Apple bananas are small, stout, and plump, with a thick firm peel and a light, creamy flesh. Young apple bananas have a tangy and sweet taste with a hint of apple. When the fruit ripens, it has a tart-apple aroma and some flavors of strawberry and pineapple. Organic, untreated bananas may have blemishes on the skin and also tend to have marks on the sides toward the top of the fruit, which is caused by the bananas resting on adjacent ones when they grow in tightly packed bunches. Apple bananas are not produced commercially on a large scale but are increasing in popularity worldwide as a snack banana. The variety is primarily grown in home gardens or in small farms for fresh use, mainly consumed as a dessert cultivar.

Red bananas are shorter, plumper, and heartier than the average banana. The skin turns sunset colors through the ripening process from yellow-green to orange then to red. When ripe, red bananas have a thick, brick red peel with a deep yellow to orange color flesh, sometimes with a hint of pink. It should only be eaten when fully ripe as the immature fruit tastes like dry and chalky starch. Its flavor is sweet and creamy with a subtle aftertaste of berry and mango. Red bananas have more beta carotene and vitamin C than yellow banana varieties and also contain potassium, riboflavin, niacin, fiber, and iron. The demand for red bananas is increasing due to their nutritional value compared to yellow bananas and also to the fact that they are preferred as a baking variety for both desserts and semi-savory dishes.