Air quality
Air quality in Niamey today
Updated
Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups (US AQI 135) People with heart or lung disease, older adults, children and teens should cut back on prolonged or heavy exertion outdoors. Model estimate for Sun, Oct 25, 9:00 pm (20:00 UTC).
Live AQI, PM2.5, PM10 and ozone for Niamey, Niger, with a 48-hour forecast and the best time to be outside.
- US AQI now
- 135 Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups
- PM2.5
- 46 µg/m³ 3.1× WHO 24-h guideline
- PM10
- 101 µg/m³
- Ozone
- 54 µg/m³
- Dominant pollutant
- PM2.5 sub-index 135
- Best hour tomorrow
- 7:00 pm AQI 128
- European AQI
- 58
Air quality in Niamey right now
Right now the modelled US Air Quality Index for Niamey, Niger is 135, which falls in the "Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups" band (up to 150). People with heart or lung disease, older adults, children and teens should cut back on prolonged or heavy exertion outdoors.
The index is driven mainly by PM2.5, whose own sub-index is 135. Fine and coarse particles come from traffic, heating, industry, dust and smoke; they build up on calm nights and clear when wind or rain arrives.
PM2.5 is 46 µg/m³, 3.1 times the WHO 24-hour guideline of 15 µg/m³; PM10 is 101 µg/m³ against a guideline of 45; ozone is 54 µg/m³ (below the WHO 8-hour level of 100); nitrogen dioxide is 3 µg/m³ (below the 24-hour guideline of 25).
Also this hour: desert dust at 112 µg/m³, high enough to haze the sky, carbon monoxide 166 µg/m³.
Niamey AQI forecast: next 48 hours
Over the next 24 hours the AQI is forecast to range from 128 around Mon 7:00 pm to 136 around Sun 10:00 pm, staying "Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups" throughout.
The following day is expected to be cleaner, averaging about 125 against 133 for the next 24 hours.
| Local time (Africa/Niamey) | US AQI | Category | PM2.5 µg/m³ | PM10 µg/m³ | Ozone µg/m³ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sun 9:00 pm | 135 | Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups | 46 | 101 | 54 |
| Mon 12:00 am | 136 | Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups | 45.8 | 102 | 49 |
| Mon 3:00 am | 136 | Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups | 46 | 98 | 49 |
| Mon 6:00 am | 136 | Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups | 46.6 | 92 | 42 |
| Mon 9:00 am | 135 | Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups | 47.3 | 94 | 70 |
| Mon 12:00 pm | 132 | Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups | 49.5 | 117 | 98 |
| Mon 3:00 pm | 130 | Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups | 47 | 124 | 99 |
| Mon 6:00 pm | 129 | Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups | 45.3 | 112 | 77 |
| Mon 9:00 pm | 128 | Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups | 48.3 | 115 | 58 |
| Tue 12:00 am | 129 | Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups | 50.6 | 124 | 47 |
| Tue 3:00 am | 130 | Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups | 43.2 | 90 | 43 |
| Tue 6:00 am | 129 | Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups | 38.3 | 64 | 35 |
| Tue 9:00 am | 126 | Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups | 38.5 | 64 | 73 |
| Tue 12:00 pm | 123 | Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups | 43.5 | 102 | 103 |
| Tue 3:00 pm | 122 | Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups | 41.1 | 106 | 106 |
| Tue 6:00 pm | 120 | Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups | 38.5 | 94 | 84 |
| Tue 9:00 pm | 117 | Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups | 39.5 | 81 | 59 |
Every third hour of the CAMS forecast via Open-Meteo. US AQI uses rolling averages (24 h for particles, 8 h for ozone), so it moves more slowly than the hourly concentrations.
Best time to be outside in Niamey tomorrow
Between 6 am and 9 pm local time, the cleanest air tomorrow is forecast around 7:00 pm (AQI 128, Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups) and the worst around 6:00 am (AQI 136). The difference across the day is small, so timing matters little.
Niamey vs the rest of Niger
Across 4 Niger cities we track, the average US AQI right now is 118 (Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups). Niamey at 135 is 17 points worse than average.
It ranks 3 of 4 from cleanest to most polluted; the cleanest is Zinder (86) and the most polluted Gaya, Dosso Region (153).
For context, the median across 3,909 cities worldwide is 56.
Air quality in cities near Niamey
| City | Distance | US AQI | Category | PM2.5 µg/m³ |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gaya, Dosso Region | 232 km | 153 | Unhealthy | 58.9 |
| Sokoto | 343 km | 166 | Unhealthy | 79.6 |
Model vs measured
We found no measured PM2.5 sensor cell within 25 km of Niamey, so the numbers on this page are model estimates. Models capture regional pollution well but can miss very local sources such as a busy road or a nearby fire.
Wildfire smoke
PM2.5 is forecast to reach 50 µg/m³ in the next 24 hours while NASA satellites detected 652 fire hotspots within 300 km in the last day (nearest about 117 km away). Smoke is a likely contributor: keep windows closed, run an air purifier or HVAC filter, and check the fire map before heading out.
Advice for sensitive groups
At 135, children, older adults, pregnant people and anyone with asthma, COPD or heart disease should limit time outdoors, especially strenuous activity. A well-fitted N95/FFP2 mask cuts particle exposure; it does not filter ozone.
What the US AQI numbers mean
| US AQI | Category | What it means |
|---|---|---|
| 0-50 | Good | Air quality is satisfactory and poses little or no risk; a good time for outdoor activity. |
| 51-100 | Moderate | Acceptable for most people. Unusually sensitive people should consider shortening long or heavy exertion outdoors. |
| 101-150 | Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups | People with heart or lung disease, older adults, children and teens should cut back on prolonged or heavy exertion outdoors. |
| 151-200 | Unhealthy | Everyone should reduce prolonged or heavy exertion outdoors; sensitive groups should avoid it and keep windows closed. |
| 201-300 | Very Unhealthy | Health alert: everyone should avoid prolonged or heavy exertion outdoors, and sensitive groups should stay indoors. |
| 301-500 | Hazardous | Emergency conditions: everyone should avoid all outdoor physical activity and stay indoors with filtered air if possible. The scale tops out at 500; heavier dust or smoke is shown as 500. |
Values on this page are modelled by CAMS (Copernicus) and served by Open-Meteo; they are estimates for the area around the city centre, not readings from an official monitor.
Nearby cities
More for Niamey
Air quality elsewhere
Data: Open-Meteo Air Quality API, Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service (CAMS), NASA FIRMS.