To study the rare earth elements (REEs) concentration level in brick tea, and evaluate REEs dietary intake level and potential health risks in brick tea in Chinese adults.Methods The concentrations of REEs in brick tea samples were detected by inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS). The consumption of brick tea in Chinese adults was investigated in 2014-2015 by 24 hour dietary retrospective method. Based on the deterministic assessment model, the dietary intake of REEs in brick tea by Chinese adults was calculated.Results The violation rate of REEs in brick tea was 74%, the range of concentration was 0.10-10.35 mg/kg, the average was 3.41 mg/kg, and the median was 3.10 mg/kg. The average concentrations of Ce, La, Y, and Nd (0.74,0.43,0.35, and 0.30 mg/kg, respectively) were higher than the other 13 REEs. In brick tea consumption population, average exposure of REEs was 0.668 μg/kg BW, only accounting for 1.13% of ADI. The high consumption (P95) exposure of REEs was 2.302 μg/kg BW per day, accounting for 3.90% of the ADI. The average exposure of Ce, La, Y and Nd (0.178,0.104,0.082 and 0.073 μg/kg BW, respectively) was higher than the other 13 REEs, almost accounting for 65% of the total REEs exposure.Conclusion The exposure of REEs in brick tea by Chinese adults was considerably below the ADI and any health risk that would be expected to occur at this exposure level was negligible.