The Best Tea for Energy, Ranked by Caffeine per Cup
The Best Tea for Energy, Ranked by Caffeine per Cup
Looking for the best tea for energy? By caffeine per serving, yerba mate leads at about 80 mg per 150 mL cup (150 mg in a 15.5 fl oz Yerba Madre can), followed by black tea at ~47 mg per 8 oz, oolong at ~38 mg, matcha at up to ~32 mg per 2 g serving (with the most L-theanine), and green tea at ~28 mg. All figures come from USDA FoodData Central, the FDA, and peer-reviewed HPLC data.
How Tea Compares to Other Caffeine Sources
| Source | Caffeine / serving | Serving size | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Brewed coffee | 113 to 247 mg | 12 fl oz | FDA |
| Yerba mate (top tea) | ~80 mg | 150 mL cup | Płatkiewicz 2024 |
| Black tea | ~47 mg | 8 fl oz | USDA FDC 173227 |
| Caffeinated soft drink | 23 to 83 mg | 12 fl oz | FDA |
| Energy drink | 41 to 246 mg | 12 fl oz | FDA |
| Roon pouch | 80 mg | 1 pouch | Label |
This page ranks caffeinated teas. For caffeine-free options, see the companion list of energy tea without caffeine.
Caffeinated Teas Ranked by Caffeine per Serving
| Rank | Tea | Caffeine / serving | Serving basis | L-theanine / serving | Best for | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Yerba mate | ~80 mg (brewed); 150 mg (canned) | 150 mL cup; 15.5 fl oz Yerba Madre can | Not published | Biggest single lift | Płatkiewicz 2024; Yerba Madre |
| 2 | Guayusa | Per-cup figure not established | Leaf: up to 75.7 mg/g dry leaf | Not published | Mate drinkers wanting a smoother leaf | Molecules 2025 |
| 3 | Black tea | ~47 mg | 8 fl oz brewed | ~12 mg / 200 mL | Everyday morning cup | USDA FDC 173227; Ayakdaş 2025 |
| 4 | Oolong | ~38 mg | 8 fl oz brewed | ~12 mg / 2 g leaf | Afternoon cup with less bite | USDA FDC 174120; Boros 2016 |
| 5 | Matcha | ~28 to 32 mg (2 g); ~42 to 48 mg (3 g latte); ~56 to 64 mg (4 g koicha) | Ippodo serving sizes × 14.1 to 16.1 mg/g | ~8 to 20 mg (2 g) | Most L-theanine per serving | Koláčková 2022 |
| 6 | Green tea | ~28 mg | 8 fl oz brewed | ~12.5 mg / 200 mL | Gentle, repeatable lift | USDA FDC 171917; Ayakdaş 2025 |
| 7 | White tea | ~6 mg (2-min steep) | 2 g leaf in 200 mL | Not published per cup | Lowest caffeine if steeped short | Ayakdaş 2025; Boros 2016 |
Source: USDA FoodData Central, FDA, and the peer-reviewed assays linked in each row; checked Oct 2026. Per-cup figures assume 237 g per 8 fl oz (mg per 8 oz = mg per 100 g × 2.37).
Numbers come from USDA, FDA, and published HPLC analyses, not tea-brand marketing. Real cups vary with leaf quantity, steep time, and water temperature. Roon sells a caffeine pouch, and links to it appear on this page; each tea figure traces to a public database or paper linked in the table. Roon did not lab-test any of these teas.
1. Yerba Mate (Most Caffeine per Cup)
A 150 mL cup of brewed mate contains about 80 mg of caffeine, a figure that shifts with leaf origin and steep time (Płatkiewicz 2024). Ready-to-drink Yerba Madre cans list 150 mg per 15.5 fl oz. If you're counting milligrams, canned mate is easier to track than loose-leaf brewed through a bombilla. More on the numbers: how much caffeine in yerba mate.
2. Guayusa (Richest Leaf, No Reliable Per-Cup Number)
Guayusa leaves have been reported at up to 75.7 mg caffeine per gram of dry leaf, among the highest in any plant (Molecules 2025). No primary study gives a standard per-cup figure for brewed guayusa. Until someone runs HPLC on a brewed cup, treat it as "high caffeine, exact amount unknown."
3. Black Tea (~47 mg per 8 oz)
USDA lists brewed black tea at 20 mg per 100 g, or about 47 mg per 8 fl oz (FDC 173227). The FDA puts it at 71 mg per 12 fl oz. Tea bags beat loose leaf here: cup-size bags at 100 °C for 10 minutes gave 39 mg per 200 mL versus 24 mg for loose leaf (Ayakdaş 2025).
4. Oolong (~38 mg per 8 oz)
USDA records oolong at 16 mg per 100 g, or about 38 mg per 8 fl oz (FDC 174120). Temperature matters more for oolong than other types: raising water from 80 °C to 100 °C jumped caffeine from 4.4 to 13.5 mg per 200 mL, a threefold increase not seen in green or black (Ayakdaş 2025).
5. Matcha (~28 to 32 mg per Standard Serving)
You consume the whole leaf, so matcha delivers both more caffeine and more L-theanine per gram than steeped tea: 14.1 to 16.1 mg caffeine and 4.22 to 9.85 mg L-theanine per gram across three commercial matcha powders (Koláčková 2022). Using the top values: at Ippodo's serving sizes, a 2 g usucha gives up to ~32 mg caffeine and up to ~20 mg theanine; a 3 g latte hits up to ~48 mg; a 4 g koicha reaches up to ~64 mg, potentially overtaking black tea. Full comparison: matcha vs coffee.
6. Green Tea (~28 mg per 8 oz)
USDA puts brewed green at 12 mg per 100 g, or about 28 mg per 8 fl oz (FDC 171917). The FDA lists 37 mg per 12 fl oz. At ~28 mg a cup, you can drink three or four cups through a morning and stay well under 400 mg total.
7. White Tea (~6 mg After a Short Steep)
Per gram of dry leaf, white tea measured about the same caffeine as green: 16.79 mg/g versus 16.28 mg/g (Boros 2016). Its low per-cup reputation comes from typical preparation: short, cooler steeps. At 2 g in 200 mL for 2 minutes, white tea gave only 5.8 mg (Ayakdaş 2025). Steep it longer and hotter and the number climbs. If you want low caffeine, steep white tea briefly. If you want it to wake you up, pick a different leaf.
Same Tea, Different Cup: What Changes the Caffeine
The type of tea matters less than how you brew it. Data from a 2025 HPLC study, 2 g tea per 200 mL (Ayakdaş & Ağagündüz 2025):
| Condition | Result |
|---|---|
| 2-min steep, by type | Black 14 mg, green 11 mg, white 5.8 mg, oolong 4 mg per 200 mL |
| Longer steep | 5 and 10 min raised caffeine in every type; yellow tea reached 53 mg at 100 °C / 10 min |
| Water temperature | 80 °C vs 100 °C changed caffeine only in oolong (4.4 → 13.5 mg per 200 mL) |
| Bag vs loose leaf (black, 100 °C, 10 min) | Bag 39 mg vs loose 24 mg per 200 mL; no difference for green or white |
| L-theanine | Highest in black (12.3 mg) and green (12.5 mg) per 200 mL; temperature did not change it |
Does the L-Theanine in Tea Make the Energy Smoother?
The caffeine-plus-L-theanine trials used roughly 97 to 100 mg of L-theanine, several times what a cup of tea delivers (12 to 20 mg). In Owen 2008 (n = 27, Unilever researchers), 50 mg caffeine alone improved alertness at 60 minutes; adding 100 mg L-theanine improved attention-switching speed and accuracy. Giesbrecht 2010 (n = 44, also Unilever) found 97 mg theanine plus 40 mg caffeine improved task-switching versus placebo, though it had no caffeine-alone arm. Matcha gives the most theanine per tea serving (up to ~20 mg per 2 g), but that is still one-fifth of the trial dose at most.
How Long Does the Energy from Tea Last?
Caffeine's effects typically persist for four to six hours (MedlinePlus), though clearance speed varies widely between people (FDA). No primary study shows tea caffeine lasts longer than coffee caffeine at the same dose. In Drake 2013, 400 mg of caffeine taken six hours before bedtime still disrupted sleep. Tea delivers less per cup, but watch your last cup's timing. More: how long does caffeine last.
How Many Cups of Tea Fit Under 400 mg?
The FDA cites 400 mg per day as the amount not generally linked to negative effects in healthy adults. At the per-serving figures above:
- Black tea: ~8 cups
- Oolong: ~11 cups
- Green tea: ~14 cups
- Matcha (2 g servings): ~12 servings
- Yerba Madre cans (150 mg): ~2.7 cans
- Brewed mate (150 mL cups): ~5 cups
Count every other caffeine source too. Full breakdown: how much caffeine is too much.
Who Should Go Easy on Caffeinated Tea
MedlinePlus advises talking to a provider about caffeine if you are pregnant or breastfeeding, or if you have sleep disorders, migraines, anxiety, GERD or ulcers, irregular heartbeat, high blood pressure, or take stimulants, certain antibiotics, or asthma or heart medications. Children and teens should consume less caffeine than adults. Too much can cause restlessness, insomnia, headaches, a fast heart rate, and anxiety. If caffeinated tea intersects with a medication or condition, talk to your clinician.
Related from Roon
Frequently Asked Questions
Which tea has the most caffeine?
Per cup, yerba mate leads at about 80 mg per 150 mL (brewed). Among true teas (Camellia sinensis), it depends more on brewing than type: a 10-minute steep of black tea bags gave 39 mg per 200 mL, while a 2-minute steep gave only 14 mg (Ayakdaş 2025). By dry leaf, guayusa holds the highest reported caffeine at up to 75.7 mg/g (Molecules 2025).
Is matcha stronger than coffee?
No. The FDA lists regular brewed coffee at 113 to 247 mg per 12 fl oz. A standard 2 g matcha serving contains about 28 to 32 mg of caffeine, depending on the powder (Koláčková 2022). Even a 4 g koicha (up to ~64 mg) sits below most 12 oz coffees. Matcha's real edge is L-theanine (up to ~20 mg per 2 g), not raw caffeine.
Is green tea or black tea better for energy?
Black tea has more caffeine per USDA cup: ~47 mg versus ~28 mg for green. Their L-theanine is nearly identical at 12.3 and 12.5 mg per 200 mL (Ayakdaş 2025). If caffeine is the metric, black wins. If you want a lower dose you can repeat through the day, green is the practical choice.
Does a tea bag have more caffeine than loose leaf?
In some cases. For black tea at 100 °C for 10 minutes, cup-size bags yielded 39 mg per 200 mL versus 24 mg for loose leaf (Ayakdaş 2025). The difference was not seen for green or white tea.
When You Want the Tea Pairing Without the Teapot
A cup of tea pairs caffeine with L-theanine, but one cup delivers 12 to 20 mg of theanine, while the attention trials used 97 to 100 mg. Matching that with tea alone would take several cups, and a lot more caffeine along the way.
Roon puts 80 mg caffeine and 60 mg L-theanine in one pouch, plus 25 mg methylliberine (Dynamine) and 5 mg theacrine (TeaCrine), with no brewing required. The methylliberine is there for duration: in a randomized, double-blind crossover PK study (n=12), it stretched caffeine's half-life from 7.2 to 15 hours and cut oral clearance from 41.9 to 17.1 L/hr without raising the peak. That trial gave 100 mg methylliberine with 150 mg caffeine, about 4x and 1.9x what one Roon pouch holds, so the direction carries over, not the exact numbers. A longer half-life is not the same as 15 hours of felt energy; a pouch is usually noticeable for about 6 to 8 hours. Allow at least 8 hours between your last pouch and sleep, and keep to 4 pouches and 400 mg of caffeine a day counting your tea.
Roon is not a tea. It is a zero-nicotine, zero-sugar oral pouch (contains sucralose) with a fixed dose you can repeat in 80 mg steps. Pricing runs from $9.16 per tin on a 12-tin subscription, as little as $0.61 per pouch. Try Roon
Sources
- USDA FoodData Central: black tea (FDC 173227)
- USDA FoodData Central: green tea (FDC 171917)
- USDA FoodData Central: oolong (FDC 174120)
- FDA, "Spilling the Beans: How Much Caffeine Is Too Much?"
- MedlinePlus, Caffeine
- Ayakdaş & Ağagündüz 2025, Foods 14(13):2313
- Boros et al. 2016, Pharmacogn Mag 12(45):75-9
- Koláčková et al. 2022, Antioxidants 11(5):889
- Płatkiewicz et al. 2024, Antioxidants 13(12):1467
- Molecules 2025, guayusa review
- Owen et al. 2008, Nutr Neurosci 11(4):193-8
- Giesbrecht et al. 2010, Nutr Neurosci 13(6):283-90
- Drake et al. 2013, J Clin Sleep Med 9(11):1195-200
- Caffeine-methylliberine PK study, Journal of Exercise and Nutrition
Written by Roon Team
