Air quality
Air quality in Patna today
Updated
Unhealthy (US AQI 154) Everyone should reduce prolonged or heavy exertion outdoors; sensitive groups should avoid it and keep windows closed. Model estimate for Sun, Oct 25, 11:30 pm (18:00 UTC).
Live AQI, PM2.5, PM10 and ozone for Patna, Bihar, India, with a 48-hour forecast and the best time to be outside.
- US AQI now
- 154 Unhealthy
- PM2.5
- 89 µg/m³ 5.9× WHO 24-h guideline
- PM10
- 97 µg/m³
- Ozone
- 47 µg/m³
- Dominant pollutant
- PM2.5 sub-index 154
- Best hour today
- 6:30 am AQI 158
- European AQI
- 79
Air quality in Patna right now
Right now the modelled US Air Quality Index for Patna, Bihar, India is 154, which falls in the "Unhealthy" band (up to 200). Everyone should reduce prolonged or heavy exertion outdoors; sensitive groups should avoid it and keep windows closed.
The index is driven mainly by PM2.5, whose own sub-index is 154. 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 89 µg/m³, 5.9 times the WHO 24-hour guideline of 15 µg/m³; PM10 is 97 µg/m³ against a guideline of 45; ozone is 47 µg/m³ (below the WHO 8-hour level of 100); nitrogen dioxide is 37 µg/m³ (above the 24-hour guideline of 25).
Also this hour: carbon monoxide 734 µg/m³.
Patna AQI forecast: next 48 hours
Over the next 24 hours the AQI is forecast to range from 154 around Sun 11:30 pm to 166 around Mon 11:30 pm, staying "Unhealthy" throughout.
The following day is expected to be worse, averaging about 177 against 160 for the next 24 hours.
| Local time (Asia/Kolkata) | US AQI | Category | PM2.5 µg/m³ | PM10 µg/m³ | Ozone µg/m³ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sun 11:30 pm | 154 | Unhealthy | 88.9 | 97 | 47 |
| Mon 2:30 am | 155 | Unhealthy | 97.6 | 106 | 37 |
| Mon 5:30 am | 157 | Unhealthy | 100.8 | 109 | 31 |
| Mon 8:30 am | 159 | Unhealthy | 83.6 | 92 | 129 |
| Mon 11:30 am | 161 | Unhealthy | 39 | 45 | 189 |
| Mon 2:30 pm | 161 | Unhealthy | 36.7 | 44 | 190 |
| Mon 5:30 pm | 164 | Unhealthy | 53.2 | 59 | 122 |
| Mon 8:30 pm | 163 | Unhealthy | 109.2 | 115 | 42 |
| Mon 11:30 pm | 166 | Unhealthy | 136.9 | 143 | 9 |
| Tue 2:30 am | 170 | Unhealthy | 142 | 148 | 7 |
| Tue 5:30 am | 174 | Unhealthy | 151.3 | 157 | 3 |
| Tue 8:30 am | 179 | Unhealthy | 99.9 | 105 | 143 |
| Tue 11:30 am | 180 | Unhealthy | 42.4 | 48 | 205 |
| Tue 2:30 pm | 180 | Unhealthy | 40.6 | 46 | 211 |
| Tue 5:30 pm | 187 | Unhealthy | 54.2 | 58 | 134 |
| Tue 8:30 pm | 180 | Unhealthy | 79.2 | 83 | 68 |
| Tue 11:30 pm | 176 | Unhealthy | 94.1 | 98 | 46 |
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 Patna today
Between 6 am and 9 pm local time, the cleanest air today is forecast around 6:30 am (AQI 158, Unhealthy) and the worst around 5:30 pm (AQI 164). The difference across the day is small, so timing matters little.
Patna vs the rest of India
Across 260 India cities we track, the average US AQI right now is 116 (Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups). Patna at 154 is 38 points worse than average.
It ranks 207 of 260 from cleanest to most polluted; the cleanest is Dindigul (26) and the most polluted Karnāl (346).
For context, the median across 3,909 cities worldwide is 57.
Air quality in cities near Patna
| City | Distance | US AQI | Category | PM2.5 µg/m³ |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bihār Sharīf | 59 km | 150 | Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups | 78.7 |
| Muzaffarpur | 64 km | 159 | Unhealthy | 97.6 |
| Gaya | 90 km | 134 | Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups | 70.5 |
| Darbhanga | 98 km | 152 | Unhealthy | 75.7 |
| Dhāka, Bihar | 120 km | 179 | Unhealthy | 143.9 |
| Aurangābād, Bihar | 121 km | 152 | Unhealthy | 89.4 |
| Birgañj | 160 km | 126 | Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups | 60.3 |
| Kushinagar | 178 km | 157 | Unhealthy | 86.4 |
Model vs measured
We found no measured PM2.5 sensor cell within 25 km of Patna, 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 137 µg/m³ in the next 24 hours while NASA satellites detected 219 fire hotspots within 300 km in the last day (nearest about 20 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 154, 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 Patna
Air quality elsewhere
Data: Open-Meteo Air Quality API, Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service (CAMS), NASA FIRMS.