Create your own Starbucks Iced Chai Tea Latte recipe at home with just a few simple ingredients! Learn how to make it three easy ways and start saving money today.
I’ve been making my own Iced Chai Tea Lattes at home for years using my Chai Concentrate recipe. This iced version is perfect for the warmer months. The spicy chai is the perfect balance with your favorite cold milk.
And guess what? If you don’t want to make your own chai concentrate, I’ll show you how to choose the best store-bought chai concentrate OR make a super quick one using chai tea bags.
If you like this chai, you are going to love this Iced Roobios Tea, or try the iced version of this Dutch Bros Christmas Morning Chai.
What is in a Starbucks Chai Tea Latte?
It’s about $6 for a grande Starbucks chai tea latte. Starbucks ingredients are listed as black tea concentrate and milk with cinnamon, clove, cardamom, ginger, cloves, and vanilla. Plus, it has natural flavor and citric acid, and it comes in syrup form. Why not make your own homemade concentrate so you can enjoy an iced chai tea latte anytime?
I love making copycat recipes at home, they are so much better and cheaper; my favorites are these Panera Orange Scones, this Dutch Bros Christmas Morning Chai (hot or iced) and these Crumbl Chocolate Chip Cookies.
Ingredients for Starbucks Iced Chai Latte (3 ways)
#1 Homemade Chai Concentrate (the best way!)
- Tea – Choose your favorite black tea. I suggest Darjeeling black tea, either loose-leaf or in tea bags. You can use regular or decaf.
- Water – Brew the tea in filtered water.
- Spices – I use ginger, cinnamon sticks, cloves, grated fresh nutmeg, star anise, and cardamom pods. Whole spices are easily found at grocery stores.
- Vanilla – Use vanilla extract or vanilla bean paste.
- Honey – I like using honey; you could use agave, regular sugar, brown sugar, maple syrup or sugar replacements.
- Milk – Cow’s milk or plant-based milk will all work here! Just make sure it’s cold!
# 2 Fast Iced Starbucks Iced Chai Latte
- Chai tea bags | Brew 2 chai tea bags or 2 teaspoons loose-leaf chai tea in boiling water. I like this Rishi brand the best.
- Sweetener | I like honey, but you can use your preferred sweetener, like maple syrup, sugar, or other alternatives.
- Vanilla | Use real vanilla extract.
- Milk | Use whole milk or your favorite milk or non-dairy milk
# 3 Super Fast Starbucks Iced Chai
- Chai tea concentrate: Starbucks used to use Tazo Chai Concentrate, now they use chai syrup; use your favorite boxed brand. I like Trader Joe’s Chai, Oregon Chai and Tazo Decaf Chai concentrate.
- Milk | I like using whole milk but use your favorite % or alternative milk!
Get the full recipe in the recipe card below.
How to Make Copycat Starbucks Iced Chai Latte
Use my homemade chai tea concentrate recipe in the ingredient card below to make the best chai latte ever!
For a quicker glass of your favorite Starbucks iced beverage, skip down the page to discover how to make this with store-bought tea concentrate or tea bags.
Slow Iced Latte Recipe with Chai Concentrate (worth it!)
Make your own chai mixture so you can keep it in the refrigerator and enjoy Iced Chai lattes anytime you want! It might start slow, but once you make your concentrate, it will go super-fast!
Detailed instructions for making your own chai concentrate recipe are in the recipe card at the bottom of this post.
Fresh Tips for Making Chai Concentrate
- Only let the ingredients simmer for five minutes to avoid bitterness.
- If preferred, simmer the spices in a small muslin bag to avoid the straining step.
How to make Starbucks Iced Chai Latte: Tea-bag Concentrate
First, drop the tea bags or loose-leaf tea in an infuser into a heat-proof cup or mug. Pour boiling water over top and steep for 5 to 10 minutes. The longer it sits, the stronger and more bitter it will be.
Then, remove the tea bags and add the sweetener and vanilla. Pour the chai over ice cubes in a 16-ounce glass, followed by your milk of choice.
Pro Tip: Use a 2:1 ratio of chai to milk for a stronger and spicer chai flavor.
Iced Chai Tea Latte Instructions
No matter which version of concentrate you decide to make, once you have it ready, add ice to a tall glass (about 16 oz for a 12-ounce drink) to make this Starbucks copycat iced chai latte. Next, pour equal parts of the homemade chai concentrate and your creamy milk product.
For a shaken latte, add the ingredients to a shaker or mason jar and shake about 10 times.
You can also add cold foam to your iced chai by frothing your cold milk in a milk frother or hand frother before adding it to the cold chai. Make sure it has a cold froth option.
You need to check out my popular Starbucks Copycat Recipes! Like this Starbucks Passion Tea with refreshing summer flavors and my Peach Green Tea Lemonade, or this creamy Starbucks White Hot Chocolate recipe.
Variations
- Hot Chai Latte: Mix equal parts milk, chai concentrate, freshly brewed chai tea bags, or loose leaf. Try whole milk or non-dairy milk, like almond milk, oat milk, or coconut milk. Heat in a frother, on the stovetop, or in the microwave. All that’s left to do is kick back, sip, and enjoy! Be sure to check out my Hot Chai Latte recipe for full details.
- Dirty Chai Tea Latte: Add a shot of espresso or two to the iced or hot chai latte to make a dirty chai latte.
- Chocolate Chai: Make a decadent chocolate chai by adding chocolate syrup to the beverage.
- Skinny Chai Latte: To make a skinny version of this drink, simply replace the honey with a sugar-free honey substitute! Or use Monk fruit sweetener.
Common Iced Chai Substitutions
- Increase the ginger for a little more spice in your chai.
- Add black peppercorns for a spicy chai.
- If you use dried ginger instead of fresh, double the amount.
- You can replace the honey with maple syrup, cane sugar, agave, coconut sugar, granulated sugar, or brown sugar.
- Swap out the tea for Earl Grey, Assam, or another favorite black tea or decaf black tea.
- If you prefer a more bitter chai spice, cut the honey or sweetener in half or omit it altogether.
- Try whole milk or plant-based milk like almond milk, oat milk, or coconut milk.
Storage Tips
Allow your homemade chai concentrate to cool completely and then store it in an airtight container, like a bottle or mason jar, in the fridge for up to two weeks.
Got chai concentrate you won’t use right away? Freeze the leftover concentrate into ice cube trays and then use them in your next iced chai for a stronger chai flavor. I love these 2 tablespoon silicone trays.
Frequently Asked Questions
No. Chai is a black tea that contains less caffeine than coffee. A dirty chai latte uses a shot of espresso.
Chai is a delicious, creamy, spicy, and sweet beverage made from a blend of black tea and warm spices like cinnamon, ginger, cardamom, and nutmeg.
Chai originated in the Assam region of India. Traditional chai is made of black tea and warm spices, like cinnamon, ginger, cloves, and nutmeg, with a hint of vanilla. It is sometimes sweetened with honey or other sweeteners. Chai is also known as masala chai but is commonly called ‘chai tea’ in America. However, it’s a silly way to say it because it translates to ‘tea tea’.
Yes, if you use regular black tea, your iced chai will contain caffeine, but you can control that by choosing your own teas or concentrates. You can even purchase decaf chai latte concentrate if you prefer.
What to serve with Starbucks Copycat Ice Chai Latte
- Cinnamon Swirl Bundt Cake
- Try my favorite Scottish Shortbread recipe, it’s the best!
- Cinnamon Crunch Scones
Best Starbucks Recipes to Serve with this Iced Chai Latte Recipe
Our favorite Starbucks copycat recipes to serve with an Iced Chai are these Cream Cheese Danish, copycat Coffee Cake, and these Pumpkin Scones.
More Teas and Hot Beverages
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Ingredients
Iced Chai Tea Latte Ingredients
- 6 ounces chai concentrate (choose from three methods below)
- 4-6 ounces whole milk or use other % or favorite plant-based product
- Ice cubes
- Cinnamon for sprinkling on top
Method 1 – Homemade Chai Concentrate (so worth it)
- 6-8 teaspoons Darjeeling tea or use 6-8 tea bags, may also use Assam, or your favorite black tea
- 6 cups filtered water
- 2-4 tablespoons ginger slices about ½-1 inch slices
- 2 cinnamon sticks two short sticks or one long stick, broken
- 4-6 cloves
- 6-7 cardamom pods
- 1 star anise
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract or 1 teaspoon vanilla bean paste
- ¼ -½ teaspoon nutmeg fresh grated is best
- ¼-⅓ cup honey or favorite sweetener, maple syrup, agave, sugar, brown sugar or sugar substitute
Method 2 – Super Fast Starbucks Iced Latte
- ½ cup Chai Concentrate Such as Tazo or Oregon Chai concentrate or your favorite
- ½ cup Whole Milk or other % milk or non-dairy product
Method 3 – Not quite so fast Iced Starbucks Iced Latte
- 2 chai tea bags or 2 teaspoon loose leaf chai tea
- ½ cup boiling water just boiled, don’t overboil
- 1-2 teaspoon honey or preferred sweetener, maple syrup, sugar or replacements work
- ¼ teaspoon real vanilla extract
- ½ cup whole milk or preferred milk product
Instructions
For all methods once you have chai concentrate
- Add ice to a tall glass (16 oz). Pour equal parts of chai concentrate and milk choice over the ice. If a spicier chai is desired, use more of a 2:1 ratio.
- If you prefer more of a shaken latte, place chai, milk, and ice in a shaker, and shake vigorously 10 or so times. Or if you have a cold frother, froth milk of choice, then add to the cold chai.6 ounces chai concentrate, ½ cup whole milk
Notes
- Starbucks used to use Tazo Chai Tea Concentrate, available in your grocery store. They have regular and decaf and they also make a Skinny Version.
- Pour equal parts of chai concentrate and preferred milk in a tall glass (at least 16 ounces).
- Add ice cubes. Enjoy!
- In a heat-proof cup, add tea bags (or loose-leaf tea in an infuser) and pour just boiled water over the top. Steep for 5-10 minutes, the longer it steeps the stronger it is, but also a bit more bitter too.
- Remove tea bags and stir in desired sweetener and vanilla extract.
- Pour over 16-ounce glass filled with ice, then pour milk over the top, if desired shake to froth (a mason jar works great for this if you prefer)
- Measure all of your spices and ingredients so you are ready to go.
- In a bowl, using the end of a wooden spoon or a mortar and pestle, gently crush the 1-2 cinnamon sticks, 4-6 whole cloves, 4-5 cardamom pods, 1 star anise, and ginger (4 1-inch pieces). Grate the nutmeg (¼-½ tsp).
- Bring 6 cups of filtered water to a gentle boil and reduce to a simmer; add tea (6 teaspoons or 6 tea bags), add crushed spices and vanilla extract (1-2 tsp) to simmering.
- Reduce heat to a gentle simmer for just 5 minutes (longer will cause your tea to be bitter), stirring occasionally. Remove from heat.
- Allow mixture to steep covered for about 10-15 minutes.
- Place a fine mesh strainer over a large 8-cup measuring bowl. Carefully pour the chai concentrate through the sieve. Discard the tea bags and spices.
- Stir in honey or sweetener of choice until dissolved. Cool to room temperature.
- Pour your homemade chai concentrate into a desired container (at least 48 ounces) jar or bottle, cool and refrigerate. This will ensure your concentrate stays fresh and flavorful for a long time.
If you like more “bite” or spice in your chai, feel free to increase the ginger, I like more of a medium spice. *Stronger Chai Latte | If you prefer a stronger chai, use 2:1 parts chai to milk ratio.
Nutrition
suja md
Outstanding recipe thanks so much! tasted so much good!
So glad you loved it!
Ashley
My MIL is the biggest chai tea fan and I cannot wait to share this fantastic recipe with her. Love that you’ve included 3 different methods for prepping the base 🙂
YAY! Love that you are making for her! And life is about options right?!?
paula
This iced chai tea latte sure hit the spot on this 100 degree day today
Ugh, stay cool!! It’s a great way to cool off!
Beth
I LOVE being able to have one of my favorite Starbucks drinks without the ridiculous price tag. This is fantastic!
Me too Beth!! And enjoy more often too!