Spiced tea, not coffee
Starbucks Chai Latte: Caffeine
The most-asked chai question is about caffeine, so we start there. Then: what chai actually is, what is in the Starbucks Chai Tea Latte hot and iced, the dirty chai, and a homemade chai concentrate that makes seven lattes.
Quick answer. Chai is made with black tea, so it does have caffeine, just much less than coffee. A Starbucks Grande Chai Latte has about 55 mg (60 mg iced). Here is how that compares:
- Size in this answer: Grande
- Caffeine: 55 mg
Checked October 2026. Prices are average US prices and vary by store.
Does Chai Have Caffeine? Yes, About a Third of a Latte
| Grande drink | Caffeine |
|---|---|
| Chai Latte (hot) | 55 mg |
| Iced Chai Latte | 60 mg |
| Matcha Latte | 65 mg |
| Chai Latte + 1 espresso shot (dirty chai) | About 130 mg |
| Caffè Latte | 150 mg |
| Caffè Americano | 225 mg |
So a chai latte is a good middle ground: enough to wake you up gently without a coffee-level jolt. Want less? Order a Tall, or make the homemade version below with decaf black tea.
What Is Chai?
“Chai” is the word for tea in Hindi and many other languages, so “chai tea” is technically “tea tea.” What Americans call chai is masala chai, a spiced milk tea from India: strong black tea simmered with warming spices, sweetened and mixed with milk. A chai latte is the café version, made with a sweet spiced tea concentrate and steamed milk.
| Common chai spice | What it adds |
|---|---|
| Cinnamon | Sweet warmth |
| Cardamom | Floral, citrusy notes, the signature chai flavor |
| Ginger | Heat and a little bite |
| Cloves | Deep, slightly numbing spice |
| Black pepper | A gentle kick at the end |
| Star anise | A light licorice note |
What does chai taste like? Sweet and creamy, with cinnamon and cardamom up front, a warm ginger and pepper finish and a mild black-tea backbone. It tastes nothing like coffee.
The Starbucks Chai Tea Latte
Starbucks describes its chai as black tea infused with cinnamon, clove and other warming spices. Baristas pump a pre-sweetened chai concentrate into the cup and add steamed milk with foam (hot) or cold milk and ice (iced).
| Grande (16 oz) | Calories | Sugar | Caffeine | Avg. price |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chai Latte (hot) | 200 | 31 g | 55 mg | $6.48 |
| Iced Chai Latte | 190 | 31 g | 60 mg | $6.89 |
Ways to order it
| You want… | Ask for… |
|---|---|
| Less sweet | Fewer pumps of chai (each pump adds both spice and sugar) |
| Dirty chai | Add 1 or 2 shots of espresso (Blonde is smoother) |
| Creamier | Oat milk, or vanilla sweet cream cold foam on an iced chai |
| Spicier | A sprinkle of cinnamon powder on top |
| Dairy-free | Oat, almond, soy or coconut milk |
Other chai drinks at Starbucks
| Grande drink | Calories | Sugar | Caffeine |
|---|---|---|---|
| Iced Chaider (chai shaken with Strawberry Açaí flavors) | 90 | 20 g | 30 mg |
| Pumpkin Spice Chai (fall) | 260 | 43 g | 55 mg |
| Iced Mango Cream Chai | 310 | 41 g | 60 mg |
| Iced Banana Bread Chai | 350 | 48 g | 60 mg |
| Iced Pumpkin Cream Chai (fall) | 400 | 55 g | 60 mg |
Holiday favorite: the Gingerbread Chai, hot or iced, returns with the holiday menu. See every tea, chai and matcha drink on our Starbucks tea menu and the fall drinks on the fall menu. Grocery options like boxed chai concentrates, K-Cups and Dunkin’s chai are different recipes with their own labels.
Homemade Chai Concentrate and Chai Latte
Chai concentrate
- 4 cups (960 ml) water
- 8 black tea bags (or 3 tablespoons loose Assam or English breakfast tea)
- 2 cinnamon sticks
- 10 green cardamom pods, lightly crushed
- 8 whole cloves
- 10 black peppercorns
- 1 star anise
- 2-inch (5 cm) piece fresh ginger, sliced
- ½ cup (100 g) brown sugar, or honey to taste
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
For one chai latte (12 to 16 oz)
- ½ cup (4 oz / 120 ml) chai concentrate
- ½ to ¾ cup (4 to 6 oz) 2% or oat milk
- Pinch of ground cinnamon, for topping
Instructions
- Toast the spices. Add the cinnamon, cardamom, cloves, peppercorns and star anise to a dry saucepan over medium heat for 1 to 2 minutes until fragrant.
- Simmer. Add the water and ginger, bring to a boil, then lower the heat and simmer, covered, for 15 minutes.
- Steep the tea. Turn off the heat, add the tea and steep 5 minutes (no longer, or it turns bitter). Strain out the tea and spices.
- Sweeten. Stir in the brown sugar and vanilla until dissolved. Makes about 3 ½ cups of concentrate.
- Make a chai latte. Hot: heat ½ cup concentrate with ½ to ¾ cup milk until steaming, froth if you like and dust with cinnamon. Iced: pour ½ cup concentrate over ice and top with ½ cup cold milk.
Tips, swaps and storage
- Use whole spices; ground spices make the concentrate gritty and muddy.
- Do not over-steep the tea: 5 minutes, then strain. The spices can simmer longer; the tea cannot.
- Strong tea matters: Assam or an English breakfast blend stands up to milk.
- Less sugar: start with ¼ cup sugar, or sweeten each cup to taste.
- Decaf chai: use decaf black tea bags.
- Dirty chai at home: add a shot of espresso to the finished latte.
- Storage: keep the concentrate in a sealed jar in the fridge for up to 1 week. Shake before using.
Watch: Chai Latte From Scratch
Chai Latte FAQs
Does a chai latte have caffeine?
Yes. Chai is made with black tea. A Starbucks Grande Chai Latte has about 55 mg of caffeine (60 mg iced), roughly a third of a Grande Caffè Latte.
Is a chai latte coffee?
No. A chai latte is spiced black tea with milk. Add a shot of espresso and it becomes a “dirty chai.”
What is chai?
“Chai” simply means tea in Hindi and many other languages. In the US it usually means masala chai, black tea brewed with spices such as cinnamon, cardamom, ginger and cloves, then sweetened and mixed with milk.
What does a chai latte taste like?
Sweet, creamy and warmly spiced, with cinnamon, cardamom and ginger up front and a mild black-tea finish. The Starbucks version is quite sweet.
How many calories are in a Starbucks Chai Latte?
A Grande has 200 calories hot and 190 iced, each with 31 g of sugar, made with 2% milk.
What is a dirty chai?
A chai latte with a shot of espresso added. It is not on the Starbucks menu by name, but you can order a Chai Latte and add a shot, which adds about 75 mg of caffeine.
Can I get a sugar-free chai latte?
The chai concentrate is pre-sweetened, so you cannot make it sugar-free at Starbucks. Ask for fewer pumps of chai to reduce sugar, or make the homemade version with less sweetener.
Is a chai latte good for you?
It can be part of a balanced diet, but a Grande has 31 g of sugar. Choose a Tall, fewer pumps or the homemade version to cut sugar.
Nutrition and caffeine are from starbucks.com (October 2026), made with 2% milk. Prices are average US prices and vary by store. starbukmenu.com is not affiliated with Starbucks Corporation.
One Comment