India may still run on chai, but the country’s tea habits are becoming far more adventurous. From wellness brews and kombucha to fruit-infused ready-to-drink teas, consumers are increasingly looking beyond the traditional cup while holding firmly onto the rituals that have defined Indian tea culture for generations. Adrak chai continues to be India’s go-to cup, followed by black tea, elaichi tea, green tea and masala chai. While traditional tea continues to dominate overall consumption, newer formats such as Ready-to-Drink teas are reshaping the category, growing 109% year-on-year.
India Is Entering Its Most Experimental Tea Era Yet
Tea experimentation is no longer limited to cafés and specialty stores. Peach Tea emerged as India’s fastest-growing tea flavour, recording more than 62x growth year-on-year. Other fast-rising favourites included Blue Pea Tea, Kombucha, Tulsi Tea and Green Tea, signalling growing interest in functional beverages, wellness-led consumption and globally inspired flavours.
The biggest winner has been convenience. Ready-to-Drink Tea grew 109% YoY, making it the fastest-growing tea segment on Instamart as consumers increasingly reach for grab-and-go formats that fit into busy lifestyles.
But India Still Runs on Chai
For all the experimentation, traditional tea remains firmly at the heart of India’s tea culture.
· The top five tea varieties nationally are Adrak Chai, Plain Black Tea, Elaichi Tea, Green Tea and Masala Chai. In fact, Adrak Chai featured among the most-ordered tea varieties across every major city, reinforcing its position as India’s most universal tea preference
· Bengaluru leads India’s tea obsession. Mumbai and Hyderabad follow as the country’s second and third-largest tea-obsessed cities
· While metros continue to drive overall volume, some of the fastest growth is coming from smaller cities. Bhubaneswar, Thiruvananthapuram and Kochi lead the charge
· Sunday is India’s biggest tea-shopping day, followed by Saturday and Thursday
All insights are derived from an analysis of Instamart orders placed between June 2025 and June 2026 across 130+ Indian cities. All metrics are indexed or relative; no absolute order volumes are disclosed.