Many centuries ago, Emperor Shen Nung boiled a pot of water on a windy day.
A few leaves flew in with the wind and settled into the pot, emitting a pleasant aroma. His interest piqued; the Emperor took a sip of the fragrant brew.
The rest, as they say, is history, and the habit of tea drinking was born.
Tea calms and soothes, invigorates and uplifts, and enhances both body and mind. Nowadays, you can craft a personalized tea experience with a subscription box. It’s the perfect way to sample unique teas from around the world in the comfort of your own home.
We’ve included a list of the most popular tea subscription boxes and their main features. With the variety of tea blends and subscription options available, you’re sure to discover a box you’ll love and look forward to every month.
Table of Contents
Best Tea Subscriptions
Highest Quality Tea: Sips By
Most Impressive Offering of Hand-Crafted Organic Teas: Art of Tea
Most Unique: Tea Bloom
Largest Variety of Teas: Plum Deluxe Tea
Coolest Subscription with Exclusive Wellness Content: Tea Drops
Our Top Tea Subscription Services (2020 UPDATED)
1. Sips By (Editor's Choice)
- Best Match For: Tea-lovers looking to expand their palate with an affordable personalized tea subscription box.
- Commitment Level: Subscription
- Availability: US and Canada
- Value: $16/month; Free shipping
- Type: Personalized tea subscription
Sips By is the perfect tea box company for those who like to try different brands and teas every month.
Their sources range from startups to global tea suppliers. The teas come bagged or loose leaf based on your preference.
You’ll also be supporting a female-founded company that celebrates diversity.
If you don’t like what you get in your first box, you also don’t have to commit to a contract.
PROS
Cons
2. Art of Tea
- Best Match For: Passionate tea-lovers looking to experiment with the finest quality blends and learn more about the world of tea.
- Commitment Level: One-time orders; Tea of the month subscription
- Availability: US and Canada
- Value: $11-$58/4 oz pouch (60 cups); Free delivery over $60
- Type: Artisan teas, teaware, and tea gifts
Inspired by the ancient practice of Ayurveda, Art of Tea sells unique, high-quality organic tea blends.
Its health-conscious approach springs from its founder’s love and appreciation of tea rituals.
Art of Tea is a modern company inspired by ancient tea tradition. The company offers individual and wholesale shipping, but subscription box options are also available.
Read our Art of Tea review.
PROS
Cons
3. Tea Bloom
- Best Match For: People looking for deluxe and rare teas, beautiful tea sets, and one-of-a-kind tea gifts.
- Commitment Level: No commitments - Order at any time
- Availability: Everywhere in the US and Internationally
- Value: Tea leaves are available in 3.53-oz canisters, and they cost $14.95-$19.95. One pack is enough for 35-50 cups of tea. Shipping is free on all US orders.
- Type: Premium teas, teaware, and tea gifts
Teabloom is a very unique tea experience. That's right. We said experience, and not product!
It's most popular and unique tea is the blooming tea which is a combination of bulbous edible flowers with green or black teas. When put in hot water, they unfurl into a blooming flower.
That's not all Teabloom offers though. They also boast a menu of artisan tea blends that, sure, don't bloom. But they're remarkably tasty all the same.
PROS
Cons
4. Plum Deluxe Tea
- Best Match For: Adventurous tea-drinkers looking to try different types and flavors of deluxe tea blends and receive tips on making the most out of this wonderful beverage.
- Commitment Level: One time orders; Subscription
- Availability: US, UK, Canada, and Australia
- Value: Choose the flavors you like and the quantity for $7 per oz of dried tea. If you select a tea of the month subscription, you can pay anywhere between $7.50 and $17 per month depending on how much tea you want and subscription duration. Shipping fees apply on orders under $65.
- Type: Carefully sourced premium teas, deluxe sweets, tea gift sets, accessories, and more
Plum Deluxe is a community-oriented company that encourages mindful experiences.
It has a selection of 101 teas that range from well-loved classics to limited edition blends.
Plum Deluxe offers free shipping. If you enter your email address, you will also receive a daily motivational email from its founder!
PROS
Cons
5. Tea Drops
- Best Match For: Anyone looking for USDA organic certified whole-leaf teas in recyclable packaging.
- Commitment Level: One time orders; Subscription
- Availability: Everywhere in the US
- Value: You can get a tea sampler box for $19 or a 2.5-oz box with 10 servings for as low as $14. A subscription grants you 10% off your orders while ordering over $60 gets you free shipping.
- Type: Organic whole-leaf teas
Tea Drops is an excellent company with a brilliant concept. It sells pressed teas shaped into fun shapes like hearts, squares, and stars.
The drops also include spices and sugar cane, so they’re ready to use. All you need to do is add hot water.
The company supports environmental causes and has a tea subscription box.
PROS
Cons
6. Teabox
- Best Match For: Tea enthusiasts looking for premium organic teas from India and Nepal, with the special focus on freshness since it significantly affects the flavor.
- Commitment Level: No commitments - Order at any time
- Availability: Worldwide shipping
- Value: You can choose from a variety of flavors, types, and package sizes. The price for a 3.5-oz pack of fresh tea blend starts at $10.99, and produces 33-50 cups. Shipping fees are added based on your order volume and can go up to $15.
- Type: Fresh loose-leaf teas from India and Nepal, teaware, and tea gifts
Teabox is an Indian company that sells single-estate tea sourced from 150 suppliers in India and Nepal. Renowned for its exacting standards, Teabox is serious about tea quality. The themed subscription boxes contain five carefully-selected new teas that produce between 60-70 cups a month.
PROS
Cons
7. Just Add Honey
- Best Match For: People looking to elevate their tea drinking experience with affordable loose leaf teas that bring deliciousness without any artificial ingredients.
- Commitment Level: No commitments - Order at any time
- Availability: Everywhere in the US
- Value: Browsing their catalog is easy, and the prices for 1-oz of tea start at $4. You can select the type and quantity you want, add other tea essentials, or pick one of the pre-made sets. Shipping in the US comes with an additional fee based on your order volume, and it can go up to $15.
- Type: Fine teas, teaware, and premium tea gifts
Just Add Honey has a great approach to tea and encourages users to make their own blends.
The company has a large selection of loose leaf teas, accessories, and even has an afternoon ParTea service for groups in specific areas.
You can make your personalized new teas using their tea blend box. Unfortunately, you can’t get a different box every month.
PROS
Cons
8. Zest Tea
- Best Match For: People looking for tea bags, loose leaf teas, CBD teas, or sparkling teas with high caffeine and L-theanine amount to power them throughout the day without the jitters.
- Commitment Level: One time orders; Subscription
- Availability: Everywhere in the US
- Value: The prices for 20-pack tea bags start at $11, loose leaf 4-oz pouches are $16, CBD teas are $24.99-$29.95, while a 24-pack of 12 oz sparkling teas cost $59.95 for a one-time purchase. Subscribing gets you a 15% discount. US orders under $40 require a $4.99 shipping fee.
- Type: High caffeine energy tea
Zest Tea markets itself as “the most caffeinated tea on the market.” It’s made for people who need an energy boost without the ill after-effects like crashes or jitters. In addition to loose leaf teas and tea bags, Zest Tea sells sparkling tea with four different flavors.
You can get your favorite flavor and product mailed to your door, and your first box or order comes with a 15% discount.
PROS
Cons
9. Simple Loose Leaf
- Best Match For: Tea lovers looking to explore a selection of over 200 premium teas or get a subscription with four fine teas every one, two, or three months.
- Commitment Level: One time orders; Subscription
- Availability: Everywhere in the US
- Value: You can purchase a monthly or yearly membership for $13.95-$15 a month or shop individual teas starting at $12.95 per 4-oz tin. All subscriptions receive four different teas with each shipment and free delivery. Orders over $50 receive free shipping to the US addresses, otherwise they come with a $4.90 fee.
- Type: Premium loose leaf teas
Simple Loose Leaf is a family-owned company that sells over 200 tea blends. If you want to try a new loose leaf tea every month, you can opt for the sampler tea box. They also have three other tea box subscription types. We love this company’s dedication to helping others. For example, they employ community members with developmental disabilities to assemble their packages.
PROS
Cons
10. Raw Spice Bar
- Best Match For: tea enthusiasts who like to add some spice to their lives
Raw Spice Bar offers subscriptions for spices used in tea, such as cinnamon and clove.
They have two types of powdered teas: organic matcha and raw Chaga mushroom powder tea.
These flavors are perfect for adding variety to your tea routine.
Best of all, you can buy Raw Spice Bar’s offerings without subscribing to a monthly service.
PROS
Cons
11. Teatulia
- Best Match For: People looking for delicious organic teas without breaking the bank.
- Commitment Level: One time orders; Subscription
- Availability: US, Canada, Germany, France, Italy, Spain, Australia, Singapore, Belgium, Netherlands, and Ireland
- Value: You can get a pack of 30 tea bags for as low as $6.99. If you decide to subscribe, you receive 10% off your orders. Shipping in the contiguous US is free for orders over $49 and $5 for orders that don’t match that criteria.
- Type: Organic teas, iced tea bags, and iced tea cans
TeaTulia uses organic, free trade, single source teas from Bangladesh.
The company brings positivity to the once exploitative world of tea. Their mission is to make sure all stakeholders involved in the company receive fair compensation.
TeaTulia has a Tea of the Month option that lets you sample varieties from the world. You can also send gift certificate codes to a recipient’s email address. TeaTulia offers free shipping on orders over $49.
PROS
Cons
FAQS
Although all of these companies have perks, the one that stands out is Simple Loose Leaf. They tick off all the boxes, from tea quality to packaging and aesthetics. The amount of care and pride the company puts in its products is unmatched. The company has a vast selection of teas, and they have different box categories based on what you like. Their packaging is simple yet beautifully designed. The experience is the most customized out of the other brands.
Yes, Simple Loose Leaf has a Tea of the Month Club that lets you choose your box type. You also get to decide how frequently you’d like delivery. You can switch your tea type often so that you get a different taste of its other products.
Teas have different characteristics based on their blend, their source, and their freshness. When you opt for a subscription box for tea, you get to try brews from around the world.
The varieties include:
The services we’ve listed source their teas carefully for maximum flavor. These companies dedicate an extraordinary amount of time and effort to perfect their blends and offer high-quality tea varieties and shipping options.
They’re suitable for all tastes: the adventurous one, the one who seeks classic varieties, and the one who wants a bit of both. The quality and variety you get from tea subscription boxes are superior to generic, store-bought ones.
Even though there’s a limited number of tea varieties, many brands add flavors to their teas.
Some flavors come from essential oils, while others have added herbs and spices. The endless combinations that come from this practice results in a different taste and experience every time.
You might get an energy boost (from peppermint-flavored varieties), or a relaxed feeling (like from herbal, non-caffeinated blends).
Yes, the majority of the tea box companies offer signature teas they’ve blended themselves. These blends are fresher and offer different varieties than you would find in a store.
Some display their sources and show their certifications, so you know you’re getting a high-quality product. The tea subscription boxes may sometimes have a similar version of tea found in a local shop, but the taste and quality differ.
Tea subscriptions undergo strict shipping and quality control measures to ensure you’re only receiving the finest authentic products. Your local store may have good quality tea, but a box subscription gives you different tea direct from the source to try every month.
We hope you’ve benefited from this list and found a tea box subscription that suits your taste and lifestyle preferences. The majority of these brands are affordable, sustainable, and responsible tea sellers. When it comes to variety, quality, and supporting a good cause, Simple Loose Leaf ranks as our top pick in this list.
Sips By
Our #1 Recommendation