- More reliable production
- Great for beginners
Cons of Hybrid Tomatoes:
- Can’t save seeds (they won’t grow true)
- Sometimes less complex flavor
My take: I grow both! Hybrids like Sun Gold give me reliable harvests and disease resistance, while heirlooms like Italian Heirloom and Kellogg’s Breakfast give me outstanding flavor. Either way, homegrown tomatoes will taste infinitely better than anything from the grocery store.
For more on this, see my post on the difference between heirloom and hybrid seed.
Where to Get Tomato Seeds
Affiliate Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links. By purchasing through my links, I may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you.
If you’re looking for online seed companies to order seeds for some of the tomato varieties I mentioned above, here are a few of my favorites.
- Botanical Interests
- High Mowing Organic Seeds
- Pinetree Garden Seeds
- Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds
- Johnny’s Selected Seeds
- MIgardener
- Quail Seeds
Your Turn to Grow
Now that you’ve chosen your different tomato varieties, it’s time to get growing!
Check out my complete guide to growing tomatoes from seed to harvest for:
- When to start tomato seeds indoors
- How to care for seedlings
- Transplanting techniques for stronger plants
- Tricks for growing the most flavorful tomatoes
- Troubleshooting common problems
Other helpful posts:
Grow Your Best Tomatoes This Year
Thanks for reading this post! I hope this is your year to grow the best tomatoes ever.
Choosing the right tomato varieties is half the fun of growing tomatoes! Don’t be afraid to experiment with different tomato varieties each year—that’s how you’ll discover your personal favorites.
Start with 2-3 tried-and-true varieties (like Sun Gold cherry and Roma paste), then add one or two experimental varieties to keep things interesting. Take notes on what you love and what disappointed, and adjust next year.
Hopefully this post helped you understand the differences between indeterminate and determinate tomatoes, uses for tomatoes, tomato colors, and heirloom vs. hybrid tomatoes.
Who knew a simple tomato could have so much diversity!
Happy gardening!