US Tea and RTD Tea Market Report 2026
Tea remains a large but mature US beverage category, with value sales forecast to rise by just 0.5% in 2026 to $10.6 billion.
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EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
- What you need to know
- Outlook for tea and RTD tea
- Opportunities
- Own calm, controlled energy
- Target wellness-driven hydration rituals
- More opportunities from new flavors
- Discover the top five trend territories for success in US non-alcoholic beverages using Black Swan's social prediction technology
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THE MARKET
- Snapshot – market size and forecast
- Consumers and the economic outlook
- Price rises are a big concern for consumers
- Tariffs uncertainty is a risk to tea market
- Strong interest in eating healthfully
- Minimal sales growth in tea for a second successive year
- Market size and forecast of tea and RTD tea
- Graph 1: total retail sales and forecast of tea and RTD tea, 2021-31
- RTD tea dominates the US tea market
- Graph 2: total retail sales and forecast of tea and RTD tea, by segment, at current prices, 2021-26
- Pepsi Lipton leads, while Milo's makes gains
- Graph 3: MULO+ sales of tea and RTD tea, by leading companies, rolling 52 weeks 2025 and 2026
- Mixed fortunes for tea brands
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THE CONSUMER
- Types and formats of tea consumed
- Green and black teas are the most popular varieties
- Growth in popularity of non-black tea varieties
- Graph 4: types of tea consumed in the past three months, 2024-26
- Younger Americans lead the way in consuming nearly all tea types
- Graph 5: types of tea consumed in the past three months, by generation, 2026
- Bagged tea, hybrid tea drinks and kombucha make biggest gains
- Graph 6: formats of tea consumed in the past three months, 2024-26
- Younger consumers show greater preference for RTD options
- Graph 7: formats of tea consumed, by generation, 2026
- Functional benefits in tea
- A third of Americans prioritize functional benefits
- Range of functional benefits of interest in tea
- Graph 8: interest in functional benefits in tea, 2026
- Functional claims already prominent in tea
- Sell benefits, rituals and solutions
- Strong communication of functionality on packaging helps add clarity on benefits
- Own calm, controlled energy
- Hydration opportunities
- Tea strongly associated with hydration benefits
- Tea needs to capitalize on the hydration trend
- Hydration+ functional platform for tea
- Target wellness-driven hydration rituals
- Flavor innovation
- Strong interest in more flavors in tea
- Combination of trusted brand and flavor description drive tea choice
- More opportunities from new flavors
- Limited time-only launches growing in tea
- Put an emphasis on treating with premium teas
- Matcha tea drinks can cater to different tastes with premium options
- Naturalness and sweeteners
- Tea can cater well to demand for natural beverages
- Position tea as a natural alternative to other non-alcoholic beverages
- Emphasize use of no artificial sweeteners in RTD tea
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PRODUCT, INNOVATION AND MARKETING
- RTD teas taking a bigger share of launch activity
- Graph 9: share of tea launches, by format type, 2024-26
- Functional claims seen on a third of tea launches
- Graph 10: share of tea launches featuring selected functional claims, 2021-26
- Ingredients linked to energy, focus and gut health gain momentum
- Functional claims extend to beauty benefits and women's wellness
- Growth in matcha and yerba mate tea launches
- Iced teas and sparkling attracting more NPD
- Sweet treats inspire flavor innovation in tea
- Breaks/resets and emotional connection are themes in advertising
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APPENDIX
- Market definition
- Market size sources and methodology
- The market
- Forecast methodology
- Forecast methodology – fan chart
- Market size and forecast of tea and RTD tea
- Market size and forecast of tea and RTD tea at inflation-adjusted prices
- Market size and forecast of tea and RTD tea by segment
- Market forecast and prediction intervals for tea and RTD tea
- Sales and forecast of bagged, loose leaf and single cup tea, at current prices
- Sales and forecast of bagged, loose leaf and single cup tea, at inflation-adjusted prices
- Sales and forecast of RTD and refrigerated tea, at current prices
- Sales and forecast of RTD and refrigerated tea, at inflation-adjusted prices
- Sales and forecast of instant tea mixes, at current prices
- Sales and forecast of instant tea mixes, at inflation-adjusted prices
- Average annual household spending on tea and RTD tea
- Total retail sales of tea and RTD tea, by segment, at current prices
- Sales of tea and RTD tea, by company
- Sales of bagged, loose leaf and single cup tea, by company
- Sales of bagged, loose leaf and single cup tea, by company (continued)
- Sales of RTD and refrigerated tea, by company
- Sales of RTD and refrigerated tea, by company (continued)
- Sales of instant tea mixes, by company
- Sales of instant tea mixes, by company (continued)
- The consumer
- Consumer research questions
- Consumer research methodology
- Repertoire analysis methodology
- TURF Analysis
- Generations
- Abbreviations
"Tea sales have been sluggish. Growth opportunities lie in functional teas, wellness rituals and reinforcing tea's natural credentials."
Richard Caines, Senior Analyst, Insights - Food & Drink
Tea remains a large but mature US beverage category, with value sales forecast to rise by just 0.5% in 2026 to $10.6 billion. Yet beneath the headline, significant shifts are taking place: consumption of green, herbal, chai and matcha teas is growing, RTD tea usage has increased to 61% of tea consumers, and younger adults are embracing a wider variety of tea types and formats than ever before.
The category’s biggest challenge is converting tea’s strong health credentials into faster growth, while navigating tariff uncertainty, climate-related supply pressures and increasingly cautious consumers. However, tea is well positioned to benefit from rising interest in wellness. 48% of Americans are trying to eat more healthfully, and 35% of tea consumers say functional benefits make them more likely to purchase a tea.
The most compelling opportunities lie in functionality, hydration and premiumization. Brands can create new growth by positioning tea around energy, relaxation, gut health and hydration, while premium ingredients such as matcha and specialty botanicals support trading up. Younger consumers’ appetite for innovation, combined with demand for convenient RTD formats, limited-edition flavors and natural ingredients, creates multiple routes to stronger long-term growth.
This Report Looks at the Following Areas:
- Performance of the market, including different formats of tea
- Key trends in recent launch activity and future product development opportunities
- Consumption of different types of tea, and self-prepared and RTD formats
- Factors other than price influencing tea purchases
- Interest in different features of new tea products, and functional benefits
- Attitudes towards tea, including RTD tea, matcha and tea’s role in hydration
Market Definitions
For the purposes of this Report, Mintel has used the following definitions:
- RTD and refrigerated tea – shelf-stable and refrigerated tea in single-serve and multiserve sizes. Refrigerated teas are primarily fresh-brewed teas requiring refrigeration; kombucha is included in this category.
- Bagged, loose leaf and single-cup teas, including black, white, green and fruit/herbal teas – bagged may be single-cup or multicup sizes
- Instant tea mixes
Teas sold through foodservice outlets are not included in the Report.
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