Many people take for granted the wide array of teas we can find these days at nearly any grocery store. But it wasn’t always this way, and we’re lucky to have easy access to many delicious choices when it comes to tea. So, what are the different types of teas out there?
While countless tea flavors exist, most teas can be divided into six primary types: black, green, oolong, white, Pu-erh, and yellow. Black teas are among the most popular in Western countries, while green tea reigns supreme farther east. The oxidation process is key to the different tea types.
As you explore the world of teas, you’ll need to get to know the basics. To get you started, let’s further explore the various types of tea and some of the most popular teas out there.
How Many Main Types of Tea Are There?

There are only six defined categories for all the thousands of different teas you can find in the world. These are black, green, oolong, white, Pu-erh, and yellow.
All recognized teas are technically one of these variations, even though teas that fall in the same group can be very different in terms of their flavor.
The biggest difference between groups reflects an important process called oxidation.
Oxidation
Before exploring the six categories of tea, we need to discuss the oxidation process. Oxidation is the process whereby tea leaves get exposed to air.
Oxidation in tea is comparable to the same process whereby fruit or meat is dried. The effects are a darkened leaf and more aroma. The process also strengthens the tea.
Unfortunately, while some nutrients get concentrated in the oxidation process, others are completely lost. The process of oxidation halts when the tea leaves are heated up.
Black Tea
Black tea is the most popular tea in many Western countries. Black tea accounts for more than three-quarters of tea consumption in the West.
It’s darker and higher in caffeine than other common teas. Black tea is fully oxidized.
Green Tea
Green tea is often seen as a relatively “exotic,” health-focused tea. That’s because it offers many health benefits, such as helping to prevent certain diseases and helping the brain function properly.
Green tea originated in China in 2737 B.C. Then, in 1607, the Dutch East India Company began trading tea with China. Green tea was among the earliest teas introduced to the West that originated from China.
Green tea is unoxidized.
Oolong Tea
Oolong tea originated in the Baiyun region of the Fujian Province, China, during the Tang Dynasty. The exact date is unknown, but the dates were between 618 to 907 AD.
Although it’s by no means scarce, the market demand for oolong tea has fluctuated over the decades.
Oolong tea is semi-oxidized.
White Tea
In contrast to most modern teas, white tea is more exclusive. Some varieties are more exclusive than others.
The unopened buds and juvenile leaves are withered and dried. It makes for a very pale, mild tea. Some people favor white tea, but many find it bland.
White tea is 100% unprocessed and unoxidized.
Pu-Erh Tea
Pu-erh tea is unique in both preparation and taste. It’s the standout rogue of the tea groups. That’s because Pu-erh tea gets made from wild leaves that are fermented by microbes while the tea is stored.
The amount of oxidation that the leaves undergo is vague at best. Still, commonly the flavor is rich and earthy.
There is no standard for oxidization in Pu-erh tea
Yellow Tea
Yellow tea is less common in the international tea market. It’s produced mainly in China, with other sources also in East Asia. That exclusivity makes yellow tea more of a novelty in the west.
The leaves are wrapped in cloth and steamed for a short period, then denatured via higher heat shortly after. The process leads to a notably yellow tea.
Yellow tea is mildly oxidized.
What’s the Most Popular Type of Tea?
In the Western world, black tea is irrefutably the most popular option. Ceylon black tea (on Amazon) and the ubiquitous Earl Grey (also on Amazon) are among the Western markets’ most popular black teas.
While Japan prefers HÅjicha, China favors Pu-Erh, oolong, and green tea. The rest of East Asia imports mostly oolong and green teas.
Which Tea Contains the Most Caffeine?
Black tea is categorized by its concentrated caffeine, resulting from complete oxidization. Different kinds of black tea vary in caffeine, with levels between 60 and 120 mg per 8-fluid ounce (fl oz).
How Many Flavors of Tea Are There in the World?

There exist upwards of three thousand flavors of tea. The numbers may even exceed that, with many traditional flavors depending on ingredients not commonly found in better-known types of tea.
Listing all tea flavors is impractical. Instead, let’s look at six of the most popular teas worldwide.
Earl Grey
Earl Grey tea is perhaps the most popular black tea in the world. It’s an inexpensive, commonly served hot beverage.
In truth, it’s one of two different kinds of tea, both flavored with bergamot. Adding bergamot to either Assam or Darjeeling tea transforms it into Earl Grey.
Thanks to the addition of bergamot citrus fruit, the flavor hints at bitter orange and lemon. Additionally, this versatile tea comes in French and Russian renditions as well. The former includes rose petals, while the latter adds a hint of lemon grass.
Assam
As one of two key ingredients in Earl Grey, you might think Assam tea is underwhelming. Fortunately, that’s far from the truth.
The flavor takes its name from the Assam region in India, where it’s grown. The taste may be astringent initially, but the aftertaste has a rich malt and chocolate quality.
Ceylon
Grown in Sri Lanka, the plant originated in China and made its way to the British colony of Ceylon (present-day Sri Lanka) in 1824.
The tea was a great success and export; the colony quickly became the biggest exporter of tea at the time. Ceylon has a rich citrus undertone with an almost chocolaty aftertaste.
Sencha
Almost all tea produced in Japan is green tea. The variety of nuanced green tea flavors is the product of differences in farming practices and the time of the year the plants get harvested.
Sencha (on Amazon) is the most frequently consumed kind of green tea. That’s because the most commonplace method of production gets used. It is easier and more accessible for farmers.
Sencha is likely the green tea with which Westerners are most familiar.
Fukamushi Sencha
Fukamushi Sencha comes from the same crops as Sencha. The difference is that Fukamushi Sencha gets steamed twice as long as regular Sencha. Fukamushi means ‘steamed for long.’
The result is a tea leaf that becomes powdery, with a far richer taste.
The tea is also much darker than most green teas, and thanks to the process, it loses the signature grassy taste of plain Sencha.
Scottish, English, or Irish Breakfast Tea
It would be criminal to leave the English, Irish, or Scottish breakfast teas off a list of teas.
Tea is a fixture in the culture of the United Kingdom. So, naturally, it also means that their preferred breakfast teas are very popular.
The three breakfast teas get made from a blend of Indian Assam, Ceylon, or Kenyan black tea. The difference is in the ratios used.
The Irish and Scottish blends are stronger than the mild English breakfast tea.