Washington, D.C. air quality
United States · Live AQI and hourly forecast for the next 5 days · updated Sat 7:00 PM local time
Good
Great air. A perfect time to be outside.
- Next 24 hours
- 26–35US AQI, highest around Sat 7:00 PM
- Best time outside
- Sun 1:00 AM–4:00 AMUS AQI about 26
- PM2.5 vs WHO guideline
- 0.4×5.9 µg/m³ over 24 h, guideline 15
- Cigarette equivalent
- ≈ 0.3 a dayBerkeley Earth rule of thumb
- European AQI
- Goodlevel 1 of 6
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Pollutants in Washington, D.C. right now
| Pollutant | Now | Next 24 h vs WHO | US AQI band |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fine particles (PM2.5) | 4.8 µg/m³ | 0.4× | Good |
| Coarse particles (PM10) | 4.9 µg/m³ | 0.1× | Good |
| Nitrogen dioxide (NO2) | 8.6 µg/m³ | 0.2× | Good |
| Ozone (O3) | 58 µg/m³ | 0.6× | Good |
| Sulphur dioxide (SO2) | 1.1 µg/m³ | 0.0× | Good |
| Carbon monoxide (CO) | 183 µg/m³ | 0.0× | Good |
| Desert dust | 0 µg/m³ | ||
| Smoke and haze (aerosol optical depth) | 0.06 | ||
| UV index | 0.0 |
“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 35 around Sat 7:00 PM, lowest 19 around Mon 10:00 AM.
5-day air quality forecast for Washington, D.C.
Daily range of the hourly US AQI, from lowest to highest, on a scale of 0 to 150.
| Day | US AQI | At worst | PM2.5 avg | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sat, Sep 26 | 28–37 | 3.8 | ||
| Sun, Sep 27 | 26–33 | 5.4 | ||
| Mon, Sep 28 | 19–30 | 4.5 | ||
| Tue, Sep 29 | 25–53 | 12 | ||
| Wed, Sep 30 | 56–83 | 24 |
Common questions about the air in Washington, D.C.
Is the air in Washington, D.C. safe today?
Yes. Right now the US AQI in Washington, D.C. is 35, which counts as good. Great air. A perfect time to be outside.
When is the best time to be outside in Washington, D.C.?
Sun 1:00 AM–4:00 AM. That is the cleanest stretch in the next 24 hours, with the US AQI averaging about 26. The worst hour is around Sat 7:00 PM, at 35.
What is the main pollutant in Washington, D.C.?
Fine particles (PM2.5). It drives the index right now, at 4.8 µg/m³. Tiny particles from combustion, fires and dust that reach deep into the lungs. The main driver of AQI worldwide.
How does Washington, D.C.'s air compare with the WHO guideline?
Within the guideline. Over the next 24 hours PM2.5 averages about 5.9 µg/m³, against the World Health Organization's 24-hour guideline of 15 µg/m³. The other pollutants stay within their guideline levels.
How many cigarettes is a day of Washington, D.C.'s air?
About 0.3 cigarettes. Over the next 24 hours PM2.5 averages about 5.9 µg/m³. By Berkeley Earth's rule of thumb, 22 µg/m³ breathed for a day is roughly one cigarette.
Will air quality in Washington, D.C. improve this week?
Monday looks cleanest. Its AQI peaks at 30, against 83 on Wednesday, the worst day in the forecast.
Measured near Washington, D.C.
| Station | PM2.5 µg/m³ | Measured |
|---|---|---|
| McMillan Reservoir AirNow, reference monitor | 4.0 | Sat 6:00 PM |
| AURORA HILLS AirNow, reference monitor | – | Sat 6:00 PM |
| RIVER_Terrace AirNow, reference monitor | 1.8 | Sat 6:00 PM |
Air quality near Washington, D.C.
- Philadelphia 198 km NE
- New York 328 km NE
- Toronto 563 km N
- Boston 634 km NE
- Detroit 634 km NW
- Ottawa 733 km N
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 38.91°N, 77.04°W, updated 2026-09-26 23:00 UTC.