How much caffeine in our green tea - the results - Ocha & Co.

How much caffeine in our green tea - the results

How much caffeine in our green tea

"How much caffeine is in your green tea?" is the question we get asked the most along with whether we have a green tea that is caffeine-free.

Even though green tea has less caffeine than black coffee or black tea, caffeine is found naturally in the leaf so it is found in all of our teas to a certain degree. 

We were interested in finding out for ourselves the exact amount so samples of each Ocha & Co green tea were sent to the laboratory for testing. 

Here are the results from the testing center:

Amount of caffeine g/100g of leaf

Gyokuro   3.2
Sencha 2.7
Reicha 2.6
Kabusecha 3.0
Fukamushicha 2.4     
Kukicha 2.8
Hojicha 2.6
Black Tea 3.9
Single Cultivar Organic Matcha 3.2 
Organic Matcha 2.8
Matcha 2.9
Kyoto Uji Matcha 3.2

These results were for the amount of caffeine (g) per 100g of the leaf. This amount will not be found in a brewed cup of green tea where the amount will be significantly less and other factors such as steep time and water temperature will also play a part. The result will be correct for matcha where 100% of the ground leaf will be ingested.

How much caffeine in green tea - conclusion

All the teas contained caffeine as was expected. The amount of caffeine in the green teas generally depended on the type. Shade-grown green teas such as Gyokuro & Kabusecha contained the highest amount of caffeine. The lowest level of caffeine was found in Hojicha which is a roasted green tea and Fukamushi, which has extra steaming. Black tea which is not steamed was found to contain the highest amount of caffeine.

Looking for a high level of caffeine in green tea?

If you are looking for a caffeine boost, the following teas might be a good choice.

​Organic Black Tea

​Organic Gyokuro
​Organic Kabusecha

Matcha would give the highest level of caffeine in green tea as 100% of the leaf is consumed.

Single Cultivar Organic Matcha
​Regular MatchaKyoto Uji Matcha

Looking for a low level of caffeine in green tea?

​If you are trying to reduce your intake of caffeine try one of the following:​

Organic Fukamushicha

Organic Hojicha

Organic Kukicha

Regular Fukamushicha

FAQ

  • Q: How much caffeine is actually consumed in a brewed cup of green tea?
    A: Although leaves like Sencha contain 2.7g caffeine per 100g, a brewed cup (approx. 2g tea leaf per cup) typically yields around 20–30mg caffeine.
  • Q: Which type of Japanese green tea has the lowest caffeine content?
    A: Hojicha, a roasted tea, and Fukamushi (deep-steamed tea) have the lowest caffeine levels, typically below 2.6g per 100g of leaf.
  • Q: What is the caffeine content of matcha compared to other green teas?
    A: Matcha generally contains more caffeine (2.8–3.2g per 100g) than regular sencha (2.7g per 100g), since the entire tea leaf is consumed.
  • Q: Which green tea has the highest caffeine content?
    A: Gyokuro, a shade-grown tea, has the highest caffeine content at approximately 3.2g per 100g of tea leaf.
  • Q: How much caffeine is in green tea compared to coffee?
    A: Green tea typically contains less caffeine than coffee. For example, Sencha has about 2.7g of caffeine per 100g of tea leaf, whereas roasted coffee beans typically contain around 40g of caffeine per 100g, roughly 15 times higher.