Air quality
Air quality in Zaria today
Updated
Unhealthy (US AQI 182) Everyone should reduce prolonged or heavy exertion outdoors; sensitive groups should avoid it and keep windows closed. Model estimate for Sun, Oct 25, 7:00 pm (18:00 UTC).
Live AQI, PM2.5, PM10 and ozone for Zaria, Kaduna State, Nigeria, with a 48-hour forecast and the best time to be outside.
- US AQI now
- 182 Unhealthy
- PM2.5
- 98 µg/m³ 6.5× WHO 24-h guideline
- PM10
- 306 µg/m³
- Ozone
- 76 µg/m³
- Dominant pollutant
- PM2.5 sub-index 182
- Best hour tomorrow
- 7:00 pm AQI 167
- European AQI
- 109
Air quality in Zaria right now
Right now the modelled US Air Quality Index for Zaria, Kaduna State, Nigeria is 182, 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 182. 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 98 µg/m³, 6.5 times the WHO 24-hour guideline of 15 µg/m³; PM10 is 306 µg/m³ against a guideline of 45; ozone is 76 µg/m³ (below the WHO 8-hour level of 100); nitrogen dioxide is 17 µg/m³ (below the 24-hour guideline of 25).
Also this hour: desert dust at 416 µg/m³, high enough to haze the sky, carbon monoxide 1083 µg/m³.
Zaria AQI forecast: next 48 hours
Over the next 24 hours the AQI is forecast to range from 167 around Mon 7:00 pm to 182 around Sun 7:00 pm, staying "Unhealthy" throughout.
The following day looks similar, averaging about 175.
| Local time (Africa/Lagos) | US AQI | Category | PM2.5 µg/m³ | PM10 µg/m³ | Ozone µg/m³ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sun 7:00 pm | 182 | Unhealthy | 98 | 306 | 76 |
| Sun 10:00 pm | 182 | Unhealthy | 122.5 | 242 | 56 |
| Mon 1:00 am | 182 | Unhealthy | 106.4 | 173 | 47 |
| Mon 4:00 am | 180 | Unhealthy | 88.2 | 153 | 39 |
| Mon 7:00 am | 178 | Unhealthy | 95 | 168 | 33 |
| Mon 10:00 am | 175 | Unhealthy | 55.6 | 149 | 120 |
| Mon 1:00 pm | 172 | Unhealthy | 40.9 | 134 | 122 |
| Mon 4:00 pm | 169 | Unhealthy | 37.8 | 108 | 127 |
| Mon 7:00 pm | 167 | Unhealthy | 102 | 169 | 70 |
| Mon 10:00 pm | 169 | Unhealthy | 155.1 | 209 | 37 |
| Tue 1:00 am | 172 | Unhealthy | 159.3 | 204 | 24 |
| Tue 4:00 am | 176 | Unhealthy | 119.7 | 154 | 23 |
| Tue 7:00 am | 179 | Unhealthy | 93.6 | 112 | 36 |
| Tue 10:00 am | 177 | Unhealthy | 51.3 | 171 | 120 |
| Tue 1:00 pm | 177 | Unhealthy | 44.7 | 154 | 130 |
| Tue 4:00 pm | 178 | Unhealthy | 46.2 | 181 | 132 |
| Tue 7:00 pm | 179 | Unhealthy | 90.8 | 218 | 82 |
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 Zaria tomorrow
Between 6 am and 9 pm local time, the cleanest air tomorrow is forecast around 7:00 pm (AQI 167, Unhealthy) and the worst around 6:00 am (AQI 179). That is a swing of 12 points, so a run or walk around 7:00 pm is noticeably better.
Zaria vs the rest of Nigeria
Across 69 Nigeria cities we track, the average US AQI right now is 106 (Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups). Zaria at 182 is 76 points worse than average.
It ranks 66 of 69 from cleanest to most polluted; the cleanest is Calabar (64) and the most polluted Kano (239).
For context, the median across 3,909 cities worldwide is 57.
Air quality in cities near Zaria
| City | Distance | US AQI | Category | PM2.5 µg/m³ |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kaduna | 72 km | 151 | Unhealthy | 53.3 |
| Kano | 131 km | 239 | Very Unhealthy | 121.1 |
| Gaya, Kano State | 162 km | 193 | Unhealthy | 89.4 |
| Jos | 183 km | 144 | Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups | 56.2 |
| Katsina | 209 km | 193 | Unhealthy | 105.9 |
| Minna | 210 km | 130 | Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups | 47.7 |
| Abuja | 230 km | 153 | Unhealthy | 55.3 |
| Bauchi | 248 km | 122 | Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups | 40.3 |
Model vs measured
We found no measured PM2.5 sensor cell within 25 km of Zaria, 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 123 µg/m³ in the next 24 hours while NASA satellites detected 460 fire hotspots within 300 km in the last day (nearest about 9 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 182, 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 Zaria
Air quality elsewhere
Data: Open-Meteo Air Quality API, Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service (CAMS), NASA FIRMS.