Popular AriZona Tea Flavors, Ranked Worst To Best

Sure, you've probably tasted AriZona's Lemon Iced Tea and the iconic Green Tea with Ginseng and Honey. You may have even dabbled with some of the brand's fruit juice cocktails, Arnold Palmer Half & Half teas, and accidentally picked up a diet tea once or twice. But that's just skimming the surface of all the drinks AriZona offers.

I set out to try as many AriZona teas and drinks as I could lay my hands on, so you know which are worth trying and which you can pass on. The lineup includes all of AriZona's most popular drinks, as well as the regular cast of supporting flavors, and even a few deeper cuts that you might not have tried yet. Nearly 4 gallons of AriZona beverages were consumed over a week to bring you the most popular AriZona tea flavors, ranked from worst to best. Here's how they all stacked up.

As a regular Diet Coke drinker, I can attest that I have very little issue with drinks that contain synthetic sweeteners — unless they don't taste good. Of course, in a side-by-side comparison with AriZona's regular Peach Tea, it's clear that the diet version is made with sugar substitutes (sucralose and acesulfame potassium, to be exact), although it's so apparent, you could probably tell without comparing the two.

Interestingly, the Diet Peach Tea is made with peach juice from concentrate — albeit the drink is less than 1% juice. But there is no actual peach juice in the regular Peach Tea. Regular Peach Tea has 120 calories per 12-ounce serving, but Diet Peach Tea only has 5, so you can see why it might be the more attractive choice on paper. Ultimately, it is the synthetic sweetener flavor that lets this one down as it is too overpowering for me to enjoy an entire can's worth of AriZona Diet Peach Tea.

If you're a fan of orange juice or even orange soda, you may be disappointed to hear that AriZona's Orangeade is probably the worst version of both, combined. That's not to say it's not drinkable — it is — but it is underwhelming at best. Imagine a watered-down orange soda, without the carbonation, or an orange juice with half the flavor. Both are technically drinkable but lack that extra punch to make them enjoyable.

For comparison's sake, an 8-ounce serving of orange juice or orange soda is about 110 calories, and AriZona's Orangeade is about 90 calories. Choosing this can of AriZona will save a few calories, but at what cost? The Orangeade also has actual orange juice from concentrate in it, claiming to contain 10% juice. While it also contains additional flavoring, the orange taste is realistic, and there's no lingering synthetic sweetener flavor, which is perhaps the drink's saving grace. However, you'd be better off going for 100% orange juice to get the additional nutrients or an orange soda for orange-flavored carbonation.

Since the Diet Arnold Palmer has only 10 calories per serving, it might not be surprising for the half lemonade portion of this drink to come across a little stronger than the half iced tea portion. The lemony flavor is slightly more bitter than you'd expect from a typical lemonade, especially one mixed with tea. Although I can see that being appealing to people who like lemon in their tea, but not the overbearing sweetness of lemonade.

At 10 calories per 12-ounce serving, this is perhaps what an iced tea with lemon juice should taste like, except for the inclusion of sucralose, which almost seems unnecessary. I get that it's supposed to have some sweetness to imitate actual lemonade, but it's not especially sweet or enjoyable. Instead, I find myself wishing this was just an unsweetened iced tea with lemon juice and saving the Arnold Palmer for when I'm actually in the mood for something lemony and sweet.

While AriZona's Diet Green Tea doesn't boast the inclusion of honey along with the ginseng on the front of the can, it's still included in the tea's ingredients list. Although there's only 1 gram of total carbohydrates, so it's safe to assume that it's not very much honey. Instead, it's sweetened with sucralose and acesulfame potassium, like many of the other lower-calorie drinks in AriZona's lineup. Strangely enough, the nutrition facts on the back of the 22-ounce can say the Diet Green Tea has zero calories per 12-ounce serving and 10 calories per 22-ounce can.

As far as the flavor goes, the Diet Green Tea isn't nearly as bold as its more popular non-diet inspiration. There's less of everything; less honey-drenched sweetness, less big tea flavor, and ultimately, less to enjoy overall. If you were strictly watching your sugar intake, or if this was the only Green Tea option available, it is still drinkable. But given that this version already has some fierce competition from the classic — considered by many to be the best AriZona Iced Tea flavor – I can't help but be a little disappointed by it.

There's no set definition for fruit punch other than it simply being a drink made with a variety of fruit flavors, but I tend to imagine fruit punch in one of two ways: either citrus and tropical fruit-forward, like Hawaiian Punch, or more cherry-forward like a Capri Sun Fruit Punch. Either way, it usually tastes like the color red ... if you know what I mean. AriZona's Fruit Punch is neither, with the most noticeable flavor being grape. If I didn't know this was supposed to be fruit punch, I'd guess it was some kind of watered-down grape drink cocktail since it isn't quite as bold as any of the fruit punches I've tasted before, either.

According to the drink's ingredients list, AriZona's Fruit Punch contains pear juice, mango purée, apple juice, pineapple juice, natural flavors, cherry juice, and strawberry juice, all from concentrate. No grape juice whatsoever. Only you can know if this is your kind of fruit punch, but if you're expecting something tropical, cherry, bold, or red, this might not be the one for you. 

I'll admit that I know relatively little about golf, and I only know who Arnold Palmer is because there's a fairly popular drink named after him. Luckily, AriZona was kind enough to mention on the can that Jack Nicklaus is one of the world's greatest golf players, with the most career major championships ever, and the nickname "Golden Bear." The pink can with a cute bear face on it contains a Lite Strawberry Lemonade with about 50 calories per 8-ounce serving and leans heavier into the lemonade end of the spectrum than its Arnold Palmer counterpart.

It took a little while to place the flavor of the Golden Bear Strawberry Lemonade, but after checking out the drink's nutrition facts and seeing the additional 15 milligrams of sodium in this drink, it dawned on me that it's got a similar profile to Gatorade's Strawberry Lemonade drink, sucrose flavor and all. Like the Gatorade version, this one doesn't do it for me, thanks to the noticeably fake strawberry and sucrose flavors.

While AriZona's Fruit Punch may have tasted like a slightly tropical watered-down grape drink, the Grapeade is a bolder and more realistically grape-flavored drink — even though the first juice listed in the ingredients list is actually pear juice. But red grape juice is also listed and makes a solid showing for itself in the flavor department. Like the Orangeade, if you're used to drinking grape soda, you might be disappointed with the lack of carbonation in the Grapeade. But that isn't really a deal-breaker for me.

My only real issue with the Grapeade is why one might reach for this instead of actual grape juice. Sure, AriZona's Grapeade is 100 calories per 8-ounce serving, and Welch's 100% Grape Juice is 140 calories. But the 100% grape juice has a higher percentage of potassium and vitamin C and even includes a little calcium. Flavor-wise, I don't think the Grapeade is a bad choice, only that drinking actual grape juice would be a better choice.

Perhaps you're one of those people who aren't here for what AriZona has to offer in the tea department. Forget the iced tea in the Arnold Palmer, you're just here for the lemonade. Well, you're in luck, because AriZona has a can of Lemonade Fruit Juice Cocktail with your name on it. And as far as lemonades go, it's a relatively tasty one. It tastes like actual lemons, without too much bitter sharpness, is sweet without tasting like syrup, and even includes a microscopic amount of potassium.

Aside from lemon juice, AriZona's Lemonade also includes high fructose corn syrup and pear juice, which is a little unexpected in a lemonade but not unwelcome. It clocks in at 100 calories per 8-ounce serving, which is higher than some of the competition, like Minute Maid, which contains only 70 calories per 8-ounce serving. Minute Maid's reduced calorie and carbohydrate count is supplemented with sucralose and acesulfame potassium for a similar level of sweetness but lacks a stronger lemonade taste than AriZona's overall.

There are so many iterations of lemon tea, lemonade, and half & half beverages from AriZona that I started to wonder if all of these very similar options were necessary. In the Arnold Palmer category alone, there are the Lite, Diet, Strawberry, and Green Tea flavors — the latter of which is so elusive that it's often sold out on AriZona's website. Having already tasted the Golden Bear Lite Strawberry Lemonade, the only thing that the Arnold Palmer Strawberry Half & Half otherwise brings to the table is the addition of iced tea.

But I'll admit that the tea is an improvement, giving it a slight edge over the Golden Bear. Where the synthetic sweetener flavor in the Golden Bear threatened to linger on the palate a little too long, it's more subtle and balanced with the Strawberry Arnold Palmer. It has about 10 more calories per 8-ounce serving than the Golden Bear, which likely comes from the slightly higher carbohydrate content, but has about half of the sodium. Synthetic sweeteners are still apparent in the Strawberry Arnold Palmer, but their taste doesn't stick around for long. Of the two strawberry lemonade options, this is definitely the better choice.

I'm willing to bet that whatever you think AriZona's Half & Half Tropical tea tastes like, it will still be surprising the first time you taste it. Made from black iced tea and tropical flavors, including pineapple and guava juice, I had in mind something light, acidic, naturally sweet, and with just a hint of tropical fruit. I was wrong on basically all accounts.

The tropical flavors are big and bold, nearly overpowering the flavor of the tea. And even though it isn't specifically listed, the candy-like banana flavor is especially strong. Its sweetness isn't cut through with as much acidity as I expected from pineapple, or even other tropical flavors like passion fruit and mango, and there are very few citrus notes.

With that said, I enjoyed it, even though I don't know if I could drink an entire can of it. Even though it's half tea, it seems to have more in common with the juice drinks AriZona makes. But with a little bit of white rum, the Half & Half Tropical might be one of the best AriZona options for mixing up a resort-worthy cocktail, without the effort.

A few drinks in AriZona's lineup don't fit neatly into one particular category, and the RX Energy Herbal Tonic is one of them. Technically, it's made from a blend of green teas and includes high fructose corn syrup, honey, and ginseng extract like the popular Green Tea does, but that's just the beginning. The ingredient list also includes pear juice, mango purée, lemon juice, natural flavors, guarana root extract, eleuthero root extract, Schisandra extract, and additional caffeine. It doesn't immediately make sense, but it is enjoyable after the confusion of the first few sips subsides.

While some of the included extracts can be found in other energy drinks and supplements, it's worth looking them up to find out if you want to drink them. An 8-ounce serving of AriZona's RX Energy Herbal Tonic has about 100 calories, which is on par with the calorie content in the Lemon Iced Tea. The can itself doesn't say how much caffeine is included, but the drink's Amazon page claims it contains 100 milligrams of caffeine per serving. This is about as much as an 8-ounce cup of coffee, so something to be wary of if you're planning on drinking the entire can, which is nearly three servings.

Maybe it's because I'm so used to AriZona's popular Green Tea flavor, or maybe there's just a lot going on in the Green Tea Cucumber with Citrus version of the drink, but it wasn't love at first sip. This version of the tea still has honey and ginseng in it but also includes "cucumber essence" and natural flavors, which I assume are meant to mimic lime juice, given the lime wedges illustrated on the can next to the cucumber slices. The scent of cucumber meets you immediately when you open the can and doesn't dissipate much while you're drinking it.

Flavor-wise, it's less like cucumber water and more like juiced green cucumber peels, which outshines some of the green tea flavors. The citrus flavor is noticeably stronger, almost fighting for attention with everything else happening in this tea. After a few sips, the flavors slowly start to meld together on the tongue, but never quite sing in unison. While I enjoy both lime and cucumber, perhaps these two flavors deserve a drink of their own or would taste better paired with white tea instead. 

For those who might not be familiar with the popular old-school mocktail, a Cherry Lime Rickey is very similar to a Shirley Temple. It's made with maraschino cherry syrup, fresh lime juice, simple syrup, and seltzer water, whereas a Shirly Temple is typically made with lemon-lime soda instead of lime juice and seltzer water. What sets this particular drink apart from the rest of the beverages in AriZona's drink line is carbonation. After all, it wouldn't be a Rickey without the bubbles.

The cherry-lime soda is sweet and tangy, with the carbonation helping to distract you from just how sweet it actually is. But for those looking for a bright and summery cherry-soda treat, the Cherry Lime Rickey is a fun option to try. It contains 10% juice, and includes, pear, mango, cherry, lime, and lemon juices. While it's primarily sweetened with high fructose corn syrup, it also includes sucralose and acesulfame potassium — but given the intensity of the fruit flavors in the drink, I didn't notice any lingering artificial aftertaste from the sweeteners.

Watermelon is one of those flavors that's hard to replicate in any form other than fresh watermelon, but that never seems to keep companies from trying. AriZona's Watermelon Fruit Juice Cocktail does contain watermelon juice, but it's listed pretty far down in the ingredients list, after pear and/or apple juice, mango purée, pineapple juice, and kiwi juice, and just before cherry juice. If I had only looked at the ingredients list, I might have assumed this was the fruit punch flavor.

While I can't say it tastes like watermelon, it is light, fruity, and watermelon candy-like without being unpleasantly sweet. The Watermelon Fruit Juice Cocktail is only 70 calories per 8-ounce serving, which is notably less than some of the others in AriZona's fruit juice lineup. For comparison, one Watermelon Jolly Rancher is just over 23 calories per candy, adding up to about 7 candies per one 22-ounce can of AriZona's Watermelon Fruit Juice Cocktail. At least with the drink, you probably won't break any fillings and can argue that you're getting a little hydration along the way.

At first sip, I was nearly convinced that the Arnold Palmer Lite was even better than AriZona's iconic Lemon Iced Tea. Like all Arnold Palmers, it's half iced tea and half lemonade, and in this particular iteration, the lemonade has a more realistic lemon flavor than the bolder lemon flavoring in the classic tea. But after a few more sips, the unmistakable flavor of synthetic sweetener started to linger a little longer than I would have preferred.

Sure, the tea is called "Lite," so it's fair to expect it to be slightly less sweet than some other AriZona options. But since there's already a diet version, having a middle-of-the-road light version and not a version with only regular sugar (or rather, high fructose corn syrup) seems a little redundant — especially if you're not a fan of the sucralose flavor. Otherwise, this tea would have given the Lemon Iced Tea a run for its money.

While not as well known as its black, white, and green tea counterparts, Rooibos tea is a popular caffeine-free herbal tea, produced primarily in South Africa. AriZona's African Rooibos Red Tea is blended with chamomile tea, for a strong herbal tea flavor and a darker, red-hued color. It's one of the few beverages in the AriZona line-up that's sweetened with actual cane sugar instead of high fructose corn syrup or a sugar substitute and it doesn't include any fruit juices or additional natural flavors.

Rooibos tea isn't as instantly appealing to many people who don't already enjoy herbal teas, but if it's something you're curious to try, it's worth picking up a bottle of AriZona's version before splurging on some expensive tea leaves. The tea has a more intense flavor and aroma that's almost spicy, similar to Yerba Mate, but without the hit of caffeine.

For those of us who remember the absolute infatuation with all things kiwi-strawberry-flavored in the 1990s, AriZona's Kiwi Strawberry Fruit Juice Cocktail will be a familiar flavor — one that will either be a welcome walk down memory lane or nightmare fuel for those who may have overdone it a few decades ago. I happen to have a soft spot for the flavor combo and enjoy the way it tastes, despite outgrowing my Lip Smacker collection sometime in the 2000s.

To my surprise, the drink contains both kiwi and strawberry juices, even though it's only 5% juice overall. The ingredients list also includes pear juice and high fructose corn syrup (which also skyrocketed in the '90s). But it's mostly just sugar, with 100 calories per 8-ounce serving, 24 grams of carbohydrates, and a heavy dose of nostalgia for those who remember it fondly. And like the '90s, it's something I only want to re-live in small doses now and then.

Up there in the AriZona Hall of Fame, right next to the Lemon Tea and the Green Tea, sits the Mucho Mango. It's not a flavored tea, but part of AriZona's line of fruit juice cocktails, with a relatively straightforward flavor that's hard to dislike. It's made with mango purée and pear juice from concentrate, water, and high fructose corn syrup. If something rich, thick, and sweet like Naked's Mighty Mango juice comes to mind, instead imagine taking about 25% of that and diluting it with water, making it less like a smoothie and more like a crushable drink that's light enough to enjoy in the blazing sunshine, preferably with some fresh tacos.

The Mucho Mango contains 100 calories per 8-ounce serving, has 5% juice, and, like many of AriZona's other drinks, has no preservatives, synthetic colors, and no artificial flavors (although it contains natural flavors and beta carotene for color).

The only places you'll find sweet tea in the North are fast food restaurants and the bottled tea sections of your local grocery or convenience store. As someone born and raised on sweet tea in the South, it always seemed strange to me that it was so difficult to find a simple sweet tea that wasn't overly syrupy or saturated with lemon flavor. So, once AriZona's Sweet Tea entered the chat, there was no turning back.

The black tea tastes like actual tea, not the rehydrated tea powder flavor you'd find in teas like Lipton Brisk. And while it's certainly sweet, it doesn't taste like tea-flavored syrup. It also has fewer carbohydrates and calories in it than AriZona's Lemon Iced Tea. Each 12-ounce serving of Sweet Tea has 130 calories and 33 grams of carbohydrates, compared to Lemon Tea's 150 calories and 37 grams, respectively.

There isn't much complexity to this tea, which is what I love about it. But it's also something I can make at home if I'm really in the mood for it, probably for less than 99 cents. If you're looking for something with a little more excitement, AriZona has plenty of other options to choose from.

Before tasting AriZona's Raspberry Iced Tea, I was prepared to hate it. Raspberry-flavored drinks tend to taste especially artificial and, if paired with an artificial sweetener, become nearly unpalatable. But this version has a few things going for it. First, it's sweetened entirely with high fructose corn syrup, not sucralose or acesulfame potassium. Sure, actual cane sugar or honey would be nice, but let's temper our expectations for a 99-cent can of tea here.

Next, while there's no actual juice of any kind in this drink, the raspberry flavor is naturally derived, not artificially, which helps. And finally, the black tea is what takes center stage in this drink. The raspberry is a light, almost natural supporting player that isn't especially sweet or bold and adds a slightly juicy red berry flavor to the balanced tea. It might not be my go-to tea flavor from now on, but I can see myself picking it up more often for a refreshing taste of summertime.

If you're reading this, you're probably already acquainted with AriZona's Lemon Iced Tea. Along with the brand's popular Green Tea with Ginseng and Honey, it's one of the most recognizable AriZona flavors around. But just in case you aren't, it's a sweet black tea with a strong kick of lemon, making it even bolder and juicier than your typical glass of iced tea. It has 150 calories per 12-ounce serving, 37 grams of carbohydrates, and 15 milligrams of sodium. It's made with natural lemon flavor instead of juice to achieve that bold, lemony taste.

Even though I generally prefer my sweet tea without lemon, I can't escape the draw of AriZona's Lemon Iced Tea — I'd even consider sporting some of the brand's merch in honor of the iconic flavor. On a blisteringly hot day, or when I need a refreshing drink to blast me into action, I'll reach for this tea without hesitation.

I'll admit that there are very few peach teas I've ever tried and didn't thoroughly enjoy, and AriZona's Peach Tea is no exception to that rule. All of AriZona's flavored Iced Tea cans have "Sun Brewed Style" on the front, and when drinking the Peach Tea, I'm almost tempted to believe it. Even though I know it has no actual peach juice in it, or any juice for that matter, I'm still smitten with the peachy taste that's not overwhelmingly acidic or sweet. And it's not just an illusion — compared to AriZona's iconic Lemon Iced Tea, which has 150 calories per 12-ounce serving, the Peach Tea has only 120 calories, with fewer carbohydrates and no sodium.

This peach tea is lighter than what you'll get from some of AriZona's competitors. Snapple's Peach Tea is a little stronger, with an additional bitter flavor that boosts the sweetness and peach flavors. That bitterness comes from adding sodium, which AriZona's version doesn't have. Both options have the same calorie count, but in the end, I'd rather have the lighter, fresher-tasting AriZona Peach Tea.

According to AriZona, its Green Tea with Ginseng and Honey is the best-selling green tea in the U.S., which isn't entirely surprising given how ubiquitous it is. And to be honest, I usually buy it by the gallon and keep it constantly stocked in my refrigerator. It's one of the most accessible sweet teas that doesn't taste synthetic and is available just about everywhere.

In 2019, it was reported that there was no detectable ginseng in AriZona's Green Tea, even though "ginseng root extract" is listed on the ingredient list — but few people ultimately seemed surprised by the announcement. And while the front of the can implies that honey is the featured sweetener in the tea, it's high fructose corn syrup. While it would be great if it were all honey, realistically speaking, that would be very expensive. One 12-ounce serving of Green Tea runs 90 calories, nearly entirely due to the carbohydrate count of 23 grams per serving.

It baffles me that AriZona's Black & White tea isn't available in as many places as the more famous teas because even AriZona knows how good it is, calling the tea one of its "rarest treasures." If you're a fan of the brand's Green Tea, I'm willing to bet that you'll like the Black & White Iced Tea even more, even though it isn't made with green tea. As you may have assumed, it's a blend of black and white teas and tastes like real brewed tea since the more delicate tea flavors aren't hidden under as much sweetness. It still has ginseng and honey in it, but this tea is sweetened with sugar instead of high fructose corn syrup.

The Black & White Iced Tea has 60 calories per serving, compared to the Green Tea's 90 calories, which are nearly entirely from the 14 grams of carbohydrates included. The flavor of the honey is a little more apparent in this tea than in the Green Tea — but I still couldn't tell you if there's ginseng in it or if the slightly bitter earthy flavor is just from the tea.

To bring some kind of order to the process of tasting 24 drinks, I first divided the beverages into groups by type: black iced teas, green and other teas, lemonades and half & halves, and fruit juice cocktails. First, I tasted and ranked each beverage within its own category. Then, to make the final ranking, I began combining each beverage category, tasting all of the drinks several more times and fitting each into its final place in the lineup. Over several days, and in the name of science, I drank nearly all 526 ounces of AriZona drinks included in this ranking.

When tasting and ranking the beverages, I also considered the drink's popularity, availability, ingredients, and nutritional value of each drink. Since some drinks have very little in common by any of these metrics (like Rooibos Tea and Kiwi Strawberry Fruit Juice Cocktail), some decisions came down to simply asking myself which drink I'd reach for on a completely normal, no-frills Tuesday afternoon.