Oolong Tea Caffeine Content

Does oolong tea contain caffeine?

Yes, oolong tea contains caffeine. Caffeine accounts for 2%-5% in dry tea and it will be dissolved in water after brewing. 100ml of oolong tea usually contains 12-18mg of caffeine.

Compared with other drinks, 100ml of coffee contains 40mg or more caffeine, 100ml of black tea contains 20mg, and 100ml of green tea contains 10mg.

Caffeine in oolong tea, green tea and black tea

Caffeine content in tea is affected by factors such as tea tenderness, season and oxidation. Tender teas with longer sunshine (usually in summer) and higher oxidation degree usually contain more caffeine.

This is why black tea (completely oxidized, summer tea) has higher caffeine content than green tea (not oxidized). Oolong tea is between green tea and black tea, so its caffeine content depends on oxidation degree.

The following are the caffeine contents of different oolong teas.

Name	coffee contains/100ml
Pouchong Tea	12mg
High Mountain Tea	13mg
Dong Ding Oolong	15mg
Tieguanyin	15mg
Jinxuan Oolong	13mg
LiShan Oolong Tea	13mg
Dayuling Tea	12mg
Oriental Beauty Tea	18mg

Daily caffeine intake

In 2015, The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) recommended a limit of 400mg caffeine intake per day.

How to reduce caffeine in oolong tea

When caffeine is dissolved in water during brewing, the water temperature and brewing time will affect the amount of caffeine released.
Under the same brewing time, the caffeine release in water temperature of 80℃ is only half of that in 100℃. Under the same temperature, the caffeine content after 2min brewing is only half of 5min brewing.
That means lower water temperature and shorter time can reduce caffeine amount in oolong tea.

How to avoid the side effects of caffeine in oolong tea

Drink less than 6 cups of 250ml oolong tea a day is safe for most people.
Brewing oolong tea for 5 minutes will release 70% of caffeine. Pour the tea water after first brewing and start drinking from the second brewing will reduce most of the caffeine.