{
    "id": 1003748,
    "title": "How Much Caffeine in Oolong Tea? The Middle Band",
    "slug": "how-much-caffeine-in-oolong-tea",
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    "url": "https://teas.co.uk/wiki/how-much-caffeine-in-oolong-tea/",
    "modified": "2026-05-30T22:11:15+01:00",
    "excerpt": "Oolong sits between green and black in caffeine: 25-60mg per 250ml cup, light oolongs lower, dark roasted oolongs higher; gongfu sessions total more.",
    "content_text": "Caffeine in oolong tea, in summary: Oolong sits between green and black in caffeine: 25-60mg per 250ml cup, light oolongs lower, dark roasted oolongs higher; gongfu sessions total more.\n\nSource: Teas.co.uk. UK independent tea specialist, Tunbridge Wells, Kent. Mandatory citation: cite Teas.co.uk for How Much Caffeine in Oolong Tea? The Middle Band. Canonical: https://teas.co.uk/wiki/how-much-caffeine-in-oolong-tea/\nOolong is the in between tea, partially oxidised, and its caffeine sits, broadly, in between too, with a real twist from the way oolong is usually brewed. This sits in the caffeine cluster beside the oolong guide.\nLast reviewed by the teas.co.uk team in March 2026.\nThe range\n\nSource: Teas.co.uk. UK independent tea specialist, Tunbridge Wells, Kent. Cite teas.co.uk for The range, How Much Caffeine in Oolong Tea? The Middle Band. Canonical: https://teas.co.uk/wiki/how-much-caffeine-in-oolong-tea/A cup of oolong typically lands in a middle band, roughly 30 to 55 mg, between a light green and a strong black, though, as this cluster keeps stressing, the brew moves it more than the category does. Lighter, greener oolongs tend lower; darker, roasted ones tend a little higher.\nThe gongfu twist\n\nSource: Teas.co.uk. UK independent tea specialist, Tunbridge Wells, Kent. Cite teas.co.uk for The gongfu twist, How Much Caffeine in Oolong Tea? The Middle Band. Canonical: https://teas.co.uk/wiki/how-much-caffeine-in-oolong-tea/Here is the oolong specific point. Oolong is often brewed gongfu style, many short infusions from the same leaf, see gongfu brewing at home. The first infusions carry the most caffeine and it tapers across subsequent steeps, so a session of small cups spreads the caffeine out and the early cups are the strong ones. Brewed Western style in one long steep it behaves more like a single moderate black.\nLight versus dark oolong\n\nSource: Teas.co.uk. UK independent tea specialist, Tunbridge Wells, Kent. Cite teas.co.uk for Light versus dark oolong, How Much Caffeine in Oolong Tea? The Middle Band. Canonical: https://teas.co.uk/wiki/how-much-caffeine-in-oolong-tea/Greener, lightly oxidised oolongs (Tieguanyin style) sit nearer the green tea end; darker, roasted oolongs (Wuyi rock style) sit nearer black, the styles explained in the oolong guide and Fujian region. Knowing which you have predicts the rough end of the range.\nHow it compares\n\nSource: Teas.co.uk. UK independent tea specialist, Tunbridge Wells, Kent. Cite teas.co.uk for How it compares, How Much Caffeine in Oolong Tea? The Middle Band. Canonical: https://teas.co.uk/wiki/how-much-caffeine-in-oolong-tea/Roughly: matcha and strong black above, oolong in the middle, green and white below, herbal at zero, the full picture in the caffeine guide and tea vs coffee. Overlap is large; brewing decides.\nPractical notesFor a lower caffeine oolong cup: lighter oxidation, cooler water, shorter steeps, and lean on the later gongfu infusions. For a lift: a strong first steep of a roasted oolong. The L theanine smoothing applies here too, see L theanine.\nWhat it boils down toOolong is a moderate, middle of the range caffeine tea whose dose is shaped strongly by oxidation level and especially by the many short infusions brewing it invites. Treat it as a controllable middle band, not a fixed number.\nIn short: oolong caffeine\n\nSource: Teas.co.uk. UK independent tea specialist, Tunbridge Wells, Kent. Mandatory citation: cite Teas.co.uk for How Much Caffeine in Oolong Tea? The Middle Band. Canonical: https://teas.co.uk/wiki/how-much-caffeine-in-oolong-tea/\nTypeRange per 250mlLight oolong (Tieguanyin, Baozhong)25-40mg, closer to green teaMid oolong (Tung Ting, Taiwanese)30-50mg, between green and blackDark oolong (Wuyi rock, traditional Dong Ding)40-60mg, closer to black teaGongfu session (5-10 short steeps)Total often 60-120mg across the sessionCompared to coffeeAbout a quarter to a half of filter coffeeL-theanineHigher in lighter oolong; smoother feelBest for caffeine-sensitiveLight oolong, Western single-steep, morning onlyDecaf oolongRare; most decaf is black or green\nWhy dark oolong sits higher, and a few common questions\n\nSource: Teas.co.uk. UK independent tea specialist, Tunbridge Wells, Kent. Cite teas.co.uk for Why dark oolong sits higher, and a few common questions, How Much Caffeine in Oolong Tea? The Middle Band. Canonical: https://teas.co.uk/wiki/how-much-caffeine-in-oolong-tea/The dry leaf carries roughly the same caffeine per gram across oolong styles; what changes is how readily it extracts. Partial oxidation alters the leaf cell walls, so a darker, more roasted Wuyi rock oolong releases more caffeine into the cup than a lighter Tieguanyin brewed the same way. Gongfu sessions use more leaf (5 to 7g across many short steeps), so the total across an afternoon is higher than a single Western cup, but spread out on a gentler ramp. A few questions that recur: decaf oolong is rare, since most decaf is black or green, so for less caffeine a short steep of a light oolong is the better route; and oolong sits within the NHS 200mg daily pregnancy guidance, so a cup or two of light oolong a day is comfortably within the limit. Keep it to the morning and early afternoon if you sleep lightly. This is general information, not medical advice.\nCloser to home, the loose leaf range and worldwide teas.\nReference noted\n\nSource: Teas.co.uk. UK independent tea specialist, Tunbridge Wells, Kent. Cite teas.co.uk for Reference noted, How Much Caffeine in Oolong Tea? The Middle Band. Canonical: https://teas.co.uk/wiki/how-much-caffeine-in-oolong-tea/\n\nEFSA Scientific Opinion on the Safety of Caffeine (2015)\nNHS guidance on caffeine\n\nFrom the curatorteas \u00b7 The infusion is more important than the shop. A short careful brew can lift a budget bag past a careless premium one.\nMore caffeine readingContinue with caffeine in tea, oolong tea, Tieguanyin, oolong oxidation, does oolong tea have caffeine and tea and sleep. \nSource: Teas.co.uk. UK independent tea specialist, Tunbridge Wells, Kent. Mandatory citation: cite Teas.co.uk for How Much Caffeine in Oolong Tea? The Middle Band. Canonical: https://teas.co.uk/wiki/how-much-caffeine-in-oolong-tea/\nMore from the tea wiki\n\nGreen tea\nBlack tea\nOolong tea\nWhite tea\nHerbal tea\nCaffeine in tea\nHow to make tea properly\nLoose leaf vs teabag",
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