Liver is a moderate source of potassium, not a high one by standard nutritional definitions. A 3.5-ounce (100-gram) serving of cooked beef liver contains roughly 300 to 350 mg of potassium, which is about 7% of the daily value. That falls well short of the 20% threshold the FDA uses to classify a food as “high” in a given nutrient.
That said, the answer gets more nuanced depending on why you’re asking. If you’re simply curious about liver’s nutritional profile, potassium isn’t the headline nutrient. If you’re managing a kidney condition and watching every milligram of potassium, liver lands in a different category than it does for a healthy adult.
How Liver Compares to High-Potassium Foods
The daily value for potassium is 4,700 mg. A food qualifies as “high” in potassium when a single serving delivers 20% or more of that value, which works out to at least 940 mg per serving. Liver doesn’t come close to that mark. A standard 3.5-ounce portion of cooked beef liver provides roughly 300 to 350 mg, or about 7% of the daily value.
For perspective, a medium baked potato with the skin contains around 900 mg of potassium. A cup of cooked spinach has about 840 mg. A medium banana delivers roughly 420 mg. Even the banana, often cited as the go-to potassium food, outpaces a serving of liver. Chicken liver runs a bit higher than beef liver per gram, but a typical serving still falls in the moderate range rather than the high category.
Among protein sources, liver’s potassium content is fairly typical. A 3.5-ounce serving of cooked salmon contains about 360 mg. The same amount of chicken breast has around 260 mg. Liver sits squarely in that neighborhood, not standing out in either direction.
Why Liver Still Matters on a Low-Potassium Diet
If you’re following a potassium-restricted diet for kidney disease, the math changes. Renal diet guidelines from clinical sources, including the UK’s National Health Service, specifically list liver, liver sausage, and liver pâté in the “higher in potassium and phosphate” category of foods to limit. This might seem contradictory given the numbers above, but there are a few reasons it makes sense.
First, people on a strict renal diet often need to keep total daily potassium well below 2,000 mg. At that limit, even 300 to 350 mg from a single food takes up a significant chunk of the daily budget. Second, liver also contains notable amounts of phosphate, another mineral that kidney patients need to restrict. The combination of moderate potassium plus high phosphate in a single food is what earns liver a spot on the “limit” list. Third, portion sizes in real life don’t always match the tidy 3.5-ounce standard. Liver servings at a meal can easily run 5 to 6 ounces, pushing the potassium closer to 500 mg or more.
So if your doctor or dietitian has you tracking potassium, liver is worth counting carefully even though it isn’t technically a “high-potassium” food by general nutrition standards.
What Liver Is Actually High In
Potassium isn’t the reason liver has a reputation as one of the most nutrient-dense foods you can eat. The nutrients that truly stand out are vitamin A, iron, and B vitamins.
A single 2.4-ounce slice of cooked beef liver (about 68 grams) contains roughly 6,420 micrograms of vitamin A. That’s more than double the tolerable upper intake level of 3,000 micrograms per day for adults, which is why nutrition experts recommend eating liver only once or twice a week rather than daily. Vitamin A from liver is the preformed type (retinol), which your body absorbs directly and can accumulate if you consistently overdo it.
Liver is also one of the richest food sources of iron in a form your body absorbs efficiently. It delivers high amounts of folate, vitamin B12, and copper in a single serving. These nutrients are what make liver a genuine standout among animal proteins. Potassium is present, but it’s a supporting player rather than the star.
The Bottom Line on Liver and Potassium
For a healthy adult eating a normal diet, liver is not a high-potassium food. It delivers about 7% of your daily potassium needs per serving, putting it in the same range as most other meats. You’d need to eat roughly three servings to match the potassium in a single baked potato. If you’re on a kidney-friendly diet with strict potassium limits, liver deserves more caution, primarily because its moderate potassium combines with high phosphate levels. For everyone else, potassium is one of the least remarkable things about this remarkably nutrient-dense food.