I compared 5 brands of chai concentrate — and there are 2 worth keeping in your fridge at all times

Good & Gather is Target's store brand, and this chai concentrate came in a 32-ounce container.

It was the best value of the five I tested at $3.50 for this size, making it about 11 cents per ounce.

The best part of the chai was its clever slanted container, which made it so the tea didn't spill or make a mess as I poured it into a mug or glass.

For both the hot and iced lattes, I combined 4 ounces of this concentrate with 4 ounces of plain milk.

I usually expect some spice in a chai beverage, but Good & Gather's iced chai had just the faintest aftertaste of black pepper.

The drink, when hot, mostly tasted like sweetened tea. It wasn't particularly heavy in cream or syrup and just tasted a bit watery.

I expected the iced versions of these lattes to lose some of their potency, and that was definitely the case for the Good & Gather chai.

Its hint of black pepper and sweet taste were almost entirely lost when I combined the concentrate and milk over ice. It wasn't bad, but it turned out pretty bland.

I hadn't tried the Oregon Chai brand before, but it looked promising. The label noted its rich and authentic flavors, featuring black tea, spices, and honey for sweetness.

This container, also 32 ounces, was originally $5, making it about 16 cents an ounce. I got it on sale for $4.

Similar to Tazo's and Rishi's containers, this design seemed better suited for stocking shelves than pouring.

It poured out messily as I combined 4 ounces of this concentrate with equal parts milk.

I noticed this mix was much lighter in color than the Good & Gather concentrate, which made me wonder how strong or rich it would actually be.

As it turns out, Oregon Chai was strong in sweetener and not much else. There was really no spice, not even in the aftertaste. Overall, it just tasted like hot sweet tea.

I thought the resulting iced latte from Oregon Chai was simply fine: cold and a little sweet.

It was refreshing on a hot day, but overall, the flavor was quite bland to me. The earthiness was a little more present, but there was little sweetness and no spice.

The spiced chai concentrate from Trader Joe's was unique for a lot of reasons.

It came in a bottle rather than a boxy container, and was the smallest at only 16 ounces, half the size of the other four I tested.

The rest of the concentrates I tried called for a 1:1 ratio of chai to milk, but this one called for 1 part chai to 2 parts milk. So, I decided to use 4 ounces of the concentrate to 8 ounces of milk.

This concentrate was the cheapest upfront at $2.80 — but, broken down, it was 18 cents per ounce.

Even just opening the bottle, I knew this concentrate would bring way more heat. It smelled strongly of spice and had a really dark color that seemed to promise a robust flavor.

This concentrate tasted of black pepper first, then ginger. I didn't taste much of the milk or black tea. I like a spicy chai, but this was a little overpowering when served hot.

Next time, I'd prepare it with even more milk.

I still combined the 4 ounces of concentrate with 8 ounces of milk for the iced version of the Trader Joe's chai. I found that the addition of ice really balanced out the concentrate.

The result was a tea with a more balanced profile, since the melting ice helped tame all the spice. I actually ended up loving the Trader Joe's concentrate when combined with milk and ice.

I judged the book by its cover with Rishi, which came in a gorgeously designed container.

It cost $6 — on sale for $4.80 — for the 32-ounce package. At 19 cents an ounce before the sale, this was pricier than the other brands I tested.

This concentrate called for a 1:1 concentrate-to-milk ratio, so I used 4 ounces of chai with 4 ounces of milk for both hot and iced, as with most of the previous drinks.

Between the container's shape and the liquid's consistency, this concentrate was the messiest to serve. It kept spilling out as I tried to pour it.

The red-orange tone of this chai was interesting, considering the other brands were more light to dark brown. It also smelled strongly like cinnamon, which was one of the leading ingredients.

This chai was incredibly sweet, and I liked the taste of cinnamon and cardamom in the hot version of the latte. It wasn't as spicy as the Trader Joe's concentrate, but it had more of a punch than the Good & Gather and Oregon Chai ones.

Despite thoroughly shaking the concentrate, some gritty spice particles ended up floating in the drink — this hadn't been noticeable in its hot counterpart.

The cinnamon flavor also worked better when served warm, so overall, this iced drink tasted average to me. 

I've purchased Tazo's chai concentrate a few times in the past and enjoyed it, but I hadn't realized how pricey it was upfront compared to some other brands.

This 32-ounce concentrate rang up at $5.19, the most expensive one I tried after sales were factored in. Still, it ultimately cost me 16 cents an ounce, keeping it on par with the other options.

I followed the same one-to-one ratio when preparing the Tazo chai.

I really enjoyed the hot Tazo chai latte. It wasn't too sweet, and the spice was forward, but not overwhelming.

The concentrate and milk combined to create a creamy consistency rather than a watery texture. This was my favorite hot chai that I tested.

Although Tazo took the spot for best hot chai latte, it wasn't my favorite iced chai drink.

It was delicious, with sweetness and a hint of spice, but I found the super-strong Trader Joe's concentrate was perfect with ice. This one lost some of its flavor, but was my second-favorite iced drink.

The Tazo concentrate had a perfect blend of spices and sweetness that came through when hot, resulting in a nice, creamy latte. However, a lot of its flavor was subdued when added to cold milk and ice.

Although I wasn't a fan of the Trader Joe's chai concentrate when prepared hot, I loved it with cold milk over ice. The extremely strong spices in the concentrate overpowered the other flavors when served warm, but they held up well to ice and offered a much better flavor. 

All of these chai concentrates were good, and I wouldn't mind buying any of them again. However, Tazo is my preferred brand for a hot chai latte, and I'll have to stop at Trader Joe's if I'm craving one iced.

This story was originally published on May 18, 2023, and most recently updated on February 24, 2026.