Starch is used as porosity generator in membranes and other porous ceramics. There are different providers that offer a wide variety of starches, which produce distinct pore size distributions. A study was conducted to evaluate the effects of the characteristics of starches (impurities, particle size), obtained from potato, pea, maize and wheat, on the properties of microfiltration membranes formulated with traditional raw materials (the ceramic matrix was composed of quartz, albite and mullite). The results indicated that the pore size distribution and the permeability coefficient of the membrane can be controlled modifying only the particle size of starch. In this way, correlations were obtained between surface mean diameter of starch and membrane properties (characteristic pore diameters d 16 and d 50 , and permeability coefficient). Moreover, it is necessary to use a starch having a mean particle size greater than about 50 microns in order to obtain a significant change in the pore size distribution and an increase in the permeability of the membrane.