静息电位（又称静态电位、静止电位、静止膜电位、休息电位、休息膜电位），是神经元处于相对静止状态时，细胞膜内外存在的恒定电位差。其主要成因源于钠钾泵的活动。静止膜电位的存在对于神经传导而言，是非常重要的。

在神经细胞未受刺激的状态，可想像为一个不会影响细胞的电压器，将一端电极置于神经细胞膜内，一端置于神经细胞膜外，将可发现细胞膜内外存在一电位差，此电位差在人类神经细胞膜上约为−70 mV(负值代表细胞膜内之电位较膜外低)。

这是由于细胞膜的内外离子浓度分布不均所导致的。众离子中最主要影响的是钾离子和钠离子，且细胞膜上有多个钠钾泵 ，它们会进行主动运输，每次把三个钠离子送到细胞外，把两个钾离子送入细胞内，过程中耗用了一个ATP。细胞膜上还有钠离子信道和钾离子信道，在细胞静止的状态下，钠离子信道是完全关闭的，使钠离子不能进出，而一些钾离子信道却会打开，因此若干钾离子会扩散出细胞外。（此处是指主动离子信道，事实上细胞膜上存在一些被动离子信道，但影响不大。）总体而言，神经细胞内有很多的钾离子，而细胞外有非常多的钠离子加上一些钾离子，造成外面的阳离子比内部的阳离子还要多，此即为产生静止膜电位的主要原因。

The relatively static membrane potential of quiescent cells is called the resting membrane potential (or resting voltage), as opposed to the specific dynamic electrochemical phenomena called action potential and graded membrane potential.

Any voltage is a difference in electric potential between two points—for example, the separation of positive and negative electric charges on opposite sides of a resistive barrier. The typical resting membrane potential of a cell arises from the separation of potassium ions from intracellular, relatively immobile anions across the membrane of the cell. Because the membrane permeability for potassium is much higher than that for other ions (disregarding voltage-gated channels at this stage), and because of the strong chemical gradient for potassium, potassium ions flow from the cytosol into the extracellular space carrying out positive charge, until their movement is balanced by build-up of negative charge on the inner surface of the membrane. Again, because of the high relative permeability for potassium, the resulting membrane potential is almost always close to the potassium reversal potential. But in order for this process to occur, a concentration gradient of potassium ions must first be set up. This work is done by the ion pumps/transporters and/or exchangers and generally is powered by ATP.