Air quality
Air quality in Quito today
Updated
Good (US AQI 31) Air quality is satisfactory and poses little or no risk; a good time for outdoor activity. Model estimate for Sun, Oct 25, 9:00 pm (02:00 UTC).
Live AQI, PM2.5, PM10 and ozone for Quito, Pichincha, Ecuador, with a 48-hour forecast and the best time to be outside.
- US AQI now
- 31 Good
- PM2.5
- 7.2 µg/m³ 0.5× WHO 24-h guideline
- PM10
- 7.2 µg/m³
- Ozone
- 10 µg/m³
- Dominant pollutant
- PM2.5 sub-index 31
- Best hour tomorrow
- 6:00 am AQI 33
- European AQI
- 43
Air quality in Quito right now
Right now the modelled US Air Quality Index for Quito, Pichincha, Ecuador is 31, which falls in the "Good" band (up to 50). Air quality is satisfactory and poses little or no risk; a good time for outdoor activity.
The index is driven mainly by PM2.5, whose own sub-index is 31. 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 7.2 µg/m³, within the WHO 24-hour guideline of 15 µg/m³; PM10 is 7.2 µg/m³ against a guideline of 45; ozone is 10 µg/m³ (below the WHO 8-hour level of 100); nitrogen dioxide is 29 µg/m³ (above the 24-hour guideline of 25).
Also this hour: carbon monoxide 1055 µg/m³.
NASA FIRMS shows 12 fire hotspots within 300 km in the last day (nearest about 167 km), but particle levels are not elevated enough to point to smoke right now.
Quito AQI forecast: next 48 hours
Over the next 24 hours the AQI is forecast to range from 31 around Sun 9:00 pm to 37 around Mon 4:00 pm, staying "Good" throughout.
The following day is expected to be worse, averaging about 45 against 34 for the next 24 hours.
| Local time (America/Guayaquil) | US AQI | Category | PM2.5 µg/m³ | PM10 µg/m³ | Ozone µg/m³ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sun 9:00 pm | 31 | Good | 7.2 | 7 | 10 |
| Mon 12:00 am | 31 | Good | 8.4 | 8 | 2 |
| Mon 3:00 am | 32 | Good | 6.7 | 7 | 6 |
| Mon 6:00 am | 33 | Good | 7.5 | 8 | 14 |
| Mon 9:00 am | 34 | Good | 4.8 | 5 | 53 |
| Mon 12:00 pm | 35 | Good | 6.3 | 6 | 75 |
| Mon 3:00 pm | 36 | Good | 4.9 | 5 | 67 |
| Mon 6:00 pm | 36 | Good | 5 | 5 | 40 |
| Mon 9:00 pm | 35 | Good | 5.1 | 5 | 22 |
| Tue 12:00 am | 36 | Good | 14.9 | 15 | 10 |
| Tue 3:00 am | 40 | Good | 15.1 | 15 | 3 |
| Tue 6:00 am | 46 | Good | 13 | 13 | 9 |
| Tue 9:00 am | 50 | Good | 4.3 | 4 | 58 |
| Tue 12:00 pm | 50 | Good | 5.4 | 6 | 100 |
| Tue 3:00 pm | 49 | Good | 5.8 | 6 | 95 |
| Tue 6:00 pm | 50 | Good | 9.3 | 9 | 63 |
| Tue 9:00 pm | 51 | Moderate | 8.5 | 9 | 40 |
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 Quito tomorrow
Between 6 am and 9 pm local time, the cleanest air tomorrow is forecast around 6:00 am (AQI 33, Good) and the worst around 4:00 pm (AQI 37). The difference across the day is small, so timing matters little.
Quito vs the rest of Ecuador
Across 9 Ecuador cities we track, the average US AQI right now is 29 (Good). Quito at 31 is about average.
It ranks 7 of 9 from cleanest to most polluted; the cleanest is Portoviejo (22) and the most polluted Santa Rosa, El Oro (36).
For context, the median across 3,556 cities worldwide is 58.
Air quality in cities near Quito
| City | Distance | US AQI | Category | PM2.5 µg/m³ |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Santo Domingo de los Colorados | 72 km | 27 | Good | 2.9 |
| Ambato | 114 km | 26 | Good | 3.5 |
| Pasto | 212 km | 19 | Good | 3.3 |
| Portoviejo | 233 km | 22 | Good | 2.7 |
| Eloy Alfaro | 261 km | 27 | Good | 2.6 |
| Guayaquil | 266 km | 27 | Good | 2.6 |
| Cuenca | 301 km | 27 | Good | 6.5 |
| Popayán | 365 km | 20 | Good | 2.3 |
Model vs measured
We found no measured PM2.5 sensor cell within 25 km of Quito, 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.
Advice for sensitive groups
With the AQI at 31, there is no need for sensitive groups to change plans. People with asthma should still carry their reliever inhaler as usual.
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 Quito
Air quality elsewhere
Data: Open-Meteo Air Quality API, Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service (CAMS), NASA FIRMS.