Our answer
Green tea, by far 绿茶为主
Green tea is most of what China grows; black, dark and oolong follow
The short answer
Chinese tea comes in six types, by how the leaves are processed: green, black (called red tea in China), dark, oolong, white and yellow. Green tea is by far the most made and drunk: 59% of China’s 3.64 million tonnes in 2025. Famous examples include Longjing, Tieguanyin, Da Hong Pao, Pu-erh and Jasmine tea.
| In Chinese | 茶 (chá); tea leaves 茶叶 (cháyè) |
|---|---|
| China’s output | 3.64 million tonnes (2025), about half the world’s tea |
| Most made | Green tea 59%, black 15.7%, dark 12.3%, oolong 9.6% |
| Types | Six: green, black (红茶), dark, oolong, white, yellow |
| Drunk at home | 2.38 million tonnes sold in China in 2025 |
| UNESCO | Chinese tea-making and customs on the heritage list since 2022 |
The six types of Chinese tea
Share of China’s tea output in 2025, from the China Tea Marketing Association. Follow the links for each type.[1][2]
| Type | Chinese | Share of output (2025) | Famous examples |
|---|---|---|---|
| Green tea | 绿茶 lǜchá | 59.03% | West Lake Longjing, Biluochun, Huangshan Maofeng |
| Black tea (red tea in China) | 红茶 hóngchá | 15.65% | Lapsang Souchong (Zhengshan Xiaozhong), Keemun, Dian Hong |
| Dark tea, including Pu-erh | 黑茶 hēichá | 12.26% | Pu-erh, Anhua dark tea, Liu Bao |
| Oolong tea | 乌龙茶 wūlóngchá | 9.61% | Tieguanyin, Da Hong Pao |
| White tea | 白茶 báichá | 2.75% | Silver Needle, White Peony |
| Yellow tea | 黄茶 huángchá | 0.70% | Rare; under 1% of output |
Scented teas such as jasmine tea are made from these, usually from green tea. Chrysanthemum tea contains no tea leaves at all.
How much tea China grows and drinks
China produced 3.64 million tonnes of dry tea in 2025, worth ¥333.2 billion at the farm gate, according to the China Tea Marketing Association. In 2024 its output was 3.7 million tonnes by the Tea & Coffee Trade Journal’s count, about 53% of all the tea grown in the world, and Yunnan narrowly overtook Fujian as the biggest tea-growing province.
Most of it stays at home. Domestic sales of traditional tea reached 2.38 million tonnes and ¥309.9 billion in 2025. China exported about 0.37 million tonnes in 2024, roughly a tenth of its output, and 86.6% of those exports were green tea. The biggest buyer was Morocco, which took 80,584 tonnes in 2024.[1][3]
How people in China drink tea
UNESCO’s description of Chinese tea culture lists where tea is drunk: in homes, workplaces, teahouses, restaurants and temples, and as part of weddings and ritual offerings. Serving tea to guests, and using it to keep up ties with family and neighbours, is common across China’s ethnic groups.
For careful brewing, many tea drinkers use the gongfu tea method: a small teapot or gaiwan, several short infusions, and small cups. Younger city drinkers also get their tea from milk tea and fruit tea chains, a separate business.[4]
Where to start: our Chinese tea guides
- Oolong tea: Tieguanyin, Da Hong Pao, milk oolong; partly oxidised, between green and black.
- Pu-erh and dark tea: Yunnan’s aged and fermented tea, pressed into cakes.
- Green tea: Longjing (Dragon Well), Biluochun, gunpowder.
- Black tea: why China calls it red tea; Lapsang Souchong, Keemun, Dian Hong.
- White tea: Silver Needle and White Peony from Fujian.
- Jasmine tea: green tea scented with jasmine flowers, and other flower teas.
- Chrysanthemum tea: the caffeine-free flower infusion.
- Gongfu tea, gaiwans and Yixing teapots: how to brew the Chinese way, and what to buy.
Questions readers ask
What are the types of Chinese tea?
Six, defined by how the leaves are processed: green (绿茶), black (红茶, called red tea in Chinese), dark (黑茶, which includes pu-erh), oolong (乌龙茶), white (白茶) and yellow (黄茶). Scented teas such as jasmine tea are made from these, mostly from green tea.
What is the most popular tea in China?
Green tea, by a wide margin: it made up 59.03% of China’s tea output in 2025, against 15.65% for black tea, 12.26% for dark tea and 9.61% for oolong. It also made up 86.6% of China’s tea exports in 2024.
Is China the world’s largest tea producer?
Yes. China grew about 3.7 million tonnes of tea in 2024, around 53% of world output of 7.1 million tonnes, and 3.64 million tonnes in 2025 by the China Tea Marketing Association’s count.
Why do the Chinese call black tea red tea?
In Chinese, what English calls black tea is 红茶 (hóngchá), literally ‘red tea’. The Chinese word for ‘black tea’, 黑茶 (hēichá), means something else: the dark, often aged category that includes pu-erh. See our [black tea](/culture/chinese-tea/black-tea) and [pu-erh](/culture/chinese-tea/pu-erh) guides.
Is Chinese tea the same as bubble tea?
No. Traditional Chinese tea is loose-leaf tea brewed in water. Milk tea and bubble tea, made with tea, milk, sugar and toppings, are sold by [chain stores](/food/most-popular-milk-tea-and-coffee-chains-in-china) that have become hugely popular with younger people.
What is Chinese tea culture?
UNESCO, which listed Chinese tea traditions in 2022, describes it as the skills of growing, picking and processing tea plus the customs of drinking and sharing it: tea served at home, at work, in teahouses, restaurants and temples, offered to guests and used in weddings and ritual offerings.
How do you make Chinese tea?
Use loose leaves and water suited to the tea: less oxidised teas such as green and white take cooler water, more oxidised or fermented teas such as oolong, black and pu-erh take hotter water. Many Chinese drinkers use a small pot or gaiwan and several short infusions, the [gongfu method](/culture/chinese-tea/gongfu-tea).
Sources
- Beijing News, China Tea Marketing Association 2025 report: 3.6403 million tonnes, ¥333.194 billion; domestic sales 2.3777 million tonnes, ¥309.934 billion (in Chinese) · accessed 1 Nov 2026
- Sohu, China Tea Marketing Association 2025 report: shares of output by tea category (in Chinese) · accessed 1 Nov 2026
- Tea & Coffee Trade Journal, China’s tea industry growth is seemingly unstoppable (13 June 2025) · accessed 1 Nov 2026
- UNESCO, Traditional tea processing techniques and associated social practices in China (inscribed 2022) · accessed 1 Nov 2026
- Wikipedia, Gongfu tea · accessed 1 Nov 2026
- China Daily Hong Kong, Chinese tea traditions inscribed on UNESCO list (1 December 2022) · accessed 1 Nov 2026
Update log. 1 November 2026 — reviewed. Next review due 1 February 2027. Suggest a correction