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Chennai air quality

India · Live AQI and hourly forecast for the next 5 days · updated Sun 05:30 local time

62

Moderate

US AQI, mostly PM2.5

Acceptable. Unusually sensitive people should ease off long, intense outdoor effort.

Next 24 hours
62–188US AQI, highest around Sun 18:00
Best time outside
Sun 05:00–8:00US AQI about 63
PM2.5 vs WHO guideline
1.7×26 µg/m³ over 24 h, guideline 15
Cigarette equivalent
≈ 1.2 a dayBerkeley Earth rule of thumb
European AQI
Moderatelevel 3 of 6

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The live globe, centred on Chennai. Switch pollutants, drag through the next 5 days or press play. Full map →

Pollutants in Chennai right now

PollutantNowNext 24 h vs WHOUS AQI band
Fine particles (PM2.5) 19 µg/m³ 1.7× Moderate
Coarse particles (PM10) 24 µg/m³ 0.7× Good
Nitrogen dioxide (NO2) 12 µg/m³ 0.3× Good
Ozone (O3) 66 µg/m³ 2.0× Good
Sulphur dioxide (SO2) 11 µg/m³ 0.3× Good
Carbon monoxide (CO) 268 µg/m³ 0.1× Good
Desert dust1 µg/m³
Smoke and haze (aerosol optical depth)0.31
UV index0.0

“Next 24 h vs WHO” compares the forecast with the World Health Organization’s 2021 guideline levels: 24-hour means of 15 µg/m³ for PM2.5, 45 for PM10, 25 for NO2, 40 for SO2 and 4 mg/m³ for CO, and 100 µg/m³ over 8 hours for ozone. Above 1× is above the guideline.

Next 48 hours

Hourly US AQI. Highest 188 around Sun 18:00, lowest 62 around Sun 05:00.

Good 0–50Moderate 51–100Sensitive 101–150Unhealthy 151–200Very unhealthy 201–300Hazardous 301+

5-day air quality forecast for Chennai

Daily range of the hourly US AQI, from lowest to highest, on a scale of 0 to 250.

DayUS AQIAt worstWorst hourPM2.5 avgUV max
Sun 27 Sept 61–188 Unhealthy 18:00 25 9.4
Mon 28 Sept 82–170 Unhealthy 17:00 27 8.9
Tue 29 Sept 79–180 Unhealthy 17:00 26 8.7
Wed 30 Sept 81–213 Very unhealthy 18:00 31 8.6
Thu 1 Oct 94–166 Unhealthy 0:00 28 8.4

Common questions about the air in Chennai

  1. Is the air in Chennai safe today?

    For most people, yes. Right now the US AQI in Chennai is 62, which counts as moderate. Acceptable. Unusually sensitive people should ease off long, intense outdoor effort. It is expected to reach 188 (unhealthy) around Sun 18:00.

  2. When is the best time to be outside in Chennai?

    Sun 05:00–8:00. That is the cleanest stretch in the next 24 hours, with the US AQI averaging about 63. The worst hour is around Sun 18:00, at 188.

  3. What is the main pollutant in Chennai?

    Fine particles (PM2.5). It drives the index right now, at 19 µg/m³. Tiny particles from combustion, fires and dust that reach deep into the lungs. The main driver of AQI worldwide.

  4. How does Chennai's air compare with the WHO guideline?

    1.7 times the guideline. Over the next 24 hours PM2.5 averages about 26 µg/m³, against the World Health Organization's 24-hour guideline of 15 µg/m³. O3 is also forecast above its guideline level.

  5. How many cigarettes is a day of Chennai's air?

    About 1.2 cigarettes. Over the next 24 hours PM2.5 averages about 26 µg/m³. By Berkeley Earth's rule of thumb, 22 µg/m³ breathed for a day is roughly one cigarette.

  6. Will air quality in Chennai improve this week?

    Thursday looks cleanest. Its AQI peaks at 166, against 213 on Wednesday, the worst day in the forecast.

Air quality near Chennai

All 161 cities

About this forecast

Forecast from CAMS global via Open-Meteo: the Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service (CAMS) model at about 40 km resolution (10 km inside Europe), refreshed twice a day. Models smooth out street-level peaks, so busy roads and industrial sites can be worse than shown; ground stations, where there are any nearby, show what monitors actually measure. The US AQI follows the US EPA scale and the European AQI the EEA bands. Readings for 13.08°N, 80.27°E, updated 2026-09-27 00:00 UTC.