Shipping, Return, Cancellation, and Matcha Specific Policies

Return Policies:
Please contact us within 10 days from the date your order was delivered (or for local pickups, from the date your order was fulfilled) if you experience any issues. Requests made after this 10-day window will not be considered.

We honor refunds or replacements if the item you received was not what you ordered or if it arrived damaged. Items must be in new condition to be eligible for return. Any approved returns must be received at our warehouse within 10 business days from the date we communicate with you about the return.

We do not honor exchanges or refunds based on personal preference. We do not pay for or facilitate return shipping. If you received free shipping on your original order and subsequently return an item, we will deduct the original shipping cost from your refund.

Please note that tea is an agricultural product, so some seasonal variance in flavor and appearance is to be expected across different harvests. We recommend purchasing smaller quantities initially to ensure you enjoy the tea before committing to larger purchases.

We do not accept returns for tea subscriptions or gift cards.

Please see our "matcha specific policies" below for more information about matcha products.

Orders placed for local pickup that are not retrieved are not eligible for refunds. We can ship uncollected orders to you upon payment of applicable shipping costs.

Shipping, Fulfillment & Return Policies:
Please allow three to five business days after you place your order for processing and fulfillment. During sales, promotions, and holiday periods, we may need additional time to fulfill your order.

If you select an expedited shipping method (such as Priority Mail), please note that the transit time begins after your order has been processed and shipped. The processing timeframe mentioned above still applies before your package is handed to the carrier.

Please be aware that package delivery is currently experiencing regular delays. We cannot guarantee specific delivery timeframes, and we are not responsible for packages that are lost, stolen, or misdelivered by the carrier.

Free shipping promotions do not apply to wholesale orders.

Matcha Specific Policies:
Our goal is to offer top tier matcha products at a fair price to the highest number of people we can. Because of this, we do not allow the resale of any matcha products purchased from our site. Any orders in excess of 4 heritage brand matcha products within a three day period will be cancelled in their entirety without notice. A full refund will be given for cancelled orders, but it can take some time for that refund to be fully processed by your issuing bank. Unfortunately, we are not in control of when the issuing bank or credit card company completes the refund transaction.

For the heritage brand matchas we offer, there is a limit of one per person for most items. We have an app which limits the ability to order more than that, but any order which comes through in excess of the posted matcha limit will be cancelled in its entirety. We really apologize for this. Everyone wants matcha and it's important to us that we are able to provide it for as many people as we can. Thank you for your understanding.

Occasionally, the matcha producer sends us a matcha product that still has a bit of matcha clinging to the outside of the bag. This is pretty rare, but nothing to worry about. It is from the bag filling machine being slightly off and is just matcha dust on the bag. We will not offer refunds when this happens. Occasionally the tins or boxes we receive from the producer get slightly dinged in transit. Please note we cannot offer refunds, replacements, or discounts if you receive a package or tin that is slightly dinged up.

Local Pick Ups:
We are open for local pickups for online orders Monday through Friday 9:30 am to 3:00 pm (barring holidays) and the second Saturday of every month from 10 am to 2 pm.

Orders placed for local pickup that are not retrieved are not eligible for refunds. We can ship uncollected orders to you upon payment of applicable shipping costs.

Taxes, Tariffs, Duties, and Handling Fees for International Orders:
The fees, taxes, tariffs, and/or duties that your Customs agency and post office add to the cost of delivery need to be paid by the customer directly. If you reject the shipment and send it back to us to avoid these types of costs, please note that shipping is not refundable and that you are responsible for the cost of return shipping.

Order Cancellation:
Should you need to cancel your order before it is fulfilled, please email us immediately at emily@thesteepingroom.com and wait for a confirmation reply. If the item has already been fulfilled, it will be too late to cancel the order.

If you order more than the allowed limit of items (such as certain matcha offerings), we will cancel and refund your entire order without fulfillment.

If your order is returned to us due to an incorrect address, we're happy to cancel and refund your order (minus any shipping fees paid) upon request. Alternatively, we can reship your order if you pay the applicable reshipping costs.

Your credit card will be refunded when your card's issuing bank finalizes the refund. Unfortunately, we are not in control of when the issuing bank or credit card company completes the refund transaction.