Air quality
Air quality in Varanasi today
Updated
Unhealthy (US AQI 153) 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 Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh, India, with a 48-hour forecast and the best time to be outside.
- US AQI now
- 153 Unhealthy
- PM2.5
- 77 µg/m³ 5.1× WHO 24-h guideline
- PM10
- 87 µg/m³
- Ozone
- 42 µg/m³
- Dominant pollutant
- PM2.5 sub-index 153
- Best hour today
- 6:30 am AQI 154
- European AQI
- 74
Air quality in Varanasi right now
Right now the modelled US Air Quality Index for Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh, India is 153, 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 153. 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 77 µg/m³, 5.1 times the WHO 24-hour guideline of 15 µg/m³; PM10 is 87 µg/m³ against a guideline of 45; ozone is 42 µg/m³ (below the WHO 8-hour level of 100); nitrogen dioxide is 21 µg/m³ (below the 24-hour guideline of 25).
Also this hour: carbon monoxide 1247 µg/m³.
Varanasi AQI forecast: next 48 hours
Over the next 24 hours the AQI is forecast to range from 153 around Sun 11:30 pm to 158 around Mon 11:30 pm, staying "Unhealthy" throughout.
The following day looks similar, averaging about 160.
| Local time (Asia/Kolkata) | US AQI | Category | PM2.5 µg/m³ | PM10 µg/m³ | Ozone µg/m³ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sun 11:30 pm | 153 | Unhealthy | 77.1 | 87 | 42 |
| Mon 2:30 am | 153 | Unhealthy | 71.2 | 84 | 34 |
| Mon 5:30 am | 154 | Unhealthy | 69.6 | 83 | 36 |
| Mon 8:30 am | 156 | Unhealthy | 68.2 | 85 | 116 |
| Mon 11:30 am | 157 | Unhealthy | 51.8 | 73 | 173 |
| Mon 2:30 pm | 157 | Unhealthy | 44.8 | 61 | 171 |
| Mon 5:30 pm | 157 | Unhealthy | 58.4 | 70 | 120 |
| Mon 8:30 pm | 157 | Unhealthy | 82.4 | 91 | 73 |
| Mon 11:30 pm | 158 | Unhealthy | 84.5 | 92 | 49 |
| Tue 2:30 am | 158 | Unhealthy | 83.6 | 92 | 37 |
| Tue 5:30 am | 160 | Unhealthy | 84.3 | 92 | 32 |
| Tue 8:30 am | 161 | Unhealthy | 72.2 | 80 | 116 |
| Tue 11:30 am | 161 | Unhealthy | 41.3 | 50 | 177 |
| Tue 2:30 pm | 160 | Unhealthy | 40.6 | 48 | 177 |
| Tue 5:30 pm | 160 | Unhealthy | 53.8 | 59 | 128 |
| Tue 8:30 pm | 160 | Unhealthy | 92.4 | 99 | 99 |
| Tue 11:30 pm | 161 | Unhealthy | 107.6 | 114 | 83 |
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 Varanasi today
Between 6 am and 9 pm local time, the cleanest air today is forecast around 6:30 am (AQI 154, Unhealthy) and the worst around 10:30 am (AQI 157). The difference across the day is small, so timing matters little.
Varanasi vs the rest of India
Across 260 India cities we track, the average US AQI right now is 116 (Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups). Varanasi at 153 is 37 points worse than average.
It ranks 201 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 Varanasi
| City | Distance | US AQI | Category | PM2.5 µg/m³ |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pandit Deen Dayal Upadhyaya Nagar | 12 km | 153 | Unhealthy | 77.1 |
| Prayagraj | 118 km | 173 | Unhealthy | 125.7 |
| Aurangābād, Bihar | 151 km | 152 | Unhealthy | 89.4 |
| Gauriganj | 165 km | 170 | Unhealthy | 113.2 |
| Gorakhpur | 165 km | 168 | Unhealthy | 123.4 |
| Kushinagar | 181 km | 157 | Unhealthy | 86.4 |
| Gaya | 209 km | 134 | Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups | 70.5 |
| Patna | 216 km | 154 | Unhealthy | 88.9 |
Model vs measured
We found no measured PM2.5 sensor cell within 25 km of Varanasi, 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 86 µg/m³ in the next 24 hours while NASA satellites detected 161 fire hotspots within 300 km in the last day (nearest about 16 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 153, 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 Varanasi
Air quality elsewhere
Data: Open-Meteo Air Quality API, Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service (CAMS), NASA FIRMS.