Hypertension is the most significant risk factor for morbidity and mortality of stroke, myocardial infarction and chronic kidney disease, and is also the leading cause of global disease burden. Studies have proved that reducing dietary sodium or supplementing dietary potassium can reduce blood pressure independently or cooperatively. Salt, as the main environmental factor of hypertension, has been widely recognized, while the role of dietary potassium has been generally ignored. Latest research has found that the main environmental factor of hypertension pathogenesis attributes to the combined effect of excessive sodium and deficient potassium, rather than a single factor, and the role of potassium is equally important as that of sodium. Therefore, this review mainly elaborates on the mechanism by which dietary sodium and potassium intake affects hypertension, providing new perspectives for the prevention and treatment of hypertension.