The 15 Absolute Best Starbucks Chai Drinks, Ranked

The most basic of chai drinks you can order at Starbucks is, well, a chai. Since this is one of Starbucks' base drinks, you won't need to make any modifications unless you want to. This drink uses chai tea bags rather than the chai concentrate used for most other Starbucks chai drinks. Along with these bags, your barista will prepare them by adding ultra-hot water right over the top to begin the steeping process.

When you pick up your cup, you'll notice immediately how hot it is. This is because Starbucks' hot teas use the same hot water tap. While we recommend you allow your chai to cool dramatically before enjoying it, you'll also want to be sure you don't let your chai sit for too long. After all, your chai will come with tea bags still steeping in the water. If you let it go too long, you risk it being too strong.

We like that this chai is pretty cinnamon-forward, but we did not like how thin this base chai feels. We recognize that it is just tea bags and hot water, but to be more enjoyable, we think the drink needs a little extra. Therefore, we recommend adding some milk of your choice and perhaps a little sweetener to brighten the flavor and even thicken the drink. You could even order it with a bit of flavoring if you want.

While some of the secret menu items for chai are seasonal, the Chocolate Cinnamon Chai Latte is a year-round secret menu option. Like the Pumpkin Spice Chai Latte, this one also begins with a chai latte as the base drink. We recommend ordering it without water so you'll have less diluted chai. Specify that you would like whole milk for your milk choice because this will create an ultra-creamy drink. Then, ask for it to be made with cinnamon dolce syrup in quantities of one pump for tall, two pumps for grande, and three for venti. In the same amounts, ask for white mocha sauce. Request that your barista adds whip and cinnamon dolce sprinkles.

You can order this drink hot or iced, but white mocha sauce generally does better when mixed with warm beverages. When you order it warmed, you'll also get frothed milk, which gives your latte an incredibly creamy feel. We love the smoothness of the white mocha because it provides a nice base for the spice of the chai. White mocha is much milder than a regular mocha, so it's the perfect choice for this creamy drink.

Though we liked this secret menu option, we would recommend upping the pump count for your cinnamon dolce to help accentuate those chai flavors even further. You could also ask for an additional pump of regular dark mocha to make this a Tuxedo Chocolate Cinnamon Chai Latte.

When you think about ordering a basic chai from Starbucks, you probably aren't imagining the tea bag variety; the Chai Latte is likely the drink you're imagining. For this simple drink, there is no need to order it any different than what is listed on the menu since this is a Starbucks base drink.

A Chai Latte is simply chai concentrate, water, and milk. You can, however, choose a different type of milk, adjust the temperature, add more chai, and even remove the water. Of course, all of these options are going to be based on your preference, but it's nice to know those customizations are available to you.

We enjoyed this chai latte quite a lot. We found the warm chai mixed with the frothed milk to be very comforting and enjoyable to sip. Although this is essentially the same drink as an iced chai latte (but warm), we found this one to be creamier than the iced chai. It's the perfect drink on a cold, rainy day when your only plans are to snuggle beside a fireplace with a warm book. A chai latte is the epitome of a cozy drink.

Starbucks says that its iconic Frappuccino drink dates back to 1995 when the brand first introduced this blended beverage. Initially, the only two options were mocha and coffee. The drinks were made with Italian roast coffee that had been double brewed on site, and they didn't even have their whipped cream top yet. Of course, that would change, and in 2002, the first non-coffee-based Frappuccino emerged in the line of Frappuccino Blended Crème. And today, you can order a Chai Crème Frappuccino.

While many Frappuccinos do not have caffeine, that is not the case for the Chai Frappuccino since it has tea in it. Even still, we loved this drink. It is extra smooth and tastes nearly like a milkshake. In fact, this milkiness almost overwhelms that chai flavor you love.

The Chai Crème Frappuccino is not a secret menu item, and you can order it right off the menu with no modifications. Please be aware that the creme base is quite heavy, so if you're looking to avoid dairy or have a sensitive stomach, this probably isn't the best choice. Even still, with a simple milk substitution, this drink may be the perfect blended beverage for chai lovers.

Many secret menu chai drinks start with an Iced Chai Latte as their base, but this drink is excellent all on its own. Like the hot chai, an Iced Chai Latte includes the chai base, cold water, and milk.

This drink is lovely as is. We enjoyed how creamy it is, and while the chai is very smooth, it's still perfectly spicy. Like the hot Chai Latte, the iced one is excellent on its own, but if you choose to, there are all kinds of ways you can alter this basic chai latte without changing the entirety of the drink. For example, try out oat milk or soy milk, and request that no water be added. If you do this, you'll end up with an even creamier drink with a deliciously spicy bite.

If you're looking for a smooth, creamy drink that is also icy and delicious, we think you'll absolutely love the Iced Chai Latte.

A Dirty Chai is perhaps the best-known of all secret menu items. In fact, if you order a Dirty Chai and call it by name, there's a chance your barista will know precisely what you're talking about. They may not, but if they do, they will know to add a shot of espresso to your chai latte. Like many other items on this list, a Dirty Chai can be ordered hot or iced; both are delicious. You can change the number of espresso shots in your drink, too. The rumor is that the Dirty Chai was born out of an accident in England in the 1990s. According to coffee legend, the barista accidentally added espresso to the chai, and the forgiving customer drank it anyway. The popularity allegedly spread from there.

We love a Dirty Chai, and our favorite way to order this one is iced. Funny enough, we find that a Dirty Chai with one shot tastes very similar to a regular chai latte with only the slightest coffee taste. Therefore, we would recommend adding at least two shots to get that beautiful mix of both coffee and chai. If you prefer your chai lattes iced like we do, consider ordering extra ice as well. That way, when your ice melts a little faster thanks to the hot espresso, you still have ice to keep your drink cooler longer.

For a drink that takes the dirty chai to a whole other level, get yourself the Hipster Chai Latte. This one can be ordered in either hot or iced varieties. We picked up a venti size because it seemed to have the best balance of the different flavors, but this one could certainly be modified for smaller sizes if needed.

To order this one, you will start with a venti Iced Latte. Ask your barista to use Blonde espresso rather than the standard variety, and include four pumps of chai concentrate and two pumps of white mocha syrup. On top, ask that your barista finish it off with vanilla sweet cream cold foam as well as cinnamon dolce topping. For an added touch of sweetness and an appealing addition to your drink, you can request your barista to add a caramel drizzle inside the cup. We thought this was a nice touch.

Overall, we absolutely loved this drink. We found it exceptionally well balanced, with the chai flavor certainly being there but not nearly as strong. That white mocha sauce adds some delightful sweetness without being too much extra. Unfortunately, we found the cinnamon dolce sprinkles to be mostly decoration, so if you're hoping for more of an intense cinnamon flavor, you may want to add some cinnamon dolce syrup in there, too.

There are many ways to mix chai, syrups, and milk at Starbucks, but our absolute favorite is a rather unexpected option. There are a few different ways to order an Apple Pie Frappuccino, but we, of course, took the chai route. Begin with the base drink of a Chai Frappuccino, ask your barista to line the cup with caramel, add apple brown sugar syrup, and add apple drizzle atop the whipped cream. Like other drinks, be sure to modify the syrup based on the size of the drink you ordered, with a tall getting two pumps, a grande getting three, and a venti receiving four. We were so surprised by this drink, and we absolutely loved it. Starbucks has some excellent secret menu Frappuccinos, but this one is on a whole different level.

This Frappuccino is very sweet and tastes very much like apple pie a la mode due to the richness of the Frappuccino creme base. With the syrup, it definitely has that apple taste to it, but it isn't a fresh apple taste and smell. Instead, it is closer to a gooey apple filling, since the chai brings those apple pie seasonings into the mix. The caramel drizzle is more aesthetic than anything else, but it is an excellent addition anyway. It's essentially a perfect dessert in a cup.