Global Air Quality Update - Week of July 20, 2026

Live data snapshot for July 20, 2026. 217 cities tracked. Global average AQI: 74.

This week's most polluted city is Riyadh, Saudi Arabia at AQI 1027. The cleanest air right now is in Cali, Colombia at AQI 15.

Biggest changes this week

Worsening

• Riyadh, Saudi Arabia: 841 → 1027 AQI (+186)
• Kuwait City, Kuwait: 647 → 728 AQI (+81)
• Chengdu, China: 160 → 209 AQI (+49)
• Lahore, Pakistan: 172 → 186 AQI (+14)
• Jakarta, Indonesia: 166 → 179 AQI (+13)

Improving

• Delhi, India: 622 → 187 AQI (-435)
• Abu Dhabi, UAE: 161 → 130 AQI (-31)
• Hanoi, Vietnam: 171 → 151 AQI (-20)
• Beijing, China: 152 → 137 AQI (-15)
• Dubai, UAE: 166 → 157 AQI (-9)

Global average shifted from 67 to 74 (+7).

Top 10 most polluted cities right now

1. Riyadh, Saudi Arabia - AQI 1027 (PM2.5 225.4 μg/m³)
2. Kuwait City, Kuwait - AQI 728 (PM2.5 176 μg/m³)
3. Xian, China - AQI 216 (PM2.5 22.2 μg/m³)
4. Chengdu, China - AQI 209 (PM2.5 18.5 μg/m³)
5. Shanghai, China - AQI 189 (PM2.5 40.6 μg/m³)
6. Delhi, India - AQI 187 (PM2.5 63.8 μg/m³)
7. Lahore, Pakistan - AQI 186 (PM2.5 112.7 μg/m³)
8. Jakarta, Indonesia - AQI 179 (PM2.5 47.7 μg/m³)
9. Faisalabad, Pakistan - AQI 163 (PM2.5 62.4 μg/m³)
10. Bandung, Indonesia - AQI 162 (PM2.5 57.5 μg/m³)

Top 10 cleanest cities right now

1. Cali, Colombia - AQI 15 (PM2.5 2.4 μg/m³)
2. La Paz, Bolivia - AQI 16 (PM2.5 2.4 μg/m³)
3. Oslo, Norway - AQI 20 (PM2.5 2.5 μg/m³)
4. Brasilia, Brazil - AQI 20 (PM2.5 4.3 μg/m³)
5. Pune, India - AQI 21 (PM2.5 4.8 μg/m³)
6. London, United Kingdom - AQI 22 (PM2.5 3.9 μg/m³)
7. Copenhagen, Denmark - AQI 22 (PM2.5 2 μg/m³)
8. Helsinki, Finland - AQI 22 (PM2.5 1.4 μg/m³)
9. Hamburg, Germany - AQI 22 (PM2.5 2.7 μg/m³)
10. Quito, Ecuador - AQI 22 (PM2.5 3.7 μg/m³)

What is AQI?

AQI (Air Quality Index) is a 0-500 scale used by the US EPA. Below 50 is good, above 150 unhealthy, above 300 hazardous. Most damage comes from PM2.5 - fine particles that enter the bloodstream. Learn more: PM2.5 explained.

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Data: live readings refreshed every 30 minutes by atmos.today. See methodology and attribution.