Our Pick: Tazo
Check price →Tazo vs Bigelow: Which Flavored Tea Is Better? (2026)
Two grocery-aisle giants of flavored tea, head to head: Tazo's bold modern blends versus Bigelow's foil-wrapped family classics. Here's the honest split.
By Justin Park · ~8 min read · Updated 2026-06-28
Our top picks
Best Tazo Overall
Tazo Organic Awake English Breakfast Black TeaTazo
Tazo's strongest play: a brisk, malty English Breakfast that out-punches most bagged breakfast blends — and it's the reason to choose Tazo over Bigelow if you drink black tea every morning.
$4–$6 (16 ct)
Check price →Read review ↓Best Bigelow Overall
Bigelow Constant CommentBigelow
The 1945 original — black tea with orange rind and warm spice, individually foil-wrapped — and the single most distinctive bag on any supermarket shelf. The reason to choose Bigelow over Tazo.
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Check price →Read review ↓Short version: for most people, Bigelow is the better everyday flavored tea, and Tazo is the better bold-and-modern one. Bigelow is American, family-owned, individually foil-wraps every bag for freshness, and runs the deepest flavored range in the grocery aisle. Tazo trades on Starbucks-era heritage and a brasher, more designed flavor profile — its chai and fruit blends hit harder, its breakfast black (Awake) is genuinely good, and the packaging looks like it belongs in 2026.
Neither of these is a serious loose-leaf or single-estate operation, and we're not going to pretend otherwise. Both are flavored-grocery players, and they're playing the same game. So the real question isn't "which is fancier" — it's which house style, which freshness approach, and which lineup fits the way you actually drink tea. Below we put Tazo's Organic Awake English Breakfast next to Bigelow's Constant Comment — each brand's flagship — and break down flavor, freshness, range, value, and where to buy.
The short version
- Pick Bigelow if you want freshness and range: every bag is individually foil-wrapped, and the flavored lineup (Constant Comment, French Vanilla, Earl Grey, fruit and dessert blends) is the broadest on the shelf.
- Pick Tazo if you want bolder, more modern flavor: its chai, Passion (hibisus-citrus), and Awake English Breakfast are louder and more designed than Bigelow's more traditional profiles.
- Tazo Organic Awake is the better straight breakfast black tea here — brisk, malty, now USDA Organic and Fair Trade, and great with milk.
- Constant Comment is the more distinctive single cup — orange rind and secret spice, the same recipe since 1945, with no real supermarket rival.
- On value they're close; Bigelow's foil wrapping is the tie-breaker if you brew infrequently and want the last bag in the box to taste like the first.
- Both are widely available — Bigelow is the grocery-shelf default nationwide; Tazo is everywhere Starbucks-adjacent and strong online.
| Tazo | Bigelow | |
|---|---|---|
| Flagship blend | Organic Awake English Breakfast | Constant Comment (orange & spice) |
| Flavor style | Bold, modern, designed | Traditional, warm, characterful |
| Bag freshness | Standard sealed box | Individually foil-wrapped |
| Best at | Breakfast black, chai, fruit blends | Orange-spice, dessert & fruit classics |
| Heritage | Starbucks-era; now its own brand | Family-owned since 1945 |
| Certifications (flagship) | USDA Organic, Non-GMO, Fair Trade | Rainforest Alliance sourced |
| Range | Focused, trend-forward | Very broad grocery lineup |
| Our rating (flagship) | 4.5 / 5 | 4.7 / 5 |
| Availability | Online + grocery, Starbucks-adjacent | Grocery default nationwide |
Tazo vs Bigelow at a glance — flagship blends and house style.
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Pick Bigelow if you want freshness and range: every bag is individually foil-wrapped, and the flavored lineup (Constant Comment, French Vanilla, Earl Grey, fruit and dessert blends) is the broadest on the shelf.
01 · Best Tazo Overall
Tazo Organic Awake English Breakfast Black Tea
Tazo's strongest play: a brisk, malty English Breakfast that out-punches most bagged breakfast blends — and it's the reason to choose Tazo over Bigelow if you drink black tea every morning.
Origin & grade: USDA Certified Organic, Non-GMO Project Verified, made with Fair Trade Certified black tea.
Awake is the blend that anchors Tazo's whole catalog, and the reformulation to USDA Organic with Fair Trade Certified black tea is the rare relaunch that genuinely improved the product. It's a blend of organic black teas built in the classic English Breakfast mold — brisk, malty, and full-bodied, with enough backbone to stand up to milk and a touch of sugar without turning thin or papery. This is where Tazo's bolder house style pays off: next to Bigelow's gentler everyday blacks, Awake hits noticeably harder.
Steeped 3–5 minutes it pulls a deep amber cup with a clean, slightly malty finish and none of the harsh astringency that plagues cheaper supermarket black teas. It's not a delicate single-estate Assam — it's a dependable daily driver, and on that basis it's excellent. One trade-off versus Bigelow: Tazo doesn't individually foil-wrap, so a box that sits open for months will fade faster than Bigelow's sealed pouches. If you go through tea quickly, it's a non-issue.
- Type
- Black tea
- Caffeine
- 61+ mg per 8 oz (high)
- Count
- 16 or 36 bags
- Certifications
- USDA Organic, Non-GMO, Fair Trade
What we like
- Genuinely robust, full-bodied breakfast flavor — louder than Bigelow's everyday blacks
- Now USDA Organic and Fair Trade Certified
- Takes milk and sugar beautifully
- Excellent value per cup
Worth noting
- A blend, not a single-origin tea
- Can turn bitter if over-steeped
- No individual foil wrapping for long-term freshness
Who should buy it: Anyone who wants a strong, reliable everyday morning black tea — especially milk-and-sugar drinkers and former coffee drinkers easing down on caffeine. The Tazo pick for breakfast-black loyalists.
What we don't like: It's a blend, not a single origin, so don't expect terroir or complexity. Over-steep past 5 minutes and it can edge toward bitter. No individual foil wrapping, so freshness depends on how fast you drink it.
Bottom line: If the deciding factor is your morning black tea, Tazo wins on this blend. Awake is robust, takes milk beautifully, and the organic/Fair Trade relaunch genuinely improved it. Pick it over Constant Comment when you want a straight, no-flavoring breakfast cup.
02 · Best Bigelow Overall
Bigelow Constant Comment
The 1945 original — black tea with orange rind and warm spice, individually foil-wrapped — and the single most distinctive bag on any supermarket shelf. The reason to choose Bigelow over Tazo.
Origin & grade: Rainforest Alliance Certified tea sourcing; family-owned (Bigelow Tea, founded 1945); individually foil-wrapped for freshness.
Constant Comment is Bigelow's founding blend, created by Ruth Campbell Bigelow in 1945, and it remains the brand's reason to exist. It's a robust black tea infused with orange rind and 'sweet spice' (the exact blend is a closely held family secret), and the aroma alone — bright citrus over clove-like warmth — is more interesting than most premium flavored teas. Where Tazo's flavored blends feel modern and engineered, Constant Comment feels like a recipe, and that's the whole appeal.
In the cup it brews a brisk, full-bodied black tea with real orange-peel character that doesn't taste artificial or perfumed. It takes milk surprisingly well and is excellent iced. We found it forgiving of over-steeping — a rarity in flavored blacks. And because Bigelow individually foil-wraps every bag, the last cup in the box tastes as bright as the first — the clearest practical edge Bigelow has over Tazo. There's a decaf version and a Green Tea Constant Comment if you want the same profile with less caffeine. This is the blend we reach for most.
- Type
- Flavored black tea
- Caffeine
- Caffeinated (~30-60mg/cup; decaf available)
- Count
- 20 or 40 ct boxes
- Packaging
- Individually foil-wrapped
What we like
- Genuinely unique orange-and-spice flavor with no real supermarket rival — including Tazo
- Same secret recipe since 1945 — proven, consistent
- Individually foil-wrapped: every bag tastes fresh
- Versatile: great hot, iced, or with milk
Worth noting
- Spice profile not for everyone
- Orange strength varies slightly between boxes
- A flavored cup, not a plain breakfast black
Who should buy it: Anyone who wants one genuinely distinctive, characterful tea for everyday drinking — especially fans of orange-spice and chai-adjacent flavors who don't want a fussy loose-leaf ritual, and anyone who values foil-wrapped freshness.
What we don't like: The spice can read as slightly 'holiday' year-round for some drinkers, and the orange intensity varies a touch box to box. It's a flavored cup, not a clean breakfast black — if that's what you want, Tazo's Awake is the better call.
Bottom line: If you want one genuinely characterful flavored tea — and you want every bag to taste fresh out of the box — Constant Comment is the pick, and it's why Bigelow edges Tazo for most everyday drinkers. Tazo has nothing with this much personality.
Questions, answered
Is Tazo or Bigelow better?
Neither is universally 'better' — they're built for different drinkers. Bigelow wins on range and freshness (every bag is individually foil-wrapped) and has the more distinctive everyday cup in Constant Comment. Tazo wins on bold, modern flavor and on straight breakfast black tea — its Organic Awake English Breakfast is the stronger morning cup. For most everyday drinkers we'd lean Bigelow; for bold-flavor and breakfast-black fans, Tazo.
Why does Bigelow individually wrap each tea bag in foil?
To protect freshness. The foil overwrap seals out air and moisture, which preserves the volatile aromatic oils that give flavored tea its character — the compounds that fade fastest once a box is opened. It's a real, practical advantage over Tazo's standard sealed box, especially if you brew infrequently or keep many varieties open at once.
Is Tazo still owned by Starbucks?
Tazo traces its heritage to the Starbucks era but now operates as its own brand. That history still shows up in its bold, modern flavor profiles and its strength in Starbucks-adjacent retail, but you'll find it widely in grocery stores and online today.
What is Bigelow Constant Comment?
Constant Comment is Bigelow's founding blend, created by Ruth Campbell Bigelow in 1945: a robust black tea infused with orange rind and a secret 'sweet spice' mix. It's one of the longest continuously produced flavored teas in America, made from the same recipe for 80 years, and there's no real equivalent on the supermarket shelf — Tazo included.
Which has more caffeine, Tazo or Bigelow?
It depends on the specific blend, not the brand. Tazo's Organic Awake English Breakfast is a high-caffeine black tea at roughly 61+ mg per 8 oz cup. Bigelow's Constant Comment is a caffeinated black tea in the ~30–60 mg range, with a decaf version available. For the strongest lift, Tazo Awake is the pick; for a flavored cup with a decaf option, Constant Comment.
Are Tazo and Bigelow good quality tea?
Both are solid flavored-grocery teas — well-made, consistent, and certified (Tazo's Awake is USDA Organic, Non-GMO, and Fair Trade; Bigelow sources Rainforest Alliance Certified tea). Neither is a single-estate or premium loose-leaf product, so don't expect terroir or complexity. Within the bagged, flavored, everyday category, they're two of the best mainstream options you can buy.
Keep reading
Tazo Tea Review
Our full take on Tazo's lineup — Awake, chai, Passion and more, ranked and tasted.
Bigelow Tea Review
Constant Comment, foil-wrapped freshness, and the rest of Bigelow's broad flavored range.
Best Tea Bags
Our master ranking of the best bagged teas across black, green, herbal and flavored.