A few years ago, I did a comparison between Starbucks Vanilla Chai Tea Lattes and Dunkin Donuts Vanilla Chai Lattes. Years later, Vanilla Chai is still one of my favorite hot drinks to enjoy. For just as many years, I’ve been trying to make Starbucks Vanilla Chai Tea Lattes at home. I’ve tried various recipes using different chai teas, vanilla chai mixes, and chai concentrates, but none of them seemed to come out just right. They didn’t have the same kick or the same strength. They were just missing something.

So finally, I decided, “Why reinvent the wheel?” As long as I can remember, Starbucks has been happy to sell me the various syrups and ingredients they use to make their clever caffeinated concoctions. I learned that when I discovered how to make Starbucks Salted Caramel Hot Chocolate.

Today, I stopped by the local ‘Bucks and picked up a box of their TAZO Chai Tea Latte concentrate. They also sell TAZO Chai Tea Latte Concentrate on the Starbucks online store. I already had a bottle of Vanilla Torani Syrup in my cupboards. If you don’t have vanilla syrup, Starbucks offers that and sugar-free vanilla syrup online for $9.95 as well. With milk already in the fridge, I had all the ingredients I needed to make a Starbucks Vanilla Chai Tea Latte.

I got home and promptly threw the ingredients into my Cocomotion (seriously, if you don’t have one of these, get one now. You will thank me.) If you don’t have a Cocomotion, you can either microwave in a microwave safe mug or heat it on the stove.

Just a few minutes later, I had a vanilla chai tea latte that tastes exactly like what I pay $3.50 for in the coffee shop. Except this time, it costs way less. The chai tea concentrate costs just $4.95 and will make about 4 grande-sized vanilla chais. The cost of the milk and vanilla syrup work out to just a few cents when you divide it out; let’s say, about $0.25. When it’s all added up, I save over $2 per chai by buying the ingredients and making it at home. If I treat myself to two grande vanilla chais a week, that works out to saving $16/month and $192/year, not to mention saving money on the gas I’d need to drive to Starbucks. Not having to wait in line is a bonus as well.

Another nice perk is that you can customize your chai latte to be stronger or weaker just by adding more or less chai tea latte concentrate. I’m thinking about playing around with some other syrup flavors as well, like a Salted Caramel Chai Tea or Hazeulnut Chai Tea – don’t those sound good?

“Just Like Starbucks” Vanilla Chai Tea Latte Recipe

Note: You can follow this same recipe, but leave out the vanilla syrup to make a regular Starbucks Chai Tea Latte.

Some Starbucks stores add water to their chai tea lattes. Rumor is that the “official” Starbucks Chai Tea Latte Recipe calls for adding hot water after the chai to help the chai spice flavor come out. I’ve tried it with water and it may be a bit spicier, but I prefer it with milk.

Alternate Starbucks Chai Tea Latte Recipe

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We’re dusting this one off from the archives. If you’ve ever wondered how to make Starbucks Salted Caramel Hot Chocolate at home, here’s how: “Just Like Starbucks” Salted Caramel Hot Chocolate Recipe “Just Like Starbucks” Salted Caramel Hot Chocolate (serves 1 ) Ingredients: 1 cup of milk 2-3 tablespoons Hershey’s Chocolate Syrup 1 teaspoon Toffee Nut Syrup… Continue reading →