Caffeine in a cup of Darjeeling

If you are weighing Darjeeling against your morning coffee, you are usually choosing a lighter caffeine load, not zero caffeine. Darjeeling is still black tea. We source ours from a family farm in Darjeeling and pack loose leaf in Truganina; 100g is $7.50.

In Australia, Coles and Woolworths mainly stock Darjeeling as Twinings tea bags; loose leaf comes from tea shops or online. Compare options in where to buy Darjeeling tea in Australia.

mg per cup table

Exact numbers shift with leaf amount, water volume, and steep time. These ranges are the usual ballpark for one mug at home:

Darjeeling is grown high in the hills, and the leaves are often lighter in body than lowland Assam. That is one reason many cups sit toward the middle or lower end of the black-tea row, not the top. First flush can skew lighter; second flush can feel fuller. For flush differences, see our first flush vs second flush guide.

FSANZ daily guidance (Australia)

Caffeine from coffee, tea, cola, energy drinks, chocolate and other listed sources contributes to the same daily total. FSANZ consumer guidance lists a maximum of 400 mg per day from all sources for adults over 18, including a maximum of 200 mg in a single serving. These figures are maximum levels, not consumption targets.

For pregnancy and breastfeeding, FSANZ lists a maximum of 200 mg per day from all sources. That is the published FSANZ maximum, not personalised medical advice. It is also not a recommendation to “aim for” 200 mg; it is a ceiling in the published guidance.

Count tea with everything else. Three Darjeeling mugs at about 40 to 50 mg each are still a modest slice of a 400 mg adult maximum, but they are not “free” caffeine on top of coffee, cola, or chocolate. A double-shot latte plus two strong teas can stack faster than people expect once you stop treating tea as negligible.

What counts toward the total includes coffee and tea, cola and energy drinks, chocolate, and foods or supplements that list caffeine. Serving size and preparation matter; check the label where an amount is provided, and do not assume every cup matches a table average.

NutriThrive’s live Darjeeling product page currently lists approximately 40 to 50 mg caffeine per cup using 1 to 2 teaspoons, 85 to 90°C water and a 3 to 5 minute steep. That is a preparation-based estimate, not a laboratory result for every cup.

For a fuller daily-total walkthrough, see our dedicated page: how much caffeine per day in Australia (FSANZ).

What changes your cup

Steep time is the lever you feel most. Caffeine dissolves quickly in hot water. A three-minute steep is not the same as six minutes with the same leaf.

Leaf amount matters too. More leaf in the infuser means more caffeine, full stop.

Water temperature changes flavour more than it changes caffeine, but boiling hard and long can extract slightly more overall.

Mug size quietly doubles intake when an “one cup” habit becomes a 300 ml keep-cup filled twice. Count the drink you actually pour.

Lower-caffeine brew tips

If you want a gentler Darjeeling cup without switching to herbal tea:

• Use a little less leaf (closer to 1.5 to 2 g per 200 ml).
• Stop the timer at about 2.5 to 3 minutes instead of pushing past 4.
• Choose a lighter first-flush style cup when aroma matters more than body.
• Try fridge cold brew; many people find the cup tastes softer even though cold brew is still caffeinated.
• Keep afternoon cups smaller if sleep is sensitive.
• Do not “wash” the leaf with a long first steep and then drink a second long steep assuming the caffeine is gone, later steeps are usually lighter, not empty.

These tips lower extraction; they do not make Darjeeling caffeine-free. Green tea is not automatically the lower option either: a heavily dosed green tea can overlap Darjeeling’s range. Compare your actual brew, not the aisle label alone.

For temperatures and ratios, read how to brew Darjeeling tea. For style differences against breakfast blends, see Darjeeling vs English Breakfast.

Stepping down from coffee

Darjeeling is a realistic halfway point if you like a warm ritual but want less caffeine than a double-shot latte habit. You still get a caffeinated cup; you do not usually get coffee’s intensity. Swapping one cafe latte for one Darjeeling mug is a clearer change than adding tea on top of the same coffee load and calling it a reduction.

The taste is different: muscatel notes, lighter body, no milk required (though you can add milk if you prefer). Try it for a week before you judge it as a replacement. If you miss body more than caffeine, brew a second-flush style cup a little stronger rather than jumping straight back to a double shot.

Orders from $49 ship free Australia-wide, so pairing tea with another NutriThrive product is an easy way to hit free shipping if you are stocking the pantry. The tea itself is $7.50 per 100g at /products/black-tea/.

FAQ

Compare prices in our where to buy Darjeeling tea guide.

Written by Neer, founder, NutriThrive Australia. Last updated 4 October 2026.