Plums are a refreshing, low-calorie summer fruit with a modest but useful potassium contribution. Potassium supports normal muscle contraction, nerve signaling and fluid balance, so knowing how much you are getting from snacks matters for athletes, meal planners and anyone tracking micronutrients.
This calculator estimates potassium in fresh plums from your chosen portion: whole fruit, grams, or cups of sliced plum. You can adjust the daily target to see the percent daily value, and preset buttons load common serving sizes instantly. The tool uses USDA food-composition values based on edible flesh with skin.
Use it alongside your usual calorie and nutrition tracking to make plum portions easier to log and to see how this fruit fits your daily potassium goal.
🍑 Plum Potassium Calculator
Estimate potassium from fresh plums by count, weight, or cup measure. Adjust the daily target to see the percent daily value.
The size selection does not affect the 100 g or cup options.
How to Use This Tool
Enter the number of fresh plums you plan to eat, or switch to 100 g portions or cups of sliced plum. If you are counting whole fruit, select a small, medium or large plum so the weight estimate fits your portion. The daily target starts at 4,700 mg, the FDA Daily Value for potassium, but you can change it to your personal target (for example, 3,400 mg for many men or 2,600 mg for many women) and the percent value will adjust automatically. Press the blue Calculate button to see total potassium, percent of target and portion weight.
The preset pills at the top load common serving sizes instantly: one medium plum, two medium plums, 100 g and one cup of sliced plum. They are handy when you are logging snacks quickly or meal-prepping. If you are also counting calories, pair this estimate with the plum calorie calculator and check your whole-day nutrient balance with a daily nutrition target calculator.
How the Calculation Works
Potassium values come from the USDA FoodData Central entry for raw plums: about 157 mg per 100 g. This figure includes the skin, which is the most common way plums are eaten. The calculator first finds the weight of your portion in grams, then applies the simple proportion: potassium = portion weight in grams × 157 / 100.
The percent daily value is calculated by dividing the potassium result by your chosen target and multiplying by 100: percent DV = potassium / target × 100. For the default 4,700 mg target, one medium plum provides about 103.6 / 4,700 × 100 = 2.2 percent.
The USDA and National Institutes of Health publish useful background on potassium requirements. See the NIH potassium fact sheet and USDA FoodData Central for more detail.
Worked Examples
Example 1: Lunchtime snack of three medium plums. Three medium plums = 3 × 66 g = 198 g. Potassium = 198 × 157 / 100 = 310.9 mg. Against a 4,700 mg target that is about 6.6 percent of the daily value.
Example 2: One cup of sliced plum in a fruit salad. A cup of sliced plums weighs roughly 165 g, so potassium = 165 × 157 / 100 = 259.1 mg, about 5.5 percent DV.
Example 3: A 50 g portion for a quick topping. Half of a 100 g portion is 50 g, giving 50 × 157 / 100 = 78.5 mg, about 1.7 percent DV. Switching the unit to 100 g portions and entering 0.5 gives the same result.
Reference Values
| Portion | Edible weight | Potassium (mg) | % DV (4,700 mg) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Small plum | 50 g | 78.5 | 1.7% |
| Medium plum | 66 g | 103.6 | 2.2% |
| Large plum | 90 g | 141.3 | 3.0% |
| 100 g raw plum | 100 g | 157.0 | 3.3% |
| 1 cup sliced plum | 165 g | 259.1 | 5.5% |
Percentages are rounded to one decimal place. The FDA defines a good source as 10-19 percent DV and an excellent source as 20 percent DV or more, so fresh plums are best described as a moderate potassium contributor rather than a high one.
Factors Affecting Accuracy
Potassium in plums varies with variety, ripeness, soil, irrigation and storage time. A very ripe plum can be slightly higher in water and lower in mineral concentration per gram; a dense, drier Italian plum can be a little higher. The values above are averages from food composition databases, not a lab result for your exact fruit. This is fine for daily tracking and meal planning, but not for medical treatment decisions.
If you are tracking potassium for general wellness, log the same unit consistently each time so your averages stay comparable. Since plums are a snack fruit, small differences of 10-20 mg rarely matter; what matters is whether your overall dietary pattern reliably meets your target.
Frequently Asked Questions
How much potassium is in one medium plum?
About 103-104 mg, assuming a medium plum with 66 g of edible flesh and the skin. That is roughly 2.2 percent of the 4,700 mg daily value.
Are prunes a better source of potassium than fresh plums?
Per 100 g, yes. Dried prunes contain around 732 mg per 100 g, compared with 157 mg in fresh plums, because drying removes water and concentrates minerals. However, a typical prune serving is only about 40 g, so the practical contribution is around 293 mg per serving.
Should I peel plums before calculating potassium?
No. The USDA values for raw plums include the skin, and that is how most people eat them. Removing the skin removes some fiber, polyphenols and a small amount of potassium, but the calculator is designed for plums eaten as-is.