Air quality

Air quality in Reykjavík 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 Mon, Oct 26, 12:00 am (00:00 UTC).

Live AQI, PM2.5, PM10 and ozone for Reykjavík, Capital Region, Iceland, with a 48-hour forecast and the best time to be outside.

US AQI now
31 Good
PM2.5
1 µg/m³ 0.1× WHO 24-h guideline
PM10
2.3 µg/m³
Ozone
69 µg/m³
Dominant pollutant
ozone sub-index 31
Best hour today
9:00 pm AQI 25
European AQI
25

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Air quality in Reykjavík right now

Right now the modelled US Air Quality Index for Reykjavík, Capital Region, Iceland 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 ozone, whose own sub-index is 31. Ozone usually peaks in the afternoon on sunny days and falls back after sunset.

PM2.5 is 1 µg/m³, within the WHO 24-hour guideline of 15 µg/m³; PM10 is 2.3 µg/m³ against a guideline of 45; ozone is 69 µg/m³ (below the WHO 8-hour level of 100); nitrogen dioxide is 1.7 µg/m³ (below the 24-hour guideline of 25).

Also this hour: carbon monoxide 152 µg/m³.

NASA FIRMS shows 7 fire hotspots within 300 km in the last day (nearest about 25 km), but particle levels are not elevated enough to point to smoke right now.

Reykjavík AQI forecast: next 48 hours

Over the next 24 hours the AQI is forecast to range from 24 around Mon 11:00 pm to 31 around Mon 12:00 am, staying "Good" throughout.

The following day is expected to be cleaner, averaging about 22 against 29 for the next 24 hours.

Local time (Atlantic/Reykjavik)US AQICategoryPM2.5 µg/m³PM10 µg/m³Ozone µg/m³
Mon 12:00 am31Good1269
Mon 3:00 am31Good1.1269
Mon 6:00 am31Good1.3465
Mon 9:00 am31Good1.9560
Mon 12:00 pm29Good2.4559
Mon 3:00 pm28Good2.4559
Mon 6:00 pm27Good3.5648
Mon 9:00 pm25Good5.7850
Tue 12:00 am24Good3.2551
Tue 3:00 am24Good2.8455
Tue 6:00 am24Good2.2448
Tue 9:00 am24Good2.1348
Tue 12:00 pm22Good1.6249
Tue 3:00 pm22Good1.6343
Tue 6:00 pm21Good2.3442
Tue 9:00 pm20Good2.1444
Wed 12:00 am20Good2.1343

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 Reykjavík today

Between 6 am and 9 pm local time, the cleanest air today is forecast around 9:00 pm (AQI 25, Good) and the worst around 6:00 am (AQI 31). The difference across the day is small, so timing matters little.

Model vs measured

We found no measured PM2.5 sensor cell within 25 km of Reykjavík, 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 AQICategoryWhat it means
0-50GoodAir quality is satisfactory and poses little or no risk; a good time for outdoor activity.
51-100ModerateAcceptable for most people. Unusually sensitive people should consider shortening long or heavy exertion outdoors.
101-150Unhealthy for Sensitive GroupsPeople with heart or lung disease, older adults, children and teens should cut back on prolonged or heavy exertion outdoors.
151-200UnhealthyEveryone should reduce prolonged or heavy exertion outdoors; sensitive groups should avoid it and keep windows closed.
201-300Very UnhealthyHealth alert: everyone should avoid prolonged or heavy exertion outdoors, and sensitive groups should stay indoors.
301-500HazardousEmergency 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.

More for Reykjavík

Air quality elsewhere

Data: Open-Meteo Air Quality API, Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service (CAMS), NASA FIRMS.