Parachlorella is a genus of green algae in the order Chlorellales.
[2] The genus Parachlorella is more or less indistinguishable from the similar genus Chlorella using morphological features alone; the two genera differ genetically, and can be identified using their 18S ribosomal RNA.
[1] Parachlorella consists of solitary, egg-shaped to spherical cells, sometimes covered in a gelatinous layer.
The chloroplast is parietal and contains a broadly elliptical pyrenoid sheathed in grains of starch.
It is found in freshwater habitats, or soil.