Calm Teas

Herb record · Cannabaceae

Hops tea: what the evidence says

Reviewed

Better known from beer, hops appear in several sleep blends. Human evidence comes from tablets that combine hops with valerian, so the effect of hops alone is unknown.

Pale green hop cones hanging from the vine
Photo: michaelstyne, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 2.0. Cropped to 3:2, resized and converted to WebP (adaptation shared under the same license).

At a glance

Latin name
Humulus lupulus
Evidence
Extract trials only Human trials exist, but they used extracts, capsules or supplements, not tea.
EU tea amount
0.5–1 g in 150–200 ml boiling water, 30–60 minutes before bed (0.5 g up to 4 times daily for stress). For mild symptoms of mental stress and to aid sleep (traditional use).
Cautions
Pregnancy safety not established
In our index
2 teas

What did the studies actually test?

Each row says what form was given. Results from extracts or capsules don't automatically apply to a cup of tea, which usually contains a smaller and less standardized amount.

QuestionForm testedWhat was found
Sleep extract In 184 adults with mild insomnia, valerian–hops extract tablets gave modest improvements in self-reported sleep, but no difference from placebo in sleep-lab measurements. (Morin et al., 2005)

How much hops goes in a cup?

The European Medicines Agency's herbal committee lists 0.5–1 g of dried hops in 150–200 ml boiling water, 30–60 minutes before bed (0.5 g up to 4 times daily for stress), for mild symptoms of mental stress and to aid sleep (traditional use). (EU herbal monograph)

These figures come from long-standing use, not from trials proving a dose works. Most tea boxes in our index don't say how much hops is in each bag, so you usually can't compare a bag with this amount.

Who should be careful with hops?

  • Pregnancy safety not established. The EU monograph does not recommend use in pregnancy or breastfeeding because safety hasn't been established. (EU herbal monograph)

This list repeats what the cited sources say; it isn't a complete interaction check. A pharmacist can check your specific medicines.

Which calming teas contain hops?

Sources

  1. Morin et al. (2005). Valerian-hops combination and diphenhydramine for treating insomnia: a randomized placebo-controlled clinical trial. Sleep.
    Human trial (randomized, double-blind, placebo) · form: extract
    184 adults with mild insomnia took valerian–hops extract tablets, diphenhydramine or placebo. The valerian–hops group showed modest subjective improvements; no group difference on polysomnography sleep measures.
    Limits: Tablets of standardized extracts, not tea. Tests hops only in combination with valerian.
    checked against the abstract, 2026-10-21 · PMID 16335333
  2. European Medicines Agency, HMPC. Community herbal monograph on Humulus lupulus L., flos (EMA/HMPC/682384/2013).
    Regulatory monograph
    Traditional use for mild symptoms of mental stress and to aid sleep. Tea: 0.5 g in 150–200 ml boiling water up to 4 times daily for stress; 0.5–1 g 30–60 minutes before bedtime to aid sleep. Not recommended under 12 or in pregnancy/lactation for lack of data.
    checked against the official document, 2026-10-21