Abstract: The pigments were extracted from the skin and flesh of four colored potato lines.The pigment solutions were analyzed by UV-visible spectrograph, sensory evaluation and thin layer chromatography.The results showed that the main pigment of colored potatoes was anthocyan which was more stabilized in acid environment than in alkaline.Purple potato lines contained more kinds of anthocyanins than red potato.The chromatography system No. 7, n-butanol-glacial acetic acid-water 3∶1∶3, got the best separation effect.The character of R f value and UV- vis spectra indicated primarily that the pigments of purple potato lines were malvidin ramification and the pigments of red potato lines were pelargonidin ramification. This review could provide reference for both the study of natural pigments and application of the colored potatoes.