Drinks
Calories in Chai
One cup of chai has about 34 kcal, with 0.8 g of protein, 5.4 g of carbohydrate and 1.1 g of fat. The figure is from the Indian Nutrient Databank and describes a light cup: tea brewed in water with 25 ml of milk and 1 teaspoon of sugar. A milkier or sweeter cup has more.
Nutrition in 1 cup of chai
| Nutrient | 1 cup of chai | 2 cups of chai |
|---|---|---|
| Energy | 34 kcal | 68 kcal |
| Protein | 0.8 g | 1.6 g |
| Carbohydrate (available) | 5.4 g | 10.8 g |
| Total fat | 1.1 g | 2.2 g |
| Dietary fibre | 0 g | 0 g |
| Sugars | 5.4 g | 10.8 g |
Of this energy, about 62% comes from carbohydrate, 29% from fat and 9% from protein.
1 cup of chai is about 2% of the daily energy requirement of a sedentary adult man and 2% of a sedentary adult woman's (ICMR-NIN, 2020).
For comparison, ICMR-NIN's Dietary Guidelines for Indians list 1 cup, made with 2 teaspoons of sugar and 50 ml of toned milk at about 75 kcal.
These figures are from the Indian Nutrient Databank (INDB), which calculates each dish from a standard recipe using Indian food composition data. They describe that recipe and that serving: a larger portion, or more oil, ghee or sugar, gives more. Source: Vijayakumar A, Dubasi HB, Awasthi A, Jaacks LM. Development of an Indian Food Composition Database. Current Developments in Nutrition. 2024;8(7):103790 (Indian Nutrient Databank, INDB).
What this figure covers
The 34 kcal belongs to one recipe, and it is a thin one. The databank brews 2 cups of tea from water, 50 ml of milk and 2 teaspoons of sugar, so each cup gets 25 ml of milk and 1 teaspoon of sugar. Many kitchens and most tea stalls pour far more milk than that. ICMR-NIN's Dietary Guidelines for Indians put a cup of tea at 75 kcal, but that cup is made with 2 teaspoons of sugar and 50 ml of toned milk: twice the sugar and twice the milk of this recipe. Each figure is right for the cup it describes, and yours sits wherever your own milk and sugar put it.
Tea leaves and water bring almost nothing, so every calorie in the cup comes from the two things added to it. Carbohydrate supplies 62% of the energy, fat 29% and protein 9%. The teaspoon of sugar alone is about 16 kcal, close to half the cup, and the 25 ml of milk supplies the rest, along with all of the fat and the 0.8 g of protein. A calorie count for chai is really a count of milk and sugar: change either one and the number moves at once.
What goes into one serving
The recipe INDB analysed makes 2 cups. These are its main ingredients; spices, salt and water are left out.
| Ingredient | In the recipe | In 1 cup of chai |
|---|---|---|
| Milk | 50 ml | 25 ml |
| Sugar | 2 tsp | 1 tsp |
What changes the number
- 01
Teaspoons of sugar
Each level teaspoon of sugar is about 16 kcal. The recipe's cup has 1 teaspoon; with one more the same cup comes to 50 kcal, and with two more it reaches 66 kcal, nearly double where it started. Nothing else changes a cup of chai as quickly.
- 02
How much milk goes in
The recipe uses 25 ml of milk a cup, which makes a watery chai. A cup that is half milk, or a doodh patti chai boiled in milk alone, carries several times that amount, and with it more fat, more protein and more calories. Full-cream and buffalo milk add more than toned milk does.
- 03
The size of the cup
A tea cup at home, a steel tumbler, a cutting chai glass and an office mug hold very different amounts. The figure is for one tea cup of the recipe; half a cup is about 17 kcal, and a large mug filled from the same pan is simply more of the same.
- 04
What is eaten with it
Biscuits, rusk, namkeen and pakoras usually travel with chai, and any of them can outweigh the tea itself. They are not inside the 34 kcal, so count them on their own.
How chai compares
Other dishes of the same kind, one serving each, lightest first. Serving sizes differ, so read the serving before the number.
| Dish | One serving | Energy (kcal) | Protein (g) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chai | 1 cup of chai | 34 | 0.8 |
| Jal Jeera | 1 glass of jal jeera | 42 | 0.6 |
| Kashmiri Kahwa | 1 cup of Kashmiri kahwa | 64 | 0.4 |
| Nimbu Pani | 1 glass of nimbu pani | 73 | 0.1 |
| Salted Lassi | 1 glass of salted lassi | 80 | 5.7 |
| Aam Panna | 1 glass of aam panna | 96 | 0.4 |
| Coffee | 1 cup of coffee | 104 | 2.9 |
| Sattu Drink | 1 glass of sattu drink | 125 | 3 |
| Sweet Lassi | 1 glass of sweet lassi | 158 | 5.7 |
| Mango Milkshake | 1 glass of mango milkshake | 202 | 6.1 |
| Cold Coffee | 1 glass of cold coffee | 207 | 4.8 |
| Banana Milkshake | 1 glass of banana milkshake | 226 | 6.4 |
| Thandai | 1 glass of thandai | 256 | 9.1 |
| Kesar Milk | 1 glass of kesar milk | 268 | 8.3 |
In a meal and in a day
One cup of this chai is about 2% of a sedentary adult's daily energy requirement, for a man or a woman, which is small. Chai is rarely one cup, though. Two cups come to 68 kcal and three to 102 kcal, and if each cup has an extra teaspoon of sugar the day's tea adds up faster than the single-cup figure suggests. With 0.8 g of protein and no fibre, chai does not fill anyone up or stand in for breakfast; it is a drink that sits beside food. Count it by the number of cups and the sugar in each.
Ways to keep it lighter
- Cut the sugar by half a teaspoon at a time over a few weeks, and let the taste for sweetness adjust.
- Keep the cup small if the chai is milky and sweet, and stop refilling a large mug.
- Use toned milk in place of full-cream milk for the same colour with less fat.
- Lean on ginger, cardamom or tulsi for flavour so the cup needs less sugar.
- Decide how many cups the day gets, since three sweet cups count for more than one.
Before you rely on the number
All 5.4 g of carbohydrate in this cup is sugar, the teaspoon that is added plus the milk's own. Three such cups come to 16.2 g, and sweeter cups raise it quickly, so for a regular tea drinker the sugar matters more than the calories. Chai brings little else: under 1 g of protein and no fibre. Anyone managing diabetes should keep to the sugar and milk allowance set by their doctor or dietitian.
Food composition is general information, not a diet plan. Anyone managing a medical condition should plan their diet with a doctor or a registered dietitian.
Chai: common questions
How many calories are in one cup of tea with milk and sugar?
About 34 kcal for a light cup made with 25 ml of milk and 1 teaspoon of sugar, going by the Indian Nutrient Databank's recipe. A cup with more milk and more sugar is correspondingly heavier, and a tea-stall cup that is mostly milk is heavier still. The number follows the milk and the sugar, not the tea.
How many calories are in 2 or 3 cups of chai a day?
Two cups of the reference chai have about 68 kcal and three have about 102 kcal, with 2.4 g of protein and 3.3 g of fat across the three. If every cup carries an extra teaspoon of sugar, each one is 50 kcal, so the day's total climbs with the sweetness as much as with the number of cups.
How many calories does an extra teaspoon of sugar add to chai?
About 16 kcal for each level teaspoon. The reference cup with 1 teaspoon has 34 kcal; the same cup with one more teaspoon has 50 kcal, and with two more it has 66 kcal. Taking the sugar out altogether leaves only the calories of the milk.
Is chai fattening?
A light cup at 34 kcal is a small part of a day and fits most ways of eating. What changes the picture is quantity: several large, milky, sweet cups and the snacks eaten with them. Chai does not add or remove weight by itself; the total of the day's food and drink decides that.
The recipe, the ingredients and related reading
Masala Chai (Spiced Milk Tea)
The recipe on this site, step by step.
Milk: nutrition per 100 g
Nutrients per 100 g, from IFCT 2017.
Is Tea Good for Health? Chai, Iron Absorption and How Many Cups
The portion-by-portion answer, in the NNWA journal.
How Much Sugar Is Safe per Day? WHO Limits in Teaspoons and Indian Foods
The portion-by-portion answer, in the NNWA journal.
Indian food calorie counter
Add up a whole plate in rotis, katoris and cups.
Calories in every dish
All the cooked dishes, with calories per serving.
Learn to read a plate
Certification in Nutrition
Estimating what is on a plate and turning it into a meal plan is taught in this NNWA course.