The potassium content in tobacco is an important indicator to evaluate the quality of tobacco leaves. The potassium content in tobacco is generally low in China, so breeding tobacco varieties which had efficient potassium utilization ability is the ideal way to solve the problem. The present situation of the potassium content of tobacco in China was introduced, the advances in breeding of potassium- efficient genotypes tobacco and mechanism of absorption, accumulation of tobacco and distribution of potassium nutrition were reviewed. Finally, the development foreground that to increase the potassium content of tobacco in China by breeding the potassium- efficient genotypes tobacco was prospected.