Prices and reviews collected 26 August 2026 from Rishi’s own site, with archived prices back to 2023.
If you have seen people say Rishi’s matcha isn’t what it used to be, here is what we found when we checked.
Short version: the ratings did fall — but everything Rishi sells fell at the same time, including its chamomile. That points at how Rishi collects reviews, not at the tea.
What did change is the price. Rishi’s matcha went up 36% to 78% between mid-2025 and now.
What to buy
| If you want | Buy | Price | Per bowl |
|---|---|---|---|
| Everyday drinking | Everyday Matcha, 30 g | $20.00 | $1.33 |
| Lattes, in volume | Barista Matcha, 100 g | $65.25 | $1.31 |
| A single cultivar | Nishi-san’s Tsuyuhikari, 30 g | $38.00 | $2.53 |
| The top of the range | Matcha Samidori, 30 g | $85.00 | $5.67 |
A bowl is 2 g. Buy the 100 g sizes if you drink it regularly — the 30 g tins cost noticeably more per bowl.
The ratings did fall
Rishi’s own review page shows it clearly:
| Rishi matcha powder | Reviews | Average | Rated 3 or below |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2012–2023 | 113 | 4.93 | none |
| 2024–2026 | 239 | 4.66 | 8% |
Eleven years without a single low review, then one in twelve.
But so did everything else Rishi sells
This is the part that matters:
| Before 2024 | 2024–2026 | |
|---|---|---|
| Matcha powder | 0% low ratings | 8% |
| Rishi’s leaf and sachet teas | 1% | 8% |
| Everything else Rishi sells | 2% | 9% |
| — including herbal teas: chamomile, turmeric, ginger | 2% | 8% |
Rishi’s chamomile got the same rating drop as its matcha. Whatever happened, it did not happen to the tea leaves.
The most likely explanation is that Rishi changed how it collects reviews — the proportion of reviews from verified buyers shifted over the same period. When a shop opens reviews to more people, the average always falls.
What the low reviews actually say
We read all twenty of the low-rated matcha reviews:
| What the review complains about | How many |
|---|---|
| Price | 5 |
| — specifically a price increase | 3 |
| Weak or flat taste | 3 |
| Bitter | 2 |
| “It used to be better” | none |
Not one reviewer says the tea changed. The most common complaint is what it costs.
And the low ratings cluster in the sweetened and latte products rather than the plain matcha:
| Product type | Rated 3 or below |
|---|---|
| Sweet Matcha (sweetened mix) | 21% |
| Barista Matcha (latte blend) | 12% |
| Plain unsweetened matcha | 4% |
If you are buying Rishi matcha to drink plain, the product people are unhappy with is not the one you are buying.
The price is what really changed
Rishi held its matcha prices steady for two years, then raised them sharply in late 2025:
| Product | Was | Now | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ceremonial Matcha, 30 g | $18.00 | $32.00 | +78% |
| Everyday Matcha, 30 g | $12.00 | $20.00 | +67% |
| Teahouse Matcha, 100 g | $68.00 | $104.50 | +54% |
| Barista Matcha, 100 g | $48.00 | $65.25 | +36% |
Everyday Matcha sat at $12.00 across ten consecutive checks from September 2023 to August 2025, then moved twice in a year.
The complaints about price are well founded. The complaints about quality are not supported by anything we could measure.
Rishi is not alone here — the leaf itself has roughly tripled at auction since 2024, and every importer has raised prices. But Rishi’s increases are at the steep end.
Questions people ask
Did Rishi matcha get worse?
The ratings fell, but so did the ratings on everything Rishi sells, including herbal tea. No reviewer says the matcha changed, and the published composition hasn’t. We could not find evidence that the tea is different.
Why is Rishi matcha more expensive now?
It went up 36% to 78% in late 2025. The wholesale price of matcha’s raw leaf roughly tripled between 2024 and 2026.
Which Rishi matcha should I buy?
Everyday Matcha for drinking, Barista for lattes. Buy the 100 g size if you get through it.
Is Rishi’s Sweet Matcha good?
It is the product with by far the most complaints — one review in five is three stars or below. It is a sweetened mix rather than matcha.
Does Rishi name its cultivars?
On some products. Matcha Samidori and Matcha Asahi name theirs; the blends don’t.
Is Rishi matcha worth the price?
At $1.33 a bowl for Everyday Matcha it sits around the middle of the American market. In our matcha brands comparison, the $20 Everyday tin is one of only two entry tins under $0.70 a gram. The premium tins at $5.67 a bowl are competing with specialist shops.
352 reviews of Rishi matcha powder and about 8,500 reviews across the rest of Rishi’s range, read 26 August 2026, with archived prices from September 2023 onward. Per-bowl figures use 2 g.
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