Potassium tert-butoxide is an important kind of organic base with its alkalinity being stronger than potassium hydroxide. In addition, as a kind of strong alkaline, potassium tert-butoxide is widely used in the organic synthesis of chemical, pharmaceutical, and pesticide such as trans-esterification, condensation, rearrangement, polymerization, loop opening and the production of heavy metal orthoester.

Potassium tert-butoxide is used as a condensing agent, which can be used to catalyze Darzens condensation reaction and Stobbe condensation reaction. It is also the most effective alkaline for traditional akloxide-haloform reaction generating dihalogenated carbene.