What is Air Quality Index (AQI)?

The air quality in any city is determined by the Air Quality Index (AQI). This indicator is developed by government agencies. To assess a city's AQI, various pollutants are considered. During the evaluation, the concentration of these pollutants in the air is measured. The AQI levels help inform people about whether air pollution is increasing or decreasing. Additionally, it is explained how air pollution can be harmful to people's health and in what ways. When the AQI rises, people are advised to take precautions, such as wearing masks outdoors and using air purifiers indoors.

Most Polluted City/States in India

Updated: May 02, 2025

Rank	City, States	AQI
1	Byrnihat, Assam	318
2	Bikaner, Rajasthan	308
3	Nagaur, Rajasthan	279
4	Nagaon, Assam	225
5	Pali, Rajasthan	221
6	Sri Ganganagar, Rajasthan	200
7	Barmer, Rajasthan	197
8	Baghpat, Uttar Pradesh	184
9	Jalore, Rajasthan	179
10	Delhi, Delhi	179

Source : Central Pollution Control Board

Agartala	Agra	Ahmedabad	Ahmednagar
Aizawl	Ajmer	Akola	Alwar
Amaravati	Ambala	Amravati	Amritsar
Anantapur	Angul	Ankleshwar	Araria
Ariyalur	Arrah	Asansol	Aurangabad
Aurangabad	Baddi	Badlapur	Bagalkot
Baghpat	Bahadurgarh	Balasore	Ballabgarh
Banswara	Baran	Barbil	Bareilly
Baripada	Barmer	Barrackpore	Bathinda
Begusarai	Belapur	Belgaum	Bengaluru
Bettiah	Bhagalpur	Bharatpur	Bhilai
Bhilwara	Bhiwadi	Bhiwandi	Bhiwani
Bhopal	Bhubaneswar	Bidar	Bihar Sharif
Bikaner	Bilaspur	Bileipada	Boisar
Brajrajnagar	Bulandshahr	Bundi	Buxar
Byasanagar	Byrnihat	Chamarajanagar	Chandigarh
Chandrapur	Charkhi Dadri	Chengalpattu	Chennai
Chhal	Chhapra	Chikkaballapur	Chikkamagaluru
Chittoor	Chittorgarh	Churu	Coimbatore
Cuddalore	Cuttack	Damoh	Dausa
Davanagere	Dehradun	Delhi	Dewas
Dhanbad	Dharuhera	Dharwad	Dholpur
Dhule	Dindigul	Dungarpur	Durgapur
Eloor	Faridabad	Fatehabad	Firozabad
Gadag	Gandhinagar	Gangtok	Gaya
Ghaziabad	Gorakhpur	Greater Noida	Gummidipoondi
Gurugram	Guwahati	Gwalior	Hajipur
Haldia	Hanumangarh	Hapur	Hassan
Haveri	Hisar	Hosur	Howrah
Hubballi	Hyderabad	Imphal	Indore
Jabalpur	Jaipur	Jaisalmer	Jalandhar
Jalgaon	Jalna	Jalore	Jhalawar
Jhansi	Jhunjhunu	Jind	Jodhpur
Jorapokhar	Kadapa	Kaithal	Kalaburagi
Kalyan	Kanchipuram	Kannur	Kanpur
Karauli	Karnal	Karur	Karwar
Kashipur	Katihar	Katni	Keonjhar
Khanna	Khurja	Kishanganj	Kohima
Kolar	Kolhapur	Kolkata	Kollam
Koppal	Korba	Kota	Kunjemura
Kurukshetra	Latur	Lucknow	Ludhiana
Madikeri	Madurai	Mahad	Maihar
Malegaon	Mandi Gobindgarh	Mandideep	Mandikhera
Manesar	Mangalore	Manguraha	Meerut
Milupara	Mira-bhayandar	Moradabad	Motihari
Mumbai	Munger	Muzaffarnagar	Muzaffarpur
Mysuru	Nagaon	Nagapattinam	Nagaur
Nagpur	Naharlagun	Nalbari	Namakkal
Nanded	Nandesari	Narnaul	Nashik
Navi Mumbai	Nayagarh	Noida	Ooty
Pali	Palkalaiperur	Palwal	Panchgaon
Panchkula	Panipat	Parbhani	Pathardih
Patiala	Patna	Pimpri-chinchwad	Pithampur
Pratapgarh	Prayagraj	Puducherry	Pudukottai
Pune	Purnia	Raichur	Raipur
Rairangpur	Rajamahendravaram	Rajgir	Rajsamand
Ramanagara	Ramanathapuram	Ranipet	Ratlam
Rishikesh	Rohtak	Rourkela	Rupnagar
Sagar	Saharsa	Salem	Samastipur
Sangli	Sasaram	Satna	Sawai Madhopur
Shillong	Shivamogga	Sikar	Silchar
Siliguri	Singrauli	Sirohi	Sirsa
Sivasagar	Siwan	Solapur	Sonipat
Sri Ganganagar	Sri Vijaya Puram	Suakati	Surat
Talcher	Tensa	Thane	Thanjavur
Thiruvananthapuram	Thoothukudi	Thrissur	Tiruchirappalli
Tirumala	Tirunelveli	Tirupati	Tirupur
Tonk	Tumakuru	Tumidih	Udaipur
Udupi	Ujjain	Ulhasnagar	Vapi
Varanasi	Vatva	Vellore	Vijayapura
Vijayawada	Virar	Virudhunagar	Visakhapatnam
Vrindavan	Yadgir	Yamuna Nagar

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Frequently Asked Questions

What is a good AQI level?

A good AQI level is between 0 and 50, indicating air quality that poses little or no risk to health.

What is the safe range of AQI?

The safe range of AQI is from 0 to 100, covering the categories of "Good" (0-50) and "Moderate" (51-100).

What are the criteria for AQI?

AQI criteria include measuring the concentration of pollutants like PM2.5, PM10, ozone, nitrogen dioxide, sulphur dioxide, carbon monoxide, and ammonia over a specified averaging period.

What are the 8 parameters of AQI?

The 8 parameters of AQI are: Particulate Matter (PM10), Particulate Matter (PM2.5), Ozone (O3), Nitrogen Dioxide (NO2), Sulphur Dioxide (SO2), Carbon Monoxide (CO), Ammonia (NH3), and Lead (Pb).

How is AQI calculated?

AQI is calculated using pollutant concentration data, which is converted into an AQI value for each pollutant through specific formulae. The highest value among these is reported as the overall AQI for the location.