Vietnamese Green Tea: What It Is and How to Buy It

Vietnamese green tea comes from the same Camellia sinensis plant as green tea from anywhere else. What sets it apart is where it grows and how people scent and drink it. In Vietnamese, green tea is trà xanh, and jasmine tea is trà lài.

What is Vietnamese green tea?

It’s tea grown in Vietnam and made the way green tea is made elsewhere: the leaves are steamed, pan-fried and dried, but not fermented, as the National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health (NCCIH) describes. VnEconomy reports that Vietnam has about 128,000 hectares of tea and exported 136,952 tons in 2025, earning nearly $238 million. Those numbers cover all tea, not only green.

A 2026 study says tea grows mainly in the northern mountains and the Central Highlands, and that it supports around 400,000 smallholders.

Where is Vietnamese green tea grown?

These are the areas we could document. Province names follow each source and may have changed since.

Area	Known for	What reports say
Thai Nguyen	Green tea	More than 24,000 hectares and over 24% of Vietnam’s fresh tea bud output (2026)
Tan Cuong, in Thai Nguyen	Its best-known green tea area	Protected geographical indication, also protected in the EU under the EU-Vietnam trade agreement
Suoi Giang, listed under Yen Bai in 2022	Shan Tuyet tea	Geographical indication granted in 2022, with about 400 ancient trees aged 100 to 350 years
Hoang Su Phi, in Ha Giang as of 2019	Shan Tuyet tea	Ancient trees, some over 200 years old, recognized as heritage trees

Thai Nguyen’s tea is mainly sold within Vietnam, according to a 2019 study, while Vietnamese tea overall leans toward export. So a tea labeled “product of Vietnam” isn’t necessarily from Thai Nguyen.

What are lotus and jasmine scented teas?

Lotus tea is green tea scented with lotus flowers. A prized version comes from Hanoi’s West Lake. According to the Vietnam News Agency, artisans pick the flowers early in the morning, separate the anthers, and layer them with high-grade dried green tea. They seal the batch for about two days, then swap in fresh anthers. This repeats seven or eight times over three weeks or more. The season runs from late May to September.

Jasmine tea is a scented tea, made by adding flowers to tea. A 2021 study tested jasmine teas, including ones from Thai Nguyen and Lam Dong.

How is green tea drunk in Vietnam?

Hot tea is the traditional way, according to a Vietnamese researcher quoted by VietNamNet in 2012. He called iced tea a newer trend. The same article says many people still make tea from fresh leaves and branches.

Today trà đá, or iced tea, is a popular, low-cost drink. Vietcetera describes sidewalk stalls with low plastic stools and says Saigon’s street food stalls often serve it free.

To brew it at home, start the way you would with other green tea. Our green and black tea guide has temperatures and times.

Does Vietnamese tea have caffeine?

Yes. NCCIH notes that green tea contains caffeine, and USDA data works out to about 29 mg in 8 oz of brewed green tea. We found no per-cup figure for Vietnamese green tea specifically, so use that as a rough guide. Lotus and jasmine teas start from tea leaves, so expect caffeine there too.

Some Vietnamese “teas” aren’t from the tea plant at all, such as artichoke tea (trà atisô). The caffeine figure above doesn’t apply to those.

What are the benefits of Vietnamese green tea?

We found no proven benefit for Vietnamese green tea specifically. Two studies are worth knowing about, with limits:

• Hanoi cohort: a study of 42,146 people in northern Vietnam, followed for a median of 11 years, linked more green tea with a slightly lower risk of death. The link was clear in men but not in women. This kind of study can’t prove the tea was the reason, and the authors warn that other lifestyle factors may inflate the result.
• Lab analysis: the 2021 study found much higher phenolic levels in two Thai Nguyen green teas than in one decaffeinated Chinese tea bag sold in the US. That small comparison of loose tea with a decaf bag doesn’t show a health effect.

In general, NCCIH says definite conclusions can’t yet be reached on most uses of green tea.

How do you buy Vietnamese green tea?

• Check the origin: look for a named province or area, such as Thai Nguyen or Tan Cuong, not just “Vietnam.” For Tan Cuong, ask how the seller verifies the origin.
• Read the ingredients: with lotus or jasmine tea, see whether the label lists real flowers or added flavoring.
• Look for certification: VietGAP is a Vietnamese farming standard, and Thai Nguyen is working to expand it. A 2019 study there found certified growers earned more.
• Ask about testing: a 2022 study found pesticide violations in 26 of 106 teas from several origins. Vietnamese teas were among those flagged, behind Taiwan and China. If this matters to you, ask the seller for residue test results.

What are some Vietnamese green tea brands?

Two names you may see are below. This isn’t a ranking, and we haven’t tested either one.

• Vinatea: the Vietnam National Tea Corporation. It says it’s the largest company in Vietnam’s tea industry, with more than 4,300 hectares of tea, though another line on its site says over 4,700. It also says it trades in more than 50 countries and territories.
• Phuc Long: a Vietnamese tea and coffee chain. Masan Group, which reported an 85% stake in 2022, said that year that it was selling Phuc Long packaged tea through its Win and WinMart+ stores.