the unconditional guru

Alcohols and Carboxylic acids show acidic character but their relative acidic values are different.

Basically the acidity depends upon

1. The ease of releasing the H⁺ ions (hydronium ions).

2. The stability of ion or molecule formed after the release of H⁺ ion.

now lets discuss in detail and see “why carboxylic acids are more acidic than alcohols ?”

As it is clear from the structures shown above , we can easily see the ion in case of carboxylic acid is resonance stabilised , but the ion in case of alcohol is not stable as the negative charge is confined to only one oxygen atom so it is less stable.