Tea Steeping Calculator
Get leaf amount, water temperature, and steep time for any tea — green, black, oolong, white, herbal, or rooibos.
These are starting points. Adjust up for a bolder cup or down if it turns bitter — leaf quality and freshness shift the ideal amount too.
How it works
Pick a tea type, tell it how much water you're using, and choose a strength. The calculator scales a base leaf ratio (grams per 250 ml) up or down for your water volume, then nudges it for strength: light pulls back to 80% of the base amount, standard uses the base amount, and strong bumps it to 125%. Temperature and steep time come straight from what actually works for that tea type; they don't change with strength, since oversteeping (not more heat) is what makes tea bitter.
Worked example: 500 ml of water, oolong, standard strength. The base for oolong is 3 g per 250 ml, so 500 ml scales that to 6 g. Standard strength keeps the multiplier at 1, so the calculator lands on 6 g of leaf at 90°C (194°F) for 3 to 5 minutes. Want it bolder for a gongfu-style short steep? Switch to strong and it recalculates to 7.5 g without changing the temperature.
FAQ
Why does temperature stay the same when I change strength?
Strength is about leaf-to-water ratio, not heat. Using hotter water than a tea type calls for pulls out tannins too fast and turns the cup bitter or astringent, even if you use less leaf. If you want a stronger cup, add more leaf or steep a little longer within the recommended range rather than boiling everything.
What if I don't have a kitchen scale?
A rounded teaspoon of most whole-leaf teas is close to 2 to 3 g, so the numbers here still work as a guide even without a scale. Fluffier leaves (some white and herbal blends) weigh less by volume, so lean toward a heaped spoon for those.
Can I reuse the same leaves for a second cup?
Many whole-leaf teas, especially oolong and pu-erh, hold up for multiple infusions. Add 30 to 60 seconds to the steep time on each subsequent round since the leaf has less to give up each time.
Does this work for tea bags too?
Yes for temperature and time, though the leaf amount is fixed by the bag itself. Match the tea type's temperature and time range and you'll get a better cup than following generic "steep 3 to 5 minutes" instructions on the box.
For more on the ratios and timing behind these numbers, see how much tea to use, steeping times by type, and the right water temperature for every type.