Is Potato Acidic or Alkaline?
Potato (boiled) is strongly alkaline: Negative PRAL: alkalizing after digestion. Clearly alkaline: boiled potatoes have a PRAL of −6.5 per 100 g and sweet potatoes −5.3, which makes potatoes the most alkaline starchy side dish there is.
Classification
Boiled potatoes are clearly alkaline at −6.5. That makes them one of the few filling side dishes with a minus sign, because the tuber contains a lot of potassium and little protein. Pasta and rice, by contrast, are in the plus range. A 200 g serving adds about −13 and more than offsets a 100 g cooked cod fillet.
In the Vegetables & Salad category, potato (boiled) ranks #18 of 110, sorted from alkaline to acid-forming. More alkaline options include Rhubarb (−6.8), Arugula (−7.1), Horseradish (−7.6). More acid-forming are Fennel (−6.5), Soup greens (−6.5), Carrot (−6.3).
Acidic or alkaline: PRAL, not pH
On this site, acidic and alkaline refer to the PRAL (potential renal acid load). It estimates what a food leaves behind once it has been digested: a positive value is acid-forming, a negative value is alkalizing. That is different from the pH of the food itself: a lemon tastes sour, yet its PRAL is −4.0, so it is alkalizing. Your diet does not change your blood pH. It does change how much acid your kidneys have to deal with.
Potato: boiled, fresh
Same food, different state. All values per 100 g.
| State | PRAL |
|---|---|
| fresh | −6.6 |
| boiled | −6.5 |
Goes well with
Frequently Asked Questions
Is potato acidic?
It depends on what you mean by acidic. The pH describes the food itself, for example how sour it tastes. The PRAL describes what it leaves behind after digestion: Potato (boiled) has a PRAL of −6.5 per 100 g, so it counts as strongly alkaline in your daily acid-base balance.
How much potato do I need for a noticeable effect?
A serving of boiled potatoes (200 g) of potato adds −13.1 to your daily balance. For comparison: an egg is around +5.4, a slice of cheese around +6. So one serving of potato roughly offsets one of them.
Why is potato alkaline even though it is not a typical alkaline food?
The PRAL depends on the minerals left over after digestion, not on taste or pH. Potato provides more potassium, magnesium and calcium than phosphorus and protein, so the balance is negative (−6.5).
Potato, boiled or fresh: which is more alkaline?
Potato (boiled) is at −6.5, Potato (fresh) at −6.6. So the "fresh" version is more alkaline. Differences come from water content, cooking water or concentration during drying.
Potato logged, balance checked.
Basentracker adds up every meal automatically and shows whether your day is in the alkaline range. The same values as on this page, all 977 foods, photo scan, recipes.
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Compare all Vegetables & Salad: Vegetables & Salad table. Common questions are answered in Acidic or Alkaline?, and the PRAL calculator adds up a whole meal.
Source: Basentracker food database (PRAL according to Remer & Manz, calculated from protein, phosphorus, potassium, magnesium and calcium per 100 g). This information does not replace medical advice.