Hey there! If you’re a tea brand owner, small-batch roaster, or even a café guy who’s ever stared at a roll of empty tea sachets thinking “wait, will this fit my blend?”, I feel you. I’ve spent the last 8 years on the ground at our tea sachet packing shop, fielding calls at 9 AM from panicking clients who just ordered the wrong size and now have 500 sachets that are either crammed too tight or way too big (looking at you, the client who bought 10x12cm sachets for 2g of white tea—we still laugh about that). Choosing the right sachet size isn’t just “how much tea do I want in there?” It’s part science, part knowing how your customers are actually going to use it, and part not wasting your cash on extra material. Let’s break this down like we’re chatting over a coffee (or a pot of your favorite tea, duh). Sachet for Tea Packing
First off, let’s get one thing straight: there’s no universal “perfect” size. I see it all the time—new clients come in asking for the “standard sachet” and then they’re surprised when it doesn’t work for their smoky Lapsang Souchong that puffs up like a balloon when steeped. So let’s start with the basics that actually matter, not the random sizes the big box stores push.
First, let’s talk about tea volume, but not just the dry weight. Wait, why? Because loose tea leaves aren’t little pellets that stay the same shape—they expand. Like, if you’ve ever put a handful of green tea in a mug and watched it unfurl, you know exactly what I mean. So if you just go by weight, you’re gonna have a bad time. Let’s take an example: 2 grams of regular black tea (nothing too chunky) is about 5-6 cm³ when dry, but once it’s steeped, it doubles in volume. Chunky stuff, like whole-leaf oolong or herbal blends with big dried mint, is way more—2 grams of chunky oolong could be 8-10 cm³ dry, and expand to 15 cm³ when wet. So if you pick a sachet that’s only 6x8cm, that 2g oolong’s gonna burst through the seams when it hits hot water. I’ve seen it happen—client’s sachets split mid-brew, left customers with a mug full of tea leaves, and a one-star review on Amazon. Not the vibe.
Next up: how is your tea being packed? Are you doing single-serve sachets for takeaway? Individual sachets for retail boxes? Or bulk sachets for cafes that steep multiple cups at once? Each use case needs a totally different size. Let’s take single-serve retail sachets first, because that’s what 90% of our small business clients come to us for. For your average everyday tea—black, green, white, the kind you drink from a standard 8oz mug—you’re looking at a sachet that’s roughly 7x10cm (that’s width x length, fyi—we always write size as WxL, not the other way around, because width is how it fits in your mug). Wait, but let’s adjust for weight here: if you’re packing 2.5g of fine green tea (the kind that’s super powdery, barely expands), 6x8cm works. If you’re packing 3.5g of whole-leaf black tea that puffs a bit, 7x10cm is safer. I had a client a month ago who insisted he could use 6x9cm for 3.5g of chunky oolong, and when he tested a prototype, half the sachets burst. We swapped to 7x11cm, and now his reviews say the sachets “hold their shape while brewing” — exactly what you want.
Then there’s those of you doing café or bulk sachets. If a café is using a 12oz pot and wants to steep 5g of tea, you’re not doing a single 7x10cm sachet—you need something bigger, like 8x12cm or even 9x13cm. Wait, but why so big? Because when 5g of whole-leaf black or herbal tea expands, it’s going to take up a lot of space in a pot. If you cram it into a small sachet, the tea can’t circulate properly, so the brew is weak. I learned that the hard way early on—our first big café client ordered tiny sachets, and they complained their brews were too light. We adjusted the size, and their sales went up 18% in two months because customers actually liked how strong their tea was. It’s not magic—it’s space.
Now, let’s talk about small details that most people skip, but make all the difference. First, mesh size? Wait no, size first, but the size ties into mesh. No, wait—seam allowance! Oh my god, that’s a big one I see new clients miss. When you buy a sachet blank, you have to account for the sealed edges. Most sachet blanks have a 0.5cm seam on all sides, so if you pick a sachet that’s 7x10cm before sealing, the actual inside space is 6x9cm. That’s a huge difference! So if you’re calculating, don’t use the full listed size—subtract 1cm total from each dimension for seams. I once had a client order 6x8cm sachets, and when we sealed them, the inside was 5x7cm. He was trying to fit 3g of tea in there, which is impossible, because even 3g of fine tea is 5cm³. He ended up having to reorder everything, which cost him time and cash. Always, always ask for the internal volume, not the external listed size. We tell all our clients that up front, but I still see this mistake all the time.
Another detail: customer behavior. How is your customer using the sachet? Are they tossing it into a mug and leaving it there while they work? Are they using a tea infuser that’s slightly smaller than a mug? Are they even pulling the sachet out after 3 minutes, or leaving it to steep for 10? If someone leaves the sachet in while they drink, it’s going to expand more than if they pull it out. So if your customers are the “let it steep all morning” type, go up a size. I have a client who sells tea for office break rooms, and their customers leave the sachets in the pot for 15 minutes. We size their sachets 1cm bigger than we’d do for retail, and they haven’t had a burst sachet complaint in 3 years.
What about specialty teas? Chunky whole-leaf oolongs, herbal blends with big dried rose hips or chamomile, matcha that’s super fine? Those need special sizing. For whole-leaf oolong, which is big and bulky, you need at least 8x12cm for 5g, because those leaves can expand to almost double their dry size. Matcha, on the other hand, is super fine, so you can get away with smaller sachets—6x9cm for 1.5g is totally fine, because it doesn’t expand much, and you don’t want a tiny tea bag floating around in your mug looking sad. I recently worked with a matcha brand that was using 7x10cm sachets, and they said the matcha was “clumping at the bottom because there was too much extra space”. Swapped to 6x9cm, and they got way less clumping. That’s the kind of small tweak that makes a big difference for your brand’s reviews.
Wait, also: packaging aesthetics. If you’re putting the sachet in a retail box that’s 5cm wide, a sachet that’s 7cm wide is gonna stick out, look messy, and waste space in your packaging. So don’t just think about how it fits in the mug—think about how it looks on the shelf. I had a client who made beautiful tin boxes that were exactly 7cm wide, so we sized his sachet to 6.5cm wide, so it fit perfectly, looked neat in the tin, and the customer could see the tea through the sachet mesh. It’s a tiny thing, but customers notice when a product looks polished, not like it was crammed together last minute.
Let’s run through a quick cheat sheet, because I know you’re skimming (no judgment, I do it too when I’m researching stuff). Here’s what we recommend for common tea types and uses:
- Fine teas (matcha, powder blends): 6x9cm (internal) for 1.5-2.5g, fits standard mug, no clumping.
- Everyday black/green/white tea (2-3.5g, regular leaves): 7x10cm internal, works for single-serve retail, no bursting when steeped.
- Chunky whole-leaf oolong/herbal blends (3.5-5g): 8x12cm internal, gives room to expand, perfect for mugs or small pots.
- Café/ bulk pot sachets (5-7g): 9x13cm internal, holds enough tea for a 12oz pot, circulates water properly.
But wait, the cheat sheet isn’t one-size-fits-all. If you have a super chunky herbal blend with big dried apple slices, you might need 9x12cm even for 3g, because those apple slices are huge. The only way to be 100% sure is to test a prototype. We always tell clients to order 10-20 test sachets, fill them with their actual tea, seal them, steep them, and see what happens. Do they burst? Is the brew too weak? Does the sachet fit nicely in the mug? If it all checks out, that’s your size. If not, tweak the dimensions by 0.5cm at a time. It’s way cheaper to order a few test sachets than 10,000 that are the wrong size.
I’ve had so many clients come to us after wasting thousands on the wrong sachet size, and it’s such an easy fix when you know what to look for. The biggest mistakes I see are: ignoring expansion, not accounting for seam allowance, sizing too small for chunky tea, or not testing before a big bulk order. Look, I get it—you’re busy, you have a brand to build, you don’t have time to test every random size. That’s why we’re here. We’ve packed sachets for every type of tea you can think of, from fine matcha to 10g big-leaf pu-erh for travel. We can help you calculate the exact size you need, no guesswork, no wasted cash.
If you’re tired of sachets that burst mid-brew, or tea that’s too weak because it’s crammed in too tight, or packaging that looks messy because the sachet is the wrong width, hit us up to chat. We don’t do pushy sales stuff—we just give honest advice, because at the end of the day, our success is tied to yours. If your tea tastes good and your sachets work, you’ll come back, and that’s way better than a one-time bulk order.
Packaging Machine References:
- Tea & Coffee Trade Journal, “Packaging Best Practices for Specialty Loose-Leaf Tea”, 2022.
- International Tea Committee, “Guidelines for Tea Packaging and Brewing Efficiency”, 2021.
- Flexible Packaging Association, “Best Practices for Sachet Design and Volume Calculation”, 2020.
Hangzhou Wish Import & Export Trading Co., Ltd.
As one of the most professional sachet for tea packing manufacturers and suppliers in China, we’re featured by quality products and good price. Please rest assured to wholesale bulk cheap sachet for tea packing made in China here from our factory. Customized orders are welcome.
Address: Room 418, Yilong Business Building, Shangcheng District, Hangzhou City, Zhejiang Province
E-mail: chris@hzwishpack.com
WebSite: https://www.ecopacky.com/
