Explainer · Recipe and cost

The matcha latte, at home.

Two grams of matcha, a splash of hot water, a cup of steamed milk. The cafe latte in three minutes, the ratios for every style, and what it costs against the $8.79 cafe average.

LLauren PollockOperations manager, TeafyPublished 11 November 20266 min read

A hot matcha latte with latte art in a ceramic cup next to a small bowl of matcha and a bamboo whisk

The short answer

Sift 2 g of matcha into a mug, whisk it with 40 ml of water at about 80°C until smooth, then pour in 180 ml of milk steamed to about 60°C. Sweeten if you like. At home that costs about $1.30 to $3 a cup depending on the matcha and milk, against an average cafe matcha latte of $8.79 in 2026 (Square data).

In this guide
  1. Recipe card
  2. What you need to know
  3. Ratios for every style
  4. No whisk? Three ways that work
  5. Pick your matcha and milk
  6. What it costs: cafe vs home
  7. Why cafe matcha costs more
  8. Fixes for common latte problems
  9. Questions people ask
  10. Sources

Recipe card

Matcha latte

Prep3 min
Caffeineabout 64 mg
Cost at homefrom about $1.30
Serves1 cup
Serves1

Ingredients

  • 2 g matcha (1 level teaspoon is about 2 g)
  • 40 ml water at about 80°C
  • 180 ml milk
  • Honey, maple or vanilla syrup to taste (optional)

Method

Tap a step to tick it off.

  1. Sift the matcha into a wide mug or bowl.
  2. Add the 80°C water and whisk in a quick M or W motion for 20 to 30 seconds, until smooth with a fine foam.
  3. Heat the milk to about 60°C and froth it with a steam wand, a handheld frother or by shaking it in a sealed jar.
  4. Pour the milk into the matcha, holding back the foam with a spoon, then spoon the foam on top.
  5. Taste, then sweeten if you like. Stir syrup into the matcha shot so it mixes evenly.

What you need to know

A cafe latte in four moves
Sift2 g into a wide mug. The single best fix for lumps.
Whisk40 ml of 80°C water, 20 to 30 seconds, M or W motion.
Steam180 ml of milk to about 60°C. Hotter tastes cooked.
PourMilk into matcha, foam on top. Sweeten to taste.

That is the whole method. Everything else on this page is about getting it to taste exactly how you like it.

Ratios for every style

Style
Matcha
Water
Milk
Everyday latte
2 g
40 ml
180 ml
Strong, cafe style
3 to 4 g
40 ml
180 ml
Iced latte
2 g
40 ml
180 ml plus ice
Small and strong, cortado style
2 g
30 ml
60 ml
Gentle, for beginners
1 g
30 ml
200 ml

No whisk? Three ways that work

Tool
How
Result
Handheld milk frother
Froth the matcha with the 40 ml of water for 15 seconds
Smooth, a few tiny bubbles
Shaker jar
Matcha and water in a sealed jar, shake hard 20 seconds
Smooth; perfect for iced
Small whisk or fork
Make a paste with 10 ml of water first, then add the rest
Works in a pinch; sift first

Pick your matcha and milk

Which matcha for a latte?

Our tasting notes, scored 1 to 5.

Matcha punchSweetnessSmoothnessColour in milkValue
Superior Culinary
Bold through milk.
Ceremonial Grade
Smoother and sweeter.
Kyoto Uji
Best whisked straight.

What it costs: cafe vs home

$8.79average cafe matcha latte, 2026
$7.57average iced coffee
$5.83average coffee
$1.30a home latte, culinary and dairy

Square's sales data, reported by ChannelLife in 2026, found matcha was the most expensive drink on the cafe menu. Cafe owners have been open about why: SBS News reported in October 2025 that one Melbourne cafe owner had seen the price of top tier Japanese matcha rise by more than a quarter in twelve months, and warned matcha lattes could pass $12.

Matcha
Price for 50 g
Matcha per 2 g latte
With milk, about $0.40
Superior Culinary
$21.99
$0.88
about $1.28
Ceremonial Grade
$31.99
$1.28
about $1.68
Kyoto Uji Okumidori
$54.95
$2.20
about $2.60

Teafy prices, November 2026. Milk assumes about 200 ml of dairy at typical supermarket prices; barista oat costs a little more.

A bamboo whisk and holder is a one off $32.99. At cafe prices it pays for itself in about five homemade lattes.

Why cafe matcha costs more

  1. More matcha per cup. Cafes often use 3 to 5 g to stand up to a big cup of milk.
  2. Rent, wages and milk. The same costs behind every coffee.
  3. Waste. Opened matcha fades within weeks, and cafes bin what goes dull.
  4. The 2026 harvest. First flush prices roughly doubled in Kagoshima and rose about 70% in Shizuoka (MAFF).

Fixes for common latte problems

Problem
Fix
Lumpy
Sift, and always make the matcha shot before it meets milk
Bitter
Water too hot; use 80°C. Or try 1.5 g
Weak and milky
Use 3 g, or cut the milk to 150 ml
Flat, no foam
Barista milk, heated to 60°C, frothed before pouring
Dull khaki colour
Old matcha. Fresh powder makes a bright latte
When Australians search matcha latte

Monthly Google searches in Australia for matcha latte.

OctNovDecJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSep
matcha latte · about 14,800 at peak

Peak month for matcha latte: Nov. Quietest: Sep.

Google Ads Keyword Planner, Australia, all languages, Google Search. Monthly figures are Google estimates, rounded into ranges.

Questions people ask

How do you make a matcha latte at home?
Sift 2 g of matcha into a mug, whisk with 40 ml of water at about 80°C until smooth, then add 180 ml of milk steamed to about 60°C.
How much matcha do you put in a latte?
About 2 g, a level teaspoon, for an everyday latte. Cafes often use 3 to 4 g for a stronger cup.
Can you make a matcha latte without a whisk?
Yes. Use a handheld milk frother, or shake the matcha and water hard in a sealed jar.
How much does a matcha latte cost in Australia?
The average cafe matcha latte was $8.79 in 2026 (Square data). At home, about $1.30 to $3 depending on the matcha and milk.
What milk is best for a matcha latte?
Barista oat milk is the most popular; full cream dairy froths best. See our milk guide for more.
How much caffeine is in a matcha latte?
About 64 mg with 2 g of matcha, at 32 mg per gram.
L

Lauren Pollock

Operations manager, Teafy

Lauren is the operations manager at Teafy. She writes the explainers and comparisons, the side by side pages that settle a question in a few minutes.

Sources

  1. ChannelLife, Australia coffee sales fall as prices climb higher, Square data, 2026
  2. SBS News, Australian matcha demand and cafe prices, 25 October 2025
  3. Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (MAFF), 茶をめぐる情勢, October 2026
  4. MEXT Food Composition Database, matcha (16035): caffeine 3.2 g per 100 g
  5. Google Ads Keyword Planner, Australia, searches October 2025 to September 2026, checked 11 November 2026

We update this page when the numbers change, and date every change here.

Teas in this guide

Superior Culinary Grade MatchaFirst and second harvest, bead milled. Built for lattes and baking.From $21.99Ceremonial Grade MatchaFrom our family farm in Shizuoka. Stone milled, first flush, 25 bowls a pouch.From $31.99Bamboo Chasen, Holder and SpoonMade in Japan. The whisk, the stand that keeps it in shape, and the scoop.From $32.99

Keep reading

Four glasses of matcha latte made with different milks lined up on a bench beside cartonsBest milk for matchaBy Lauren PollockA tall glass of iced matcha latte with green matcha swirling into milk over ice on a sunny benchIced matcha latteBy Melissa TzountzourkasA bowl of whisked bright green matcha with a bamboo whisk on one side of a kitchen bench and a baking bowl with culinary matcha on the otherCeremonial grade matchaBy Eric HuangHands whisking bright green matcha into a fine foam in a ceramic bowl with a bamboo chasenHow to make matchaBy Eric Huang