Making iced tea at home is easy but sometimes can be a little messy. Here are my picks for the best iced tea makers to make refreshing cold brew iced tea at home, fuss-free.
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Iced Tea Makers
An iced tea maker comes in super handy when making cold brewed iced tea. It’s basically a pitcher that comes with an infuser, making cold brewing mess-free.
Water goes into the pitcher and loose tea goes into the infuser. Once cold brewed, the infuser comes right out of the pitcher, without having to use a separate strainer.
Don’t forget to use filtered water for a better tasting tea!
Tea Sommelier’s Tip: A cold brew coffee pitcher and a cold brew iced tea pitcher are basically the same thing. They both have infusers but the ones for coffee tend to have finer mesh infusers. My favorite cold brew pitcher to make iced tea is one that’s marketed for coffee.
What to Look for When Buying an Iced Tea Maker
- GLASS or BPA-Free plastic
Glass is preferable but if you’re accident prone like me, BPA-free clear plastic is a good option. - Big and sturdy infuser
The bigger the infuser, the better your tea will taste since it will allow more room for the tea to unfurl and release flavor. Stainless steel infusers are best since they’ll last the longest and are the easiest to clean, but mesh keeps all the tea leaves out of the iced tea. - Easy to clean
Wide pitcher openings make it easier to clean as do infusers and strainers can be removed. - Size
I prefer tall, straight iced tea makers since it makes it much easier to fit inside the refrigerator door.
My Pick for Best Iced Tea Maker:
Photo Credit: amazon.com
Other Recommended Iced Tea Makers:
Photo Credit: amazon.com
Photo Credit: amazon.com
Photo Credit: amazon.com
Photo Credit: amazon.com
Photo Credit: amazon.com
Iced Tea Maker Tips
- Use the best tasting water to make the best tasting tea by using filtered water.
- If you want to have a constant rotation of cold brews in the refrigerator all summer, get two of the same iced tea makers.
- Iced tea makers can make fruit-infused water. Put fruit in the strainer and fill the pitcher with water.
- Iced tea makers can also make fruit-infused tea! Put fruit and tea in the strainer and fill the pitcher with water.
- Use loose tea instead of tea bags to make a more flavorful iced tea.
Questions You May Have
Any kind of tea works great to make cold brew iced tea. Black tea is the classic but green tea and hibiscus are delicious iced.
You can but the infuser is made for loose tea. You can put tea bags or tea sachets directly into the pitcher or into the infuser for easier cleanup.
There are 3 ways I like to make iced tea from scratch.
[1] Iced-chilled – the quickest way to make iced tea
[2] Hot brewed – making hot tea and cooling it down in the refrigerator
[3] Cold brewed – brewed slowly in cold water in the refrigerator for 12 hours
The iced tea maker is perfect for making cold brewed tea.
Use 1 tea bag or 1 tea sachet for each cup of iced tea. Use 1.5 teaspoons of loose tea to make 1 cup of iced tea.
Hi Jee,
Loving your website and emails. I consider myself a tea freak. I’m allergic to caffeine so I drink mainly herbal teas and occasional a decaf tea. I currently use a Westbend Ice Tea Maker but am excited to cold brew instead after reading your article on cold brewing. I have few questions.
1. Can you cold brew at room temperature leaving the tea out on the counter? I like leaving my tea out at room temp in pretty glass containers.
2. Do you have any tips on brewing Hop Tea? I have one I buy at Whole Foods but would like to try making myself. Would love your Insite.
Hi Jennifer, thanks for reading my blog! 1. You technically can cold brew at room temperature but I don’t like to due to possible bacteria growth. 2. Unfortunately, I don’t know much about hop tea so I can’t be of more help.
I’m just getting started with cold brewing my iced tea and am anxious to find out how delicious it is. Thank you for the list of your favorite iced tea makers. The one I purchased today is not on your list, but if I like this cold brewing, I will likely come back to your list and buy a larger one.
Hi Mary, cold brewing is the best! It’s so much better than making hot tea then cooling it down.
Hi DIane, I love the design and the look of the Takeya ice tea maker. You should get one for yourself top!
Jee, thank you for posting about the iced tea makers. I plan on buying one of the Takeya brand as a gift. It's the same concept as the cold brew coffee which we love.
Hi Takeya, love your iced tea maker! No favorite iced tea since they're all my favorites!
Thanks for including our Iced Tea Maker in your roundup. Do you have a favorite iced tea?
Georgia, it was!
A perfect day for iced tea!