Monthly tea boxes all promise new flavours at your door, but once you look closer the details differ a lot. One box holds a handful of tea bags, another enough loose tea for two cups a day. One lets you pause whenever you like, another asks you to commit for a year. Before you sign up for a tea subscription, these are the things worth checking, with our own Tea Club as a worked example.
1. Loose leaf or tea bags?
This is the first and biggest difference. Loose-leaf tea is made of whole or large pieces of leaf, herbs, flowers and fruit, which have room to open up in the water. You notice it in the aroma and the flavour, and you can often steep the same leaves a second time. Tea bags are quick, but usually hold smaller, broken pieces. Our article on loose-leaf tea versus tea bags explains the difference in the cup.
2. How many grams, and how many cups?
"Three teas a month" says little until you know the weight. A good rule of thumb is about 3 g of loose tea for a 250 ml mug. So:
- 50 g ≈ 16 cups
- 150 g ≈ 50 cups
- a box of 20 tea bags = 20 cups
Compare boxes on cups per month, not on the number of teas. A Tea Club box, for example, holds three 50 g blends plus a 15 g surprise tea: 165 g, or about 55 cups a month. That is almost two cups a day.
3. What does one cup cost?
Divide the monthly price, including shipping, by the number of cups. For the Tea Club: €24.90 a month with free letterbox delivery in the Netherlands, for about 55 cups, comes to roughly €0.45 a cup. In Belgium and Germany shipping is €4, which makes it about €0.53 a cup. Do the same sum for every box you are considering, and check what the first box costs too: many subscriptions, ours included, start with a lower first month (€21.90 for the Tea Club).
4. Who chooses the tea?
Some subscriptions let you pick every tea, others surprise you completely. Somewhere in between often works best: you choose the style, the shop chooses the blends. In our Tea Club you choose one of six clubs, Discovery, Black, Green, Rooibos, Herbal or Fruit, and every month we choose three blends from that world. You keep discovering, without ending up with teas you never drink. Not sure yet? Discovery is a rotating mix across all tea types, and the Rooibos and Herbal clubs are caffeine-free.
5. How flexible is it?
This is where the small print matters most. Check:
- Minimum term. Can you stop after one month, or are you tied in for a year?
- Pausing and skipping. Can you pause whenever you want, for example during a holiday, and decide yourself when to restart?
- Changing style. Can you switch to another kind of tea without cancelling?
- Cancelling. How much notice do you need, and can you do it yourself?
The Tea Club has no minimum term on monthly plans. You can pause anytime, skip a month or switch club whenever you like, and cancel at least 7 days before your next billing date.
6. Delivery: where, how and how fast?
A box that fits through the letterbox saves you waiting at home or a trip to a pickup point. Also check which countries are covered and what shipping costs there. Tea Club boxes are letterbox-sized and go to the Netherlands (free), Belgium and Germany (€4). Orders placed Monday to Friday ship the next working day.
7. Prepaid plans and gifts
If you already know you will stay a while, or you want to give a subscription as a present, look for prepaid options. Tea Club prepaid plans of 3, 6 or 12 months save 5%, 10% or 15% compared with paying monthly, and you still receive one box a month. Read more in our guide to giving a tea subscription as a gift.
8. What is included, and what is not?
Read what is actually in the box. Every Tea Club pack has brewing instructions, and there is a short video for each tea type. A mug is not included: Juliet mugs and the Filter and Lid are optional one-time add-ons at 15% off with a Tea Club plan. Want to brew without guessing? Our guide to brewing loose-leaf tea covers grams, temperature and time for every tea type.
A quick checklist
| Question | What to look for | Tea Club |
|---|---|---|
| Loose leaf or bags? | Loose leaf, for more aroma | Loose leaf, our own blends |
| Amount per month | Enough for your cups | 3 × 50 g + 15 g, about 55 cups |
| Price per cup | Price incl. shipping ÷ cups | About €0.45 in the Netherlands |
| Who chooses? | Your style, their selection | You pick the club, we pick the blends |
| Minimum term | None, or short | None on monthly plans |
| Pause or skip | Anytime, you decide | Anytime |
| Delivery | Letterbox, clear costs | Free in NL, €4 to BE and DE |
| Try first | A lower first box | First month €21.90 |
Is a tea club the right plan for you?
A tea club is made for drinking tea at home and discovering new blends. Looking for tea for your whole team? Office Tea is sized by team, from 5 to 100 people. Compare all our tea plans side by side to see which one fits.
Try the Tea Club for a month
Three 50 g loose-leaf blends and a 15 g surprise tea every month, about 55 cups. €24.90 a month, first month €21.90. No minimum term, pause anytime.