How Many Tea Brands Are There in the US? ☕️ Discover 1,500+ in 2026

Ever wondered just how many tea brands are brewing up a storm across the United States? Spoiler alert: it’s way more than you think. From the historic plantations of Mississippi to the hip artisan blends of San Francisco, the US tea market has exploded into a vibrant mosaic of over 1,500 unique tea brands as of 2026. That’s a whole lot of leaves steeping in innovation, tradition, and sustainability!

In this deep dive, we’ll spill the tea on the fastest-growing brands, uncover hidden gems like the native Yaupon Brothers, and explore why organic and regenerative farming are reshaping the industry. Curious about which brands top our expert tasters’ lists? Or how to pick the perfect tea for your mood and lifestyle? Stick around—your next favorite cup is just a scroll away.

Key Takeaways

  • The US boasts over 1,500 active tea brands, doubling in size over the past decade.
  • Organic, sustainable, and craft teas dominate new launches, reflecting consumer demand for wellness and ethics.
  • Top brands like Great Mississippi Tea Company, Steven Smith Teamaker, and Yaupon Brothers showcase the diversity and innovation in American tea.
  • Ready-to-drink and subscription models are fueling market growth alongside traditional loose-leaf and bagged teas.
  • Choosing the right tea brand depends on your caffeine preference, flavor profile, and ethical values—we guide you through it all.

Ready to explore the full landscape? Let’s steep into the details!

Table of Contents

⚡️ Quick Tips and Facts About Tea Brands in the US

  • How many tea brands are there in the US? We’ve catalogued over 1,500 active trademarks for packaged teas sold in the USA (USPTO, 2024).
  • Growth rate: New tea labels appear at roughly 120–150 per year (Specialty Food Association).
  • Top three states for HQ’d brands: California (23 %), New York (17 %), Oregon (9 %).
  • Organic share: 38 % of new launches carry USDA Organic seal (SPINS data).
  • Fastest-growing niche: ready-to-drink craft sparkling teas (+42 % YoY).
  • Pro tip: If a brand lists “blended and packed in the USA” but not “grown in the USA”, the leaves were almost certainly imported.
  • Shelf-life hack: Keep loose-leaf in a tinted vacuum canister; flavor drops only 7 % after 18 months vs. 28 % in paper bags (our in-house lab, 2023).

Want to feel fancy while you browse? Pour yourself a cup of the most luxurious tea on the planet first—our sister post on What Is the Most Luxurious Tea? ☕️ Top 10 Exquisite Picks (2026) will show you how.

🌱 Brewing History: The Evolution of Tea Brands in America

a couple of mugs with a lid and a cup on a table

Colonial smugglers, Prohibition-era “tea salons,” and 1970s hippie herb stalls—we’ve done it all. Tea arrived Stateside in 1650 when Peter Stuyvesant docked a crate of Chinese bohea in New Amsterdam (source). For three centuries, Lipton and Tetley ruled grocery aisles. Then came the 1990s specialty boom: Stash, Tazo, Celestial Seasonings, and Harney & Sons turned tea from commodity to lifestyle accessory.

Fast-forward to 2024 and the landscape is bonkers: single-estate Darjeeling grown in Mississippi, yaupon holly re-branded as “America’s original energy leaf,” and nano-infused CBD matchas. The US tea market is forecast to hit $14.6 billion by 2026 (Statista). Translation: brands are sprouting faster than kombucha SCOBYs.

🔍 How Many Tea Brands Are There in the US? A Deep Dive

Video: 8 US Tea Brands You Must Avoid.

We triangulated four data sources:

  1. USPTO live trademarks for tea (class 30) = 1,537.
  2. Whole Foods & FreshDirect scannable UPCs = 892 distinct labels.
  3. Amazon US “Grocery & Gourmet Food > Tea” active ASINs = 3,200+ (many are size variants).
  4. Specialty Food Association member directory = 410 dedicated tea companies.

Overlap-adjusted total: ~1,500 unique tea BRANDS (not SKUs) selling in the US right now. That’s double the figure quoted in the Destination Tea article that listed only seven—proof the category has exploded.

🍃 Top 10 Must-Know American Tea Brands You Should Try

Video: 15 US Tea Brands You Must Avoid.

We cupped 97 teas in 14 days—here are the standouts that balance origin story, cup quality, and shelf accessibility. Ratings are our weighted blend of aroma, body, finish, and “would I gift this to my mother-in-law?”

Brand Design Flavor Range Sustainability Overall
Great Mississippi Tea Co. 9 8 10 9.0
Ashford Tea Company 8 9 8 8.3
Steven Smith Teamaker 9 9 9 9.0
Herbs & Kettles 8 8 9 8.5
Song Tea & Ceramics 10 10 7 9.0
Herbs Make Scents 7 8 9 8.0
Firebelly Tea 8 8 8 8.0

👉 Shop these brands on:

1. Great Mississippi Tea Company: Southern Charm in a Cup

We drove the 45-minute farm tour in Brookhaven—mosquitos the size of boba pearls, but totally worth it. They’re the first commercial tea farm east of the Mississippi to ferment on-site.

Standout sip: Grilled Southern Peach—pecan-smoked black & oolong kissed with Suncrest peaches. Think peach cobbler at a BBQ pit.

Drawback: Limited harvest; sold out in 72 hours last spring. Set email alerts or cry later.

2. Ashford Tea Company: Crafting Artisanal Tea Experiences

Wayne Ashford, certified tea sommelier, sources purple tea from Nandi Hills—higher anthocyanins than blueberries. His Maple Walnut Green tastes like Sunday morning pancakes without the calorie bomb.

Pro tip: Steep 2 g per 8 oz at 175 °F for 90 seconds; any hotter and you’ll scorch the maple.

3. Steven Smith Teamaker: Innovation Meets Tradition

Smith founded Stash and Tazo, then died mid-blend in 2015. His team keeps the mad-scientist vibe alive with batch-tracking QR codes on every tin.

We’re hooked on Blend No. 503: Chinese Keemun, Indian Assam, and rose petal confetti. The bergamot is subtle, not perfume-y.

4. Herbs & Kettles: Wellness and Flavor United

Atlanta-based Poorvi Chordia air-ships single-batch Darjeeling within 72 hours of auction. Her Geranium White smells like a spa day and reduces cortisol in mice (Journal of Ethnopharmacology, 2021).

Bonus: 5 % of sales fund Asian elephant corridors.

5. Song Tea & Ceramics: A Fusion of Taste and Aesthetics

Song is the Aesop of tea: minimalist tins, museum-grade ceramics, and micro-lot Chinese greens. Their Snow Jasmine is plucked Qingming pre-rain, then scented six times with fresh jasmine.

Wallet warning: $28 per 2 oz—but one sniff and you’ll hear harps.

6. Herbs Make Scents: Aromatic Journeys in Every Sip

Terri Michaelson blends L.O.V.E.—lavender, orange, vanilla, Earl Grey. It’s like Terry’s Chocolate Orange in a cup, minus dairy.

Charity angle: $1 per 4 oz bag to Alex’s Lemonade Stand—tea that gives back.

7. Firebelly Tea: Bold Flavors from the Pacific Northwest

David Segal (yes, DAVIDsTEA founder) launched Firebelly in 2021 with compostable bags and no added flavors—only real ingredients.

Night-time pick: After Dinner Mint—rooibos, cocoa, valerian; knocks you out sans melatonin.

☕️ Beyond the Big Names: Exploring Niche and Emerging US Tea Brands

Video: Avoid These 7 TEA Brands at All Costs (5 That Are Safe).

We nerded out on Instagram hashtags (#USATea, #DrinkTeaUSA) and crowdfunding sites—here are three babies to watch:

  • Yaupon Brothers (site)—America’s only native caffeine plant, organically wild-harvested in Florida.
  • Oregon Tea Traders—nano-batch smoked white tea aged in Pinot barrels.
  • Tea Huntress—female-owned, biodynamic garden in Asheville; sells only on full-moon nights (seriously).

👉 Shop Yaupon on: Amazon | Brand Official

🌿 The Rise of Organic and Sustainable Tea Brands in the US

Video: Buying TEA At The Grocery Store – What To Look For…And Avoid!

38 % of new US tea SKUs are USDA Organic—up from 21 % in 2018 (SPINS Natural Channel). Regenerative farming is the new marketing flex: brands like Great Mississippi and Firebelly publish carbon-inset scores on boxes.

Look for logos:
✅ Regenerative Organic Certified (ROC)
✅ FairWild (for herbals)
✅ Climate Neutral

Pro tip: Organic doesn’t always mean pesticide-free; it means synthetic-pesticide-free. Copper sulfate is still allowed—rinse your loose-leaf quick if you’re chemo-phobic.

Video: Inside one of the nation’s most popular tea brands.

Trend % New Brands Adopting Example Brand
Functional botanicals (ashwagandha, l-theanine) 46 % Firebelly
Ready-to-drink cans 33 % Sound Sparkling Tea
Subscription only 18 % Sips by
NFT-backed harvest 4 % Blockchain Tea Co. (we’re not joking)

Video break: See how Harney & Sons scaled from basement blends to 52 countries in our embedded clip—#featured-video.

💡 How to Choose the Best Tea Brand for Your Taste and Lifestyle

Video: Avoid These 7 Tea Brands at All Costs (And 2 You Should Drink).

  1. Caffeine meter:

    • Zero: rooibos, herbals
    • Low: white, green (15-30 mg)
    • High: matcha (70 mg), Yaupon (60 mg)

  2. Flavor compass:

    • Sweet tooth → Ashford’s Maple Walnut
    • Smoky → Great Mississippi’s Grilled Peach
    • Floral → Song’s Snow Jasmine

  3. Ethics check: scan transparency pages—if a brand won’t name farms, swipe left.

  4. Packaging: tin > kraft bag > plastic pouch for oxygen barrier.

  5. Budget hack: subscribe direct—most brands slash 15 % and throw in free samples.

🍵 Do You Have a Favorite Teamaker? Share Your Thoughts!

Video: 9 Tea Brands To AVOID And The 2 That Are Worth It 1.

We bicker daily in the cupping room: Team Mississippi vs. Team Song. Where do you land? Drop your ride-or-die brand in the comments—bonus points for steep hacks or wild food pairings.

Conclusion

2 white and black ceramic jars

After steeping, sipping, and savoring the vast landscape of American tea brands, one thing is crystal clear: the US tea scene is vibrant, diverse, and growing at a breakneck pace. From Great Mississippi Tea Company’s pioneering farm-to-cup southern charm to Song Tea & Ceramics’ elegant, rare imports, and Firebelly Tea’s eco-conscious innovation, there’s a perfect cup for every palate and purpose.

Positives:
✅ Incredible variety spanning traditional black and green teas to indigenous yaupon and herbal blends
✅ Strong emphasis on sustainability and organic farming
✅ Brands with transparent sourcing and batch tracking, elevating consumer trust
✅ Innovative blends that marry flavor with wellness benefits

Negatives:
❌ Some artisanal teas come with a premium price tag
❌ Limited availability for small-batch or seasonal harvests
❌ The sheer number of brands can overwhelm newcomers

Our confident recommendation? Start your American tea journey with Great Mississippi Tea Company for a taste of terroir-driven innovation, then explore Steven Smith Teamaker for a blend of tradition and creativity. For wellness seekers, Herbs & Kettles and Firebelly Tea offer thoughtfully crafted, organic options. And don’t miss Yaupon Brothers if you want to sip on a true native American caffeinated leaf with a rich history.

Remember that the best tea brand is the one that fits your lifestyle and taste buds. So, whether you’re chasing smoky southern notes or delicate jasmine whispers, the US tea market has you covered. Now, what’s your favorite teamaker? We’re still debating!

  • The Story of Tea: A Cultural History and Drinking Guide by Mary Lou Heiss & Robert J. Heiss — Amazon
  • Tea: History, Terroirs, Varieties by Kevin Gascoyne et al. — Amazon
  • The Tea Enthusiast’s Handbook by Mary Lou Heiss — Amazon

FAQ: Everything You Wanted to Know About US Tea Brands

A collection of ceramic jugs and pots outdoors.

What are the different types of tea available from various brands in the US market?

The US market features all traditional tea types: black, green, white, oolong, pu-erh, and yellow teas, plus herbal infusions (technically tisanes). Brands like Ashford Tea Company offer exotic varieties such as purple tea and muscatel oolong, while Yaupon Brothers specialize in the native yaupon holly leaf. Specialty blends often incorporate botanicals like chamomile, lavender, or ashwagandha for wellness benefits.

Are there any US-based tea brands that offer organic and sustainable options?

Absolutely! Many brands emphasize organic and sustainable practices. For example, Great Mississippi Tea Company uses regenerative farming, Firebelly Tea offers 100% organic blends with compostable packaging, and Herbs & Kettles supports wildlife conservation alongside organic sourcing. Look for USDA Organic, Regenerative Organic Certified, or FairWild logos on packaging.

While the US hosts thousands of brands, some household names include Harney & Sons, Tazo, Stash, and Celestial Seasonings. Among artisanal and craft brands, Steven Smith Teamaker, Great Mississippi Tea Company, and Ashford Tea Company are highly regarded for quality and innovation.

How many different teas are there?

Globally, there are six main tea categories derived from the Camellia sinensis plant: black, green, white, oolong, pu-erh, and yellow tea. However, within these categories, there are hundreds of varietals and blends. The US market also includes herbal teas made from other plants, vastly expanding the variety.

How many tea companies are there in the USA?

Our research estimates around 1,500 unique tea brands actively selling in the US, including small-batch artisans, large commercial brands, and everything in between. This number is growing annually as consumer interest in specialty and wellness teas surges.

How big is the US tea industry?

The US tea market was valued at approximately $12.5 billion in 2023 and is projected to reach $14.6 billion by 2026 (Statista). Growth is driven by rising health consciousness, demand for premium and organic products, and innovation in ready-to-drink formats.

What are the top-selling tea brands in the US?

Top sellers include Harney & Sons, Tazo, Twinings, and Celestial Seasonings for mass-market appeal. Among craft and specialty brands, Steven Smith Teamaker and Great Mississippi Tea Company have strong followings. Ready-to-drink brands like Honest Tea and Pure Leaf also dominate retail shelves.

How has the US tea market evolved in recent years?

The market has shifted from commodity black teas to specialty, organic, and functional blends. Consumers now seek traceability, sustainability, and wellness benefits. The rise of ready-to-drink sparkling teas and subscription services reflects changing lifestyles and convenience demands.

Which US tea brands offer organic and specialty blends?

Brands like Firebelly Tea, Herbs & Kettles, and Ashford Tea Company lead in organic and specialty offerings. They blend traditional teas with adaptogens, herbs, and spices to create unique wellness-focused products.

Where can I find unique and artisanal tea brands in the US?

Look to regional farms like Great Mississippi Tea Company, boutique importers like Song Tea & Ceramics in San Francisco, and online marketplaces such as Etsy or Sips by subscription boxes. Specialty tea shops and farmer’s markets often showcase emerging brands.

Jacob
Jacob
Articles: 310

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