At some 7-Eleven and Lawson stores in Japan, iced milk tea isn't something you grab from the fridge. You pay at the register, set your cup in an in-store machine, and it's made right there, much like the stores' coffee.
I tried all three versions, two at 7-Eleven and one at Lawson, without adding any sugar. Here's how they differ on price, tea, and taste, and which one I'd pick depending on what you like.
At 7-Eleven, you choose the tea, and its aroma comes through clearly. At Lawson, the milk is the star.
New to Japanese convenience stores? Start with Japanese Convenience Stores (Konbini): A First-Timer's Guide to Food, ATMs and Services.
7-Eleven vs. Lawson at a glance
7-Eleven | Lawson | |
|---|---|---|
Product | Milk tea from Seven Café Tea (セブンカフェ ティー) | Iced Milk Tea (アイスミルクティー) from MACHI café |
Price (tax incl. | R (regular) ¥240.84 / L (large) ¥300.24 | M (medium) ¥260 |
Tea | Earl Grey or Assam blend, your choice | Assam |
How it's made | Set the cup of ice in the machine, then pick your tea | Set the cup of tea and ice in the machine, then press the buttons |
Where to find it | About 3,200 stores (as of the end of June 2026) | Not every store |
Neither chain sells it everywhere, so check at the store before you order. 7-Eleven is still rolling the tea machines out to more stores.
7-Eleven's prices can vary by store. Lawson's ¥260 is its standard price.
Making it at 7-Eleven: Seven Café Tea
Seven Café Tea (セブンカフェ ティー) is brewed from tea leaves in a dedicated in-store machine. Inside, the machine pours hot water over the leaves, lets them steep, then keeps the leaves circulating to bring out the aroma before pouring.
To make the iced milk tea:
- At the register, buy the special cup that comes with ice
- Peel off the lid and set the cup in the machine
- Choose Earl Grey or Assam on the screen
When I took mine out of the machine, there was a white layer of milk at the top of the cup.
7-Eleven offers three teas in all, including a Darjeeling blend, but only the Assam blend and Earl Grey come as milk tea. There's a hot milk tea too: R ¥190.08 and L ¥250.56, tax included.
Ordering at Lawson: MACHI café Iced Milk Tea
Lawson's Iced Milk Tea (アイスミルクティー) is part of MACHI café (マチカフェ), the chain's in-store café menu. It came back on October 13, 2026, and an M size costs ¥260 including tax.
Unlike 7-Eleven, you order at the register, and a staff member hands you a cup with the tea already in it.
- Order "iced milk tea" (aisu miruku tī) at the register
- Take the cup of tea and ice from the staff
- Set it in the machine and press アイスメニュー (iced menu) → 紅茶・ミルク (tea & milk) → ハーフアイスミルク (half iced milk), in that order
When the staff member hands you the cup, you can see dark tea between the ice cubes. The machine then pours in the milk to finish it.
Lawson makes the tea from Assam leaves, adds extra aroma from Assam tea, and pairs it with 100% fresh milk. No sugar is used.
Some stores don't carry it, and Lawson Store 100 (ローソンストア100) doesn't sell it at all. I'll walk through the buttons in more detail, with photos, in How to Order Iced Milk Tea at Lawson (coming soon).
Tasting notes on all three
From here on, these are my own impressions. I drank all three as they came, without adding any sugar.
Here's the short version first. Earl Grey and Assam are the two 7-Eleven options.
Earl Grey | Assam | Lawson | |
|---|---|---|---|
Tea aroma | Strongest | Sweet | In the background |
Milk | Rich and sweet | Rich and sweet | Prominent, but the drink stays light |
As the ice melts | Citrus aroma lingers | Gets lighter | Milk flavor mellows |
With both 7-Eleven milk teas, the tea's aroma comes through clearly and holds its own against the richness of the milk. The milk also tasted sweeter to me than Lawson's.
7-Eleven Earl Grey
The Earl Grey had the strongest tea aroma of the three, right from the first sip.
As the ice melted, the milky taste faded, but the citrusy note Earl Grey is known for lingered in the aftertaste until the last sip.
7-Eleven Assam
With the Assam, I tasted both the milk's sweetness and the tea's aroma. Its sweet aroma went really well with the milk, and the tea and milk felt nicely balanced.
As the ice melted, the tea aroma faded and the drink slowly got lighter.
Lawson Iced Milk Tea
Lawson's is milk-forward, with the tea staying in the background. To me, it was less about tasting the tea and more about enjoying the milk. Despite the strong milk flavor, it's light and refreshing.
As I kept drinking and the ice melted, the milk flavor gradually mellowed. If you love the taste of milk, this is my top pick of the three.
Which one to pick
After trying all three, here's how I'd choose:
- You want to really taste the tea: 7-Eleven Earl Grey
- You want tea and milk in balance: 7-Eleven Assam
- You want the milk front and center: Lawson Iced Milk Tea
It also depends on the moment. On a warm day when I want something refreshing, I go with Lawson. For a little afternoon treat, I pick 7-Eleven for the tea's aroma.
At 7-Eleven, switching teas changes the whole impression, so it's fun to choose one for your first cup and the other for your second.
Iced milk tea on your Japan trip
If you're visiting Japan, pick up a machine-made milk tea the next time you're in a konbini. All it takes is ordering at the register and pressing a few buttons, and you get a freshly made cup.
7-Eleven also has smoothies you finish the same way, buying the cup at the register and blending it in a machine. Here's how: How to Make a 7-Eleven Smoothie in Japan: A 70-Second Step-by-Step Guide (with Photos).
This article was translated from the original Japanese with AI assistance and reviewed by our editorial team. The Japanese version is authoritative.
