This easy creamy loaded Potato Soup recipe is so good! It’s loaded with hearty potatoes and savory, crunchy bacon in a creamy base made without using heavy cream. This quick, 30-minute recipe is a total comfort food that you’ll make over and over again.

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We love easy creamy soups all year long, like fresh Corn Chowder, Roasted Tomato Soup, Clam Chowder, and this baked Potato Soup, because they are simple to make and are hearty enough to serve as the main course, paired with crusty Sourdough or French Bread.
The Best Potato Soup Recipe
This creamy, homemade potato soup is one of our favorite restaurant copycat recipes. It’s so easy to make from scratch and beats any restaurant soup. The base is so filling that it’s like a delicious loaded baked potato with all your favorite toppings or Loaded Potato Casserole, but in soup form–yes, please!
You’ll love how we thicken this potato soup! Instead of using heavy cream, we make a roux (a mixture of butter, flour, broth, and milk). So it’s creamy without the extra calories in the cream.
Potato soup is perfect for meal prep since it keeps well in the fridge and freezer and can be saved in portion sizes for a quick and easy meal.
Ingredients for Potato Soup
The soup uses ingredients you most likely already have at home and can be made so quickly. Whip it up as a satisfying meal on a busy weeknight evening or serve it as a comforting weekend meal.
- Bacon – crumbled bacon is the traditional potato soap ingredient, but you can substitute cubed ham if desired.
- Potatoes – our favorite potatoes for soup are Russet or Idaho potatoes but Yukon gold potatoes also work well. NOTE: If you’re using Yukon potatoes, the skin may be left on.
- Vegetables – we only added onion and garlic, you can add cubed carrots and celery in step 3.
- Broth – a roux thickens the soup with butter, flour, broth, and milk. We add sour cream for a bit of acid and creaminess. Chicken broth or vegetable broth works fine here. For a Gluten Free potato soup, you can substitute flour with a 1:1 gluten-free flour.
- Cheese – Mild cheddar or sharp cheddar is great. Try to grate the cheese yourself, since pre-shredded cheese is coated to keep it from sticking, but shredded will work in a pinch.

Pro Tip:
For a spicy kick in the soup, add a 1/4 tsp (or to taste) of cayenne pepper, red pepper flakes, smokey paprika, or chili powder.
How to Make Potato Soup
It’s simple to make this potato soup recipe for a weeknight meal or meal prep, but see our tip below for achieving the best consistency.
- Place potatoes in a pot, cover with water, season with salt, and cook until tender then drain.
- Saute bacon until crispy in a separate Dutch oven, remove and set aside, reserving 1 Tbsp bacon grease.
- Add onions and butter to the bacon grease and saute until soft. Add garlic, and cook for another 30 seconds until fragrant.
- Whisk in flour, milk, and broth until smooth. Bring the mixture to a soft boil.
- Add drained potatoes and season with salt and pepper.
- Stir in sour cream, cheese and bacon. Bring to a boil then remove from heat.

Pro Tip:
We like a chunky soup, but you can adjust the thickness by blending a portion or all of the soup. Before adding the bacon into the pot in step 6, use an immersion blender or scoop some of the hot soup into a blender and blend to get the creamy texture you prefer.
Toppings for Potato Soup
Serve this easy potato soup recipe with your favorite toppings! We like to make it a truly loaded soup, so here are some of my favorite options:
- Bacon bits
- Shredded cheese
- Sour cream
- Diced avocado
- Cooked kernels of boiled corn
- Croutons
- Red pepper flakes
- Green onion or chives
What to Serve with Potato Soup
This hearty meal is thick and creamy and perfect for feeding a hungry family. To make it a more complete meal, try these side dishes that perfectly complement the warm soup:
- Crusty No-Knead Bread
- Soft Dinner Rolls
- Homemade Caeser Salad
- Garden Salad
- Carrott Apple and Walnut Salad

Loaded baked potato soup is comfort food at its finest. You’re going to love the combination of flavors in the soup. Every bite is loaded with creamy soup with chunks of potatoes, bacon, and cheese.
Storage
Loaded baked potato soup keeps well in the refrigerator and the freezer. Let the soap completely before storing.
- To Refrigerate: Store for up to 5 days in an airtight container
- Freezing: divide into portion sizes and freeze in freezer-safe containers for up to 6 months
- To Reheat: Thaw overnight in the fridge or reheat from frozen in a pot on the stove until heated through. You can slowly add more milk to get a creamier consistency.
More Easy Dinner Recipes You’ll Love
I love easy and quick but tasty meals for weeknight dinners, like this potato soup. Once you try this one, check out these other easy dinner ideas:
- Juicy Meatloaf
- Honey Garlic Chicken
- Monterey Chicken
- Chicken Lettuce Wraps
- Cajun Chicken and Mushroom Pasta
- Taco Soup
- Pasta Primavera
- Egg Roll in a Bowl
Potato Soup Recipe

Ingredients
- 4 large potatoes, peeled and cubed
- ½ tsp salt
- 8 oz bacon, bite-sized pieces
- 4 Tbsp unsalted butter
- ½ med onion, finely chopped
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- ¼ cup all-purpose flour, or use Gluten Free 1:1 flour
- 2 1/2 cups whole milk
- 2 1/2 cups chicken broth, or vegetable broth
- 1 cup mild or sharp cheddar cheese, shredded
- ¾ cup sour cream
- 1 tsp salt, or to taste
- ¼ tsp pepper, or to taste
- green onions, to serve
Instructions
- Place sliced potatoes into a stockpot and completely cover with 1" of water. Season with ½ tsp salt and cook 8-10 minutes or until potatoes pierce easily with a knife then drain.
- Meanwhile, saute bacon in a Dutch oven until crispy and then transfer to a plate, reserving 1 Tbsp bacon grease in the pot.
- Add 4 Tbsp butter and chopped onions then saute until tender. Add garlic and cook another 30 seconds until fragrant.
- Quickly whisk in the flour then slowly add 2 1/2 cups milk and 2 1/2 cups broth, whisking constantly. Bring the mixture to a soft boil.
- Add drained potatoes and season soup with 1 tsp salt and 1/4 tsp pepper or season to taste.
- Stir in 3/4 cup sour cream, 1 cup shredded cheddar, and half of your cooked bacon (reserving the rest for serving). Bring to a boil then remove from heat and serve with your favorite toppings.



Hi! I’m Natasha Kravchuk, a New York Times bestselling cookbook author, recipe developer, food photographer, and writer. Here you’ll find delicious, reliable recipes made with simple ingredients, plus easy step-by-step photos and videos to help you cook confidently at home.
Making this tonight along with a salad and your garlic bread recipe. This soup will make the 100th recipe of yours that i have made. Thank you for all the wonderful recipes. And thank you for how easy and clear you make cooking. Love it!!!!!
Wow, that’s amazing, Dave! Thank you so much for sharing.
This was a great recipe. I added a can of cream of potatoes. I left and came back and it was all gone! They wanted some for leftovers but there wasn’t any so I’m promising to make it again real soon. It fed 4 people. Thank you!
That’s awesome! I’m glad it was such a hit.
I love watching her . Her recipes are simple but so so delish !!!!! I love her energy and smile . She is just so much fun to watch !!! If I can have request … maybe some comfort food since fall and winter coming .. and also some hot drinks ☺️
I’m so happy you love our recipes! Thank you so much for the fantastic review and your encouraging words. I am smiling big reading your comment, Theresa.
Yummy! I cut the recipe in half and it was perfect for two with a little leftover.
That’s wonderful!
This is the best potato soup I have ever made! Hubby absolutely loves it!. I am actually making it for dinner tonight. Thank you Natasha
So glad to hear that, Tammy!
Hi. I love all your recipes that I’ve tried. I just wondered if this could be done in a crockpot? If so would you cook potatoes and add at end or put them in raw with the soup base?
Hi Tonya! I’m glad you are loving the recipes. I haven’t experimented with cooking the entire soup in a crockpot so I can’t advise on that.
can I substitute the all purpose flour for gluten free flour or cornstarch?
Hi Eliana! I have not tested it myself but according to my research, using GF flour for roux works. Let us know if you experiment.
thank you! I will try using GF flour… also what size dutch oven do you use?
You’re welcome! We used a 5.5 qt dutch oven (affiliate link).
What makes the sodium content so high. We both have higher BP and try to eat less salt. What might reduce the sodium content?
Hi Debra! The broth, cheese, bacon, they all contain sodium, some in higher amounts than others. You can look for low-sodium or sodium free options, just check the nutrition facts label. I hope that helps.
Absolutely delish!! Can you tell me…..would it freeze and reheat?
Hi Vicki, I haven’t tried but I think that would work fine to freeze. Glad that you love it!
I’ve made this exact recipe several times and it’s always delicious. My experience with leftovers is that it re-heats well and maintains flavor and texture, if refrigerated for 3-4 days. I once tried freezing it for about 2 weeks — Not good at all. The good flavor was lost and the texture was “grainy”. Potatoes used were yukon gold.
Thank you for sharing that with us, Robert!
I made this soup today and I have to say, without exaggeration, it’s the best soup i have ever had.
Creamy and satisfying.. so delicious.
My husband and I had it for lunch, and supper.
I wish I had made a double batch.
Thank you for a wonderful recipe!
Hi Phyllis! That’s wonderful to hear. Thank you for sharing.
This is my go-to potato soup recipe. I am a wife and mother to 5 boys. Everyone loves it. I add at least 8-10 potatoes, a 32oz container of broth. 3 garlic cloves. And we save the bacon to sprinkle on each bowl because it gets chewy if it’s in the soup. We add more cheese to each bowl too. Cubbed ham is a wonderful too if I’m feeling extra. It’s so good!!
Hi Jennifer! That sounds amazing! I’m so glad your family loves this recipe! Thank you for sharing.
This recipe made me famous in my family and I will one day use it to turn my girlfriend into my wife. Thank you!!!!
Hi Mario! That is amazing. Thank you for the wonderful feedback.
This soup is simply amazing. Such great flavor. My son and I love it and will make it again. This is one reason you are my go to person for recipes. Thank you Natasha!!!
That’s wonderful, Sharon! SO glad you loved it.
Delicious! And super easy. My husband is quite fussy and he loves this soup! Thanks for this recipe!
You’re welcome! I’m so happy you enjoyed it, MaryAnn!
I made this but had to tweak a little. Like other people have said, double all ingredients. Used 2.5 lb. Yukon gold potatoes. Added chopped celery and carrots. Used a potato masher and mashed about half the potatoes. Added dried thyme and garlic salt to taste. Added 1 Tbsp chicken bouillon powder. Did about half a cup of fat free half & half to substitute for half a cup of the milk. The rest of the milk was whole milk. Used turkey bacon and light sour cream. I did have a problem with it not thickening enough so I had to make more roux with 4 Tbsp butter and 4 Tbsp flour in a separate pan then poured it in and that did the trick. Next time I’ll try using 1% or 2% milk to make it lighter but I had whole milk in the frig that needed to be used so it was whole milk this time. It turned out good!
Thank you so much for sharing that with me, Amanda!
So you used your own recipe!!!! Then say that it wasn’t thick enough, not Natasha’s fault.
pat houser Agree 100%! Cool that they made so many alterations but then maybe post your own recipe??
Fantastic! I substituted a bit of cream for some of the milk, and used Better Than Bouillon for the broth. It was FABULOUS! I now have several friends that think I am a wizard in the kitchen! I found a batch serves at least 6 people. Thanks for the recipe! It is now one of our all time favorites.
Wonderful! I’m glad it’s a hit. Thank you for sharing.
Just made this soup and it was delicious! Will definitely become a staple in our winter/fall weekly menu.
I’m so happy you enjoyed that. Thank you for sharing that with us, Jessica!
Hi
How much is a serving, one cup or more? Or how many total ounces does this recipe make? Thanks
Hi Anne, a serving is about a cup to a cup and a half.
I forgot the flour step 🤦🏼♀️ so it’s separated. Is there any way I can save it?
Oh no, I haven’t experienced that yet to advise if you can still save it.
I made this . . Very good. Worth the time and effort but I would double it if you have a family of more than four eating it so it will last more than one meal. I added cream cheese since I didn’t have whole milk only 2%, to make it creamier. 😊❤️
Thank you for sharing, Tracey! I’m glad it was enjoyed.