Iced Matcha Latte takes just minutes to make but will keep you energized all day long. This creamy and refreshing green tea powder drink is packed with antioxidants, too. Learn how to make this ice-cold beverage at home that tastes better than Starbucks. {Vegan-Adaptable}

I love sipping Iced Matcha Latte in summertime and warm Matcha Latte in wintertime. I consider this my healthy ritual and is something that I look forward to in the morning. While I still crave my cold brew coffee, I appreciate the stable energy and focus matcha provides.
If you’re looking to switch up your morning beverage, you need to try this iced matcha latte. It’s easy to make your favorite cup at home! I’ll show you my simple method—how to prevent clumps and adjust sweetness to your taste.
Table of Contents

What is Matcha?
Matcha (抹茶)—pronounced as “ma(t)-CHA”— is a very finely ground powder made of green tea leaves. It is the only tea in which the whole leaf is consumed, and because matcha is made from shade-grown tea leaves that are treated with great care, it delivers a more concentrated source of antioxidants and amino acids.
Japan has a long history of consuming matcha but it was first enjoyed in the Japanese tea ceremonies called chanoyu or sado. These days matcha has become one of Japan’s beloved flavors in making all sorts of beverages and desserts. Not only is it visually attractive, but matcha’s unique flavor and health benefits also have contributed to a surge in popularity.
When it comes to making beverages, you can enjoy matcha in pure tea form by mixing it with only hot water, in smoothies, or as a creamy, frothy matcha latte.
If you wish to learn more about matcha, read this post.


How to Make Iced Matcha Latte
The Ingredients You’ll Need
- Matcha, also known as powdered green tea or green tea powder
- Hot water, about 176ºF or 80ºC
- Milk – Whole milk is best but I use 2% in this recipe. For vegan/vegetarian, you can use oat milk or almond milk.
- Simple syrup – All you need is sugar, water, and <5 minutes to make simple syrup! You can use other sweeteners, but I recommend making a big batch of simple syrup.
The Cooking Steps
- Add ice cubes, milk, and simple syrup to a glass cup.
- Whisk matcha and hot water until no lumps remain. The matcha should be smooth and a little foamy.
- Assemble: Pour the matcha mixture into the milk glass. Enjoy!

Matcha Mixing Tips and Tricks
- Always use hot water (not boiling water, which ruins matcha; about 176ºF or 80ºC) for mixing matcha. Cold or room temperature water does not mix well. Because matcha is a fine-grained tea powder, it mixes well but does not dissolve in water.
- Use a super-fine bamboo whisk (it’s called chashen) for mixing matcha. If you are using a regular whisk, sift matcha into a bowl with a fine-mesh strainer before adding hot water to avoid any clumps.
- This is optional, but using a spouted matcha bowl (it’s called katakuchi) makes whisking and pouring much easier than a regular bowl due to its size and shape. I use this beautiful katakuchi from Only Way Is Up.
Where to Buy Matcha
Making matcha beverages at home is cheaper (and healthier) than getting your fix from Starbucks or coffee shops in the long run. So, if you’re looking to incorporate matcha into your wellness routine, it’s worth paying a little more for high-quality matcha powder. These two brands are my favorite:

My personal go-to matcha brand is Ippodo Tea (一保堂) from Kyoto, Japan. They have a store in NYC and you can also purchase their tea and matcha on Amazon.
You can find a small tin or bag of matcha powder imported from Japan at Japanese grocery stores like Mitsuwa, Marukai, and Nijiya. The quality of matcha is generally acceptable.
Read the next section for matcha shopping tips!

Matcha Shopping Tips
These days there are so many brands of matcha available online, but here are a few tips when you’re shopping online.
Matcha Grades
In general, you can find two grades of matcha: Ceremonial or culinary grade. The highest-quality ceremonial grade matcha is used for a tea ceremony and the culinary grade is for cooking and baking.
For beverages like matcha lattes, I recommend ceremonial grade.
What Should I Look For?
Quality matters when it comes to buying matcha powder. First, check the color. The powder should be a vibrant bright green color, not yellowish or brownish-green. The color indicates its quality and its proper storage and shipping.
Also, look into where it was harvested. The regions famous for green tea are Kyoto, Shizuoka, Fukuoka, and Kagoshima prefectures.
Lastly, make sure it’s 100% matcha and avoid matcha products that come with other ingredients such as sugar or natural flavorings.
How Long Does Matcha Keep?
Matcha powder oxidizes quickly, so it’s best to use it within two to three weeks of opening the package.
Oxidized matcha is safe to consume, but it loses its rich flavor and bright vibrant green color. It also won’t carry all the same health benefits over time.
Get a Small Tin, Not a Value Pack
I strongly recommend getting a small tin, about 20-40 grams (0.7-1.4 oz) for making matcha beverages at home. Do not buy a big value pack unless you use a lot of matcha for your cafe or bakery. Even high-quality matcha will become dull with time. Remember that matcha must be used within 2-3 weeks!
A small 20-40 gram tin of premium-quality matcha costs about $30-45 and up. I get this premium-quality matcha (40 g) from Ippodo, which costs $35. One cup of iced or hot matcha latte would roughly cost $2.70 plus milk.
Best Way to Store Matcha
It is important to store matcha away from oxygen, strong scents, light, high temperature, and high humidity.
After opening the package, seal the bag tightly (don’t forget to remove air) and store it inside the cool pantry, and consume it within 2-3 weeks.
I used to store the package of matcha in the refrigerator and freezer, but I learned that the scent of other ingredients can easily transfer inside the refrigerator and freezer. However, for long-term storage, you can freeze the unopened package. Make sure to return it to room temperature before opening.

Recommended Tools to Make This Recipe
- A bamboo whisk – To minimize clumps, I highly recommend getting a bamboo whisk called chasen, which blends matcha and liquid really well without much effort and aerates so that matcha has foam and froth. Alternatively, you can get this flat whisk, which works great for whisking a small amount of dry and wet ingredients.
- A spouted matcha bowl (optional) – Called katakuchi, a spouted bowl is specially designed to make whisking and pouring much easier for matcha. I use this beautiful katakuchi from Only Way Is Up.
Other Matcha Drinks & Desserts

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Iced Matcha Latte
Video
Ingredients
- 1 cup ice cubes
- ¾ cup milk (or substitute oat milk or almond milk)
- 1 Tbsp Homemade Simple Syrup (plus more; follow my recipe; all you need is sugar, water, and 5 minutes!)
- 1½ tsp matcha (green tea powder)
- 2 Tbsp hot water (175ºF, 80ºC)
For the Simple Syrup (sugar-to-water ratio is 1:1)
- ½ cup sugar
- ½ cup water
Instructions
- Gather all the ingredients.
To Make the Simple Syrup
- If you haven‘t made the simple syrup, follow this recipe: Place ½ cup sugar and ½ cup water (equal parts) in a saucepan. Heat over medium heat and whisk until the sugar dissolves completely. Remove from the heat and let cool completely. Transfer it to an airtight container. Simple syrup will last for up to 1 month in the refrigerator.
To Make the Iced Matcha Latte
- To a tall glass (I use this glass), add 1 cup ice cubes and ¾ cup milk.
- If you are sweetening your drink, add 1 Tbsp Homemade Simple Syrup or another choice of sweetener. You can always add more later. Set aside.
- Into a bowl with a pouring spout (I use a katakuchi), add 1½ tsp matcha (green tea powder) and 2 Tbsp hot water (175ºF/80ºC). Optionally, you can sift the matcha to remove any lumps. Tip: Why hot water? Matcha does not dissolve well with cool/cold water.
- Using a bamboo whisk (it‘s called a chasen) or a flat whisk, whisk briskly back and forth, drawing a letter W. Mix until no lumps remain, about 20 seconds. The matcha mixture should be smooth and a little foamy. If it‘s not fluid, you can add a tiny bit of water (a teaspoon at a time) until it‘s a pourable consistency. Then, pour the matcha mixture into the ice-filled milk glass. Tip: Use as little water as required to make a fluid suspension that you can pour into the iced milk. We want to keep a rich, concentrated flavor by limiting the amount of water we use.
To Serve
- Stir and enjoy!
Nutrition
Editor’s Note: This post was originally published on October 5, 2015. It’s been republished with new video and images on August 15, 2023.
Konnichiwa Namiko-san! Thank you for sharing you knowledge and skills on this wonderful website of yours! My family loves your recipes!
Just ordered some matcha from this company on Amazon: Jade Leaf Organic. It looks promising: it’s from Japan, organic, culinary grade, and, as of this writing, a very good price – as low as $3.75 an ounce when purchased in bulk. I’m not affiliated with this brand, we just love matcha in this house and were looking for a better priced product than we can find at our local Japanese grocery store.
We make our matcha lattes with either organic unsweetened vanilla almond milk or homemade organic vanilla oat milk. Both are delicious!
Hope this of help to all,
-Peter-
Hi Peter! Thank you very much for reading Namiko’s post and for your kind feedback!
Namiko and JOC team are so happy to hear you and your family loves JOC recipes!
Thank you for sharing the green tea powder information.🙂
Love matcha! and enjoy home frothed lattes every day. Thank you for sharing this iced latte recipe…didn’t think to liquify the matcha first…makes sense.
Hi Karen! We are glad to hear you enjoy this Iced Green Tea Latte recipe!
Thank you very much for your kind feedback.
I love love love matcha and can’t wait to try this recipe! I was wondering if I could substitute the simple syrup with honey instead to make it a tad bit healthier?
Hi Dee! Sure you can do that. 🙂 Hope you enjoy the recipe!
This reply is for Genus above, from a tea lover: I sometimes get a bit of an upset stomach after consuming matcha too. I am quite sensitive to caffeine and I would wager that it’s actually the caffeine upsetting your stomach after consuming matcha. The caffeine concentration is higher since you are consuming the whole leaf (and all the caffeine in it) instead of a brewed tea where only some of the caffeine comes out of the leaf when you brew it (the exact amount can vary a lot depending on how strongly you brew it). Tea leaves also have 10 types of naturally occurring acids in them (including common ones plants like oxalic and citric acid), which in combination with caffeine can make your stomach feel sour in higher concentrations. Try using less matcha (even as little as half the amount would probably still be good, but milder), or try drinking it more slowly over a longer period of time, or consume it alongside a meal, and you will probably see an improvement in how it makes your stomach feel.
Lion, you’re wonderful. Thanks so much for sharing your tip! That’s true; matcha has high in caffeine. I take a lot of caffeine during the day (coffee, tea, all day long), so I’m probably too immune to the effect of caffeine to notice. 😀
Because I got addicted with matcha, within 2 years I gain weight almost 30kilos. I bought any drink matcha, especially matcha red bean smoothies 5 times a week. And now I try my best on diet program, but still I can’t deny matcha temptation. What should I dooooo ????
Hi Damara! Matcha itself is not sweet, but I think the sugar added to those drinks and smoothies can be too much. Here in the US, we can control how much sugar goes into the drink, like 20%, %50 etc. Maybe that will help. 🙂
Hi Nami,
I have been addictive to Matcha for a while and I am confused about the difference between “料理用抹茶” http://www.marukyu-koyamaen.co.jp/catalog/chamokuroku/HTML5/pc.html#/page/8 and “食品用抹茶” http://www.marukyu-koyamaen.co.jp/catalog/chamokuroku/HTML5/pc.html#/page/10 as shown on the website of Marukyu-Koyamaen. Could you help me with it please?
Regards,
Xue
Hi Xue! They do seem similar, but from the way they describe, 料理用抹茶 is for cooking – it can be for matcha ice cream, matcha pound cake, anything that you would use matcha to cook something. 食品用抹茶 is basically for food product. I assume it’s like matcha candy, matcha latte (as in product), you know the food product that requires matcha, so in a way, it is more commercialized use, as we don’t make 食品 at home. Hope that makes sense. 🙂
Hi Nami,
Thanks for your comprehensive explanations~~~:)
There, I guess I would be better to choose 料理用抹茶 for my homemade treats~~~
Regards,
Xue
Can you use honey rather than simple syrup for this or would that be strange
Hi Paolo! You can, to be healthier option. Honey has the fragrance and taste, so as long as you’re okay with that combination with matcha. 🙂
Love the recipe! I tried to do by myself and arghhh, wasn’t good. But now I can try again! Thank you Nami! Always inspiring me! xoxo
Hi Denise! Hope this recipe will work out for you! Get good matcha – it’s the key. 🙂 It shouldn’t go wrong, especially if you have tasted matcha and like it (since the first timer might think matcha is strange). 🙂
For those of you in the San Mateo, CA area – Suruki market on 4th Ave has culinary grade matcha.
Thank you Linda! Nijiya in San Mateo has it too (if I didn’t take all of it… ????????).
HI, do you have a picture of a good matcha to buy in Japan?
Hi Lety! I like Ippodo. 🙂
http://www.ippodo-tea.co.jp/en/index.html
Can this be made without the simple syrup? What about using honey instead?
Hi Mai! Sure! You can use honey instead (but will taste honey in the latte). 🙂
There’s a great deal going on for ceremonial grade matcha on Amazon by uVernal. They’re selling 2 oz tins for $24.99, but you can get Buy 2, Get 1 Free
Thanks for sharing!
Is there a significant change of taste between high quality matcha and cheaper matcha?
If matcha is sold cheaply, is it not recommended to purchase those brands even if the ingredients say pure matcha powder? I have seen matcha powder sold on ebay that is selling at $20 for 16 oz, by Red Leaf Tea.
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Organic-Matcha-Green-Tea-Powder-16-oz-1lb-FREE-1-3-DAY-EXPEDITED-SHIPPING-/221500936198?hash=item33927c1006:g:0r4AAOSwT6pV55he
Hi Huyen! If I were you, I wouldn’t buy. But I’m from Japan and have tasted the real flavor of matcha all my life and I’m used to the standard matcha flavors. There is no way you can buy matcha for cheap and if you can, I don’t know how it could be possible… The grade can’t be too good. It can be pure matcha (without sugar or any other things included) but it doesn’t mean it’s high quality.
The difference of high quality and low quality matcha is significant. I actually ordered green tea latte at an Asian cafe past weekend and I was in shocked how horrible the matcha tastes like and the color was yellow green. I feel so bad for customers who have tried it for the first time for matcha experience. It will completely ruin. There is no match flavor. It was just bitter green drink. No fragrance, not taste of matcha. They sweeten enough to hide the strong bitter taste but that makes this drink even worse. I’m sure they use cheap matcha to make this drink.
So… if you are a true matcha fan, do not buy this. If you’re new to matcha, I still say don’t buy it…. well I still can’t recommend. I’m sorry! It doesn’t have to be tea ceremony grade (that’s super expensive) but please buy decent matcha from Japan (it makes a huge difference). Starbucks uses “decent” matcha, by the way. 🙂
Is Aiya a good brand? What others do you recommend from online?
I have never tried that brand so I can’t tell. Maeda-en brand is always good. 🙂
http://maeda-en.com/matcha/167-matcha-green-tea-powder.html
You can find them on Amazon as well.
Oh! What is the best way to store matcha? Keeping in a cool place in the cupboard? Keep it in the refridgerator? In the freezer?
Cool place in the pantry, or you can freeze it as well. 🙂
My daughter used to work at Starbucks, so she told me I should try an iced green tea latte with soy unsweetened (it’s not on the menu, but they will make it – also, you have to ask for it to be shaken because the green tea does not mix well in cold, they don’t use a hot base). The soy milk adds a natural sweetness & their matcha blend has some sugar in it already. It was delicious! It is one of my favourite drinks. I also love the hot version. Now I buy matcha & make it myself, much cheaper.
Hi Juiie! Good to hear you have tried it at Starbucks. Yeah, when we order one at Starbucks, green tea powder becomes small balls because they are not dissolved. I don’t know why they don’t premix first… maybe taking a short cut. It’s not so pleasant to drink the tiny balls of matcha. You should definitely use your favorite milk. It’s much cheaper to drink it at home (even though initial investment on buying matcha is painful. 🙂 ).
Can you tell me which brand of Matcha did you used in the Iced Green Tea Latte video? The Maeda-en or the brand from Season of spice? I love your blog. Thanks.
Hi Ann! I feel like I have responded to you but somehow the comment is not added here. I apologize if you have received my response already…
I used the golden tin of Maeda-en for this recipe. It’s higher quality than silver “culinary” level of maeda-en. I wanted to have a really good matcha latte so I bought a higher grade. 🙂