Best matcha powder 2024: Tried and tested everyday, premium and flavoured varieties

The best matcha powder creates a drink that has a vibrant green colour, a slightly bitter, vegetal taste and a very pleasant foamy texture. This Japanese tea powder was once a niche product in the UK, but nowadays you can find matcha products in shops, cafés, restaurants and ice-cream parlours across the country, with its versatile form and flavour adding an earthy kick to a wide range of drinks and foodstuffs.

For those of you who are new to matcha powder, green teas, or just want to learn more, our handy buying guide below will answer any questions you might have. A little further down the page you’ll find our mini-reviews, which point out some of the strengths of our favourite matcha products, including our favourite traditional matcha powders, flavoured varieties and portable options.

If you just want a quick overview of our top matcha options in a number of categories, you can check out our at-a-glance list just below.

Best matcha powder : At a glance

How to choose the best matcha powder for you

What is matcha powder?

Matcha is a form of powdered green tea that’s a staple drink in its native Japan. It’s made from green tea leaves that are heated soon after harvesting to prevent oxidation, preserving the bright green colour and earthy flavour. More specifically, matcha is made from Tencha, a delicate shade-grown tea leaf that is also used to make high-quality Gyokuro green tea. These leaves must be grown in Japan for it to be called matcha – akin to Champagne – otherwise it must be referred to as green tea powder. Once harvested, the leaves are slowly and carefully ground into matcha powder using large millstones.

When used to make tea, matcha produces a drink with a strong green colour, a creamy texture and a deep vegetal, umami flavour (for those unfamiliar with the term umami, it refers to a strong savoury flavour), but with notably sweeter and smoother notes than leaf-based green teas.

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I’ve seen different “grades” of matcha when shopping, what do these mean?

Like many products, there are different quality levels available when it comes to purchasing matcha. However, what might confuse matcha newbies is that matcha also has an official grading system. The two main grades of matcha are ceremonial grade and culinary grade.

Ceremonial grade matcha is grown and harvested in such a way as to preserve the pure, earthy flavour of the tea leaves. This grade of matcha is intended for drinking without additives and not for use in cooking or baking, as its delicate flavour is too easily overpowered. It’s also the grade used for traditional Japanese tea ceremonies.

Culinary grade matcha has a stronger and more astringent flavour than ceremonial grade, as it’s intended for mixing with milk, sweeteners and other additives when making tea, as well as for use in baking and cooking.

One thing that should be noted about these two grades is that neither is necessarily superior – both ceremonial and culinary grade matcha can be either well-produced or of poor quality. Companies can tend to be a bit misleading when marketing these different grades and it can be hard to know how high quality a product actually is. If you want to get the best matcha powder, simply look out for a bright green colour and buy products that are stone-ground, as this painstaking process preserves flavours and nutrients best.

How do I use matcha powder?

The simplest way to make something with matcha is to make matcha tea. To do so, first add a half teaspoon of matcha to a small mixing bowl or cup. Then you can add a small amount of sweetener if desired (some good options include honey, sugar and vanilla syrup) before adding a splash of warm water (80° is the ideal temperature) and whisking until fully mixed and lightly frothy. Once you’ve prepared your matcha shot, you can add it your cup and top up with hot water to make matcha tea. You can repeat this process, adding warmed or frothed milk in place of water to make a matcha latte. Besides these two main methods, there are many other culinary applications for matcha – it can be used to flavour and enhance  iced lemonade, smoothies, baked goods, ice cream and more.

How do we test matcha powder?

To assess the quality of a given matcha powder, the first thing we do is observe its colour, consistency and aroma. High quality matcha should be a vibrant green, with a slightly clumped texture and a strong, earthy smell. Once we’ve noted these qualities down, we follow the standard matcha making process described above, making both matcha tea and matcha lattés using the powder, noting the flavour profile it produces on its own, as well as how well it pairs with milk and milk subtitutes such as oat milk. The best matcha should have an earthy, vegetal taste, with notes of sweetness and grassiness, which are the flavours we look for in testing.

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The best matcha powder you can buy in 2024

1. Naoki Chiran Harvest Matcha: Best everyday matcha powder

Price when reviewed: £17 | Check price at Amazon While there are plenty of offbeat and interesting options on this list, those of you looking for a quality everyday matcha should be satisfied by this offering from Naoki. Housed in stylish black and gold packaging, this stone-ground matcha powder is made from tea plants of the popular new Seimi cultivar, known for its strong colouring and deep umami flavour.

Naoki’s Chiran Harvest Matcha is well-liked in particular for its subtle, nutty, malty flavour, which should satisfy newcomers and matcha fanatics alike. Also praised are its deep green colour, pleasant aroma and smooth texture, which helps it whisk well in water and produce an even, creamy consistency. While there are cheaper options on this list, this matcha is well priced for those seeking a satisfying, traditional matcha for everyday use.

Key details – Size: 30g; Form: Loose powder; Grade: Ceremonial

2. Moya Matcha Tea-making Set: Best matcha kit

Price when reviewed: £53 | Check price at Amazon

If you’re looking to dive headfirst into the world of matcha, this ceremonial tea set from Moya Matcha will have you fully kitted out with all the tools you’ll need. Included in smartly designed box is a traditional bamboo matcha whisk, or chasen, that will help break down the powder to a smooth consistency or whip up your morning matcha latté, cappuccino or smoothie to a fine foam. Other handy items included in the kit are a bamboo spoon, or chashaku, a whisk holder and a bowl for mixing whisking your matcha in.

Peripherals aside, this kit contains a 30g tin of Moya Matcha, which has a bright green colour and a classic matcha flavour that tends towards sweetness.

Key details – Size: 30g; Form: Loose powder; Grade: Ceremonial; Extras: Bamboo whisk, ceramic matcha bowl, bamboo spoon, whisk holder

3. OMGTea AAA+ Organic Matcha: Best luxury matcha powder

Price when reviewed: £35 | Check price at Holland & BarrettWhile it’s price may be a little prohibitive for it to be your main everyday option, this organic matcha from OMGTea is the perfect choice for when you’re looking to splash out and treat yourself to some truly luxurious matcha powder. Opening the handsome, compact storage tin, you can see that this stoneground powder has a very vibrant green colour, a dense clumpy texture, indicative of a high quality powder, and a beautiful earthy scent.

Because of its texture, we would recommend passing this matcha through a strainer first, before adding water and whisking to create your frothy matcha shot. Once you’ve added further warm water to your shot, you’ll be treated to a cup of matcha tea that delivers on all the deeply earthy, vegetal flavours of matcha, while also featuring subtle hints of sweetnes, nuttiness and more. If you’re looking to create the perfect cup of matcha tea, you can pick up OMGTea’s matcha starter kit, which contains a bamboo whisk, measuring spoon and tin of AAA matcha.

Key details – Size: 30g; Form: Loose powder; Grade: Ceremonial

4. Whittard Coconut Matcha: Best flavoured matcha powder

Price when reviewed: £20 | Check price at Whittard

Well-known as a purveyor of quality teas, Whittard also has a solid selection of green teas and matcha powders on offer. While their ceremonial grade matcha is worthy of a spot on this list itself, we’re most intrigued by their flavoured options, especially this coconut variety. Adding a welcome touch of sweetness while pairing well with the creamy and velvety flavours and textures already present, the hint of coconut in this powder is an ideal choice.

If you’re thinking that these creamy notes would work well as part of a matcha latté, Whittard is one step ahead of you, suggesting you pick up its bamboo matcha whisk and spoon alongside this powder to help you craft the perfect milky matcha drink. If you’d like to lean more towards sweetness than creaminess, Whittard also offers a vanilla-flavoured variety.

Key details – Size: 30g; Form: Loose powder; Grade: Ceremonial

Check price at Whittard

5. Clearspring Organic Matcha: Best budget matcha powder

Price when reviewed: £11 | Check price at BodyKindWhile culinary grade options can make a fine matcha latté in a pinch, anyone looking to make a truly satisfying cup of matcha tea will be after a solid ceremonial grade powder. Compared to buying a standard box of tea or a bag of coffee, picking up a pouch of quality matcha can get pretty pricey, but, at a very respectable price for a generous 40g pouch, this organic matcha powder from Clearspring is a great option for anyone looking to get into matcha without breaking the bank.

Though it’s cheaper than many of the other options on this list, Clearspring’s matcha powder is still up there with some of the best we’ve tested. Sourced from the renowned Uji region of Japan, this matcha has a vibrant green colour and a dense, clumpy texture indicative of well-made matcha, and, in our testing, produced matcha teas and lattes that had a subtle, but consistent, earthy, vegetal flavour, with nice hints of sweetness.

Key details – Size: 40g; Form: Powder; Grade: Ceremonial

6. Bird & Blend Magical Matcha Selection Box: Best matcha variety pack

Price when reviewed: £30 | Check price at Not on the High StreetIf you’re interested in flavoured matcha, this variety pack from Bird & Blend Tea Company contains one of the most fun and wide-ranging selections we’ve come across. Alongside their standard Pure Matcha offering, this selection box contains a lively Lemon Matcha, a smooth Ice Cream Matcha, a spiced Gingernut Matcha, and many more. In our opinion, the most interesting of the twelve varieties included, is the blue-tinted Mermaid Matcha which, quite aside from its fun colour, has a lovely, mildly sweet flavour, thanks to the addition of carob.

We also like this pack because it comes in a stylish box containing twelve cute, colourful, and reusable individual storage tins. Handily, the inside of the box is printed with instructions for making up a matcha shot, as well as recipes for matcha tea, matcha lattés and matcha iced lemonade.

Key details – Size: 12 x 5g; Form: Powder; Grade: Ceremonial

Check price at Not on the High Street

7. Heapwell Superfoods Culinary Grade: Best matcha for baking

Price when reviewed: £9 | Check price at Amazon This culinary-grade matcha powder from Heapwell Superfoods can trace its origins to tea plantations in Nara and Kyoto, Japan. It’s a stone-ground powder, with a strong, green colour and can produce delicious matcha teas and lattes, though its primary purpose is acting as a tasty addition to smoothies and baked goods. This is the product for you if you’d like your matcha to act as a versatile kitchen supply, rather than solely as a tea. Heapwell’s culinary grade matcha is also one of the best cheap matcha powders available, and is the most inexpensive option featured on this list.

Key details – Size: 50g; Form: Loose powder; Grade: Culinary

8. Kunitaro Green Tea with Uji Matcha: Best authentic matcha tea bags

Price when reviewed: £7 | Check price at AmazonAt the end of a long day, or in the midst of a chaotic morning, many of us would appreciate the option of a tasty, soothing cup of Matcha that is a little simpler to prepare. While most readily available Matcha tea bags will fill that niche, they won’t provide the delicacy of flavour that true aficionados seek. Offering an excellent balance of simplicity and authenticity, these Matcha-enhanced green tea bags from Kunitaro are the perfect addition to your tea cupboard.

Combining quality Uji Matcha and aromatic, crisply flavoured green tea leaves, these tea bags are well-liked for their light vegetal notes, depth of flavour and clean refreshing taste. Each tea bag is pyramidal in shape to help disperse these delicate flavours, and has a tab and string for simple dipping and disposal.

Key details – Size: 100g (50 bags); Form: Tea bag

9. Pukka Supreme Matcha Green: Best matcha tea bag for beginners

Price when reviewed: £4.75 | Check price at Holland & Barrett

Herbal tea aficionados will be familiar with Pukka, the most notable purveyors of tasty herb and fruit-based teas. If you’re not quite ready to invest in a sizable jar of matcha powder, or just want an easy option for your daily cuppa, these Supreme Green matcha tea bags are a good way to enjoy matcha without the fuss.

These organic tea bags contain a tasty and well balanced blend of Japanese Sencha green tea, Indian Oothu green tea, Chinese Suoi Gang green teas and, of course, matcha powder. Fresh-tasting, robust and earthy, brew one of these plastic-free bags for up to 15 minutes to produce a cup of tea that will satisfy your desire for a balanced, mild matcha flavour.

Key details – Size: 30g; Form: Tea bag