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Air quality · China

Beijing Air Quality Index (AQI) today

Modelled estimate for 19:00 local time (UTC+8), refreshed 3 Nov, 07:52 UTC+0.

284 Very unhealthy

Live estimate · modelled

US EPA AQI19:00 UTC+8, 3 Nov Main pollutant: PM2.5

Health alert: the risk of health effects is increased for everyone.

What to do today

  • Long walk or run outside Avoid
  • Kids playing outside Keep indoors
  • Airing the house Keep closed
  • Mask outdoors N95 outdoors

Based on the US EPA’s health statement: “Health alert: the risk of health effects is increased for everyone.” General guidance, not medical advice.

Last 24 hours and next 48

Past hours Forecast

20:00 · 220 21:00 · 222 22:00 · 223 23:00 · 225 00:00 · 226 01:00 · 226 02:00 · 227 03:00 · 224 04:00 · 220 05:00 · 216 06:00 · 209 07:00 · 211 08:00 · 216 09:00 · 220 10:00 · 212 11:00 · 190 12:00 · 176 13:00 · 169 14:00 · 165 15:00 · 164 16:00 · 166 17:00 · 188 18:00 · 236 19:00 · 284 20:00 · 338 21:00 · 380 22:00 · 404 23:00 · 403 00:00 · 368 01:00 · 323 02:00 · 291 03:00 · 274 04:00 · 258 05:00 · 249 06:00 · 244 07:00 · 256 08:00 · 281 09:00 · 292 10:00 · 278 11:00 · 261 12:00 · 244 13:00 · 234 14:00 · 225 15:00 · 223 16:00 · 230 17:00 · 247 18:00 · 281 19:00 · 344 20:00 · 417 21:00 · 465 22:00 · 456 23:00 · 439 00:00 · 401 01:00 · 354 02:00 · 303 03:00 · 276 04:00 · 252 05:00 · 229 06:00 · 214 07:00 · 215 08:00 · 218 09:00 · 213 10:00 · 197 11:00 · 179 12:00 · 154 13:00 · 106 14:00 · 77 15:00 · 64 Now

US EPA AQI per hour, UTC+8. Particles use EPA’s NowCast (a 12-hour weighted average), ozone and CO an 8-hour average. Lighter bars are the CAMS forecast.

Show as a table
TimeAQI
Mon 20:00220
Mon 21:00222
Mon 22:00223
Mon 23:00225
Tue 00:00226
Tue 01:00226
Tue 02:00227
Tue 03:00224
Tue 04:00220
Tue 05:00216
Tue 06:00209
Tue 07:00211
Tue 08:00216
Tue 09:00220
Tue 10:00212
Tue 11:00190
Tue 12:00176
Tue 13:00169
Tue 14:00165
Tue 15:00164
Tue 16:00166
Tue 17:00188
Tue 18:00236
Tue 19:00 · Now284
Tue 20:00 · Forecast338
Tue 21:00 · Forecast380
Tue 22:00 · Forecast404
Tue 23:00 · Forecast403
Wed 00:00 · Forecast368
Wed 01:00 · Forecast323
Wed 02:00 · Forecast291
Wed 03:00 · Forecast274
Wed 04:00 · Forecast258
Wed 05:00 · Forecast249
Wed 06:00 · Forecast244
Wed 07:00 · Forecast256
Wed 08:00 · Forecast281
Wed 09:00 · Forecast292
Wed 10:00 · Forecast278
Wed 11:00 · Forecast261
Wed 12:00 · Forecast244
Wed 13:00 · Forecast234
Wed 14:00 · Forecast225
Wed 15:00 · Forecast223
Wed 16:00 · Forecast230
Wed 17:00 · Forecast247
Wed 18:00 · Forecast281
Wed 19:00 · Forecast344
Wed 20:00 · Forecast417
Wed 21:00 · Forecast465
Wed 22:00 · Forecast456
Wed 23:00 · Forecast439
Thu 00:00 · Forecast401
Thu 01:00 · Forecast354
Thu 02:00 · Forecast303
Thu 03:00 · Forecast276
Thu 04:00 · Forecast252
Thu 05:00 · Forecast229
Thu 06:00 · Forecast214
Thu 07:00 · Forecast215
Thu 08:00 · Forecast218
Thu 09:00 · Forecast213
Thu 10:00 · Forecast197
Thu 11:00 · Forecast179
Thu 12:00 · Forecast154
Thu 13:00 · Forecast106
Thu 14:00 · Forecast77
Thu 15:00 · Forecast64

Pollutants this hour

  • PM2.5 258 µg/m³ 24-hour mean 133.7 µg/m³ · 8.9× WHO’s 24-hour guideline (15) 284
  • PM10 297 µg/m³ 147
  • O₃ 0 µg/m³ 5
  • NO₂ 84 µg/m³ 42
  • SO₂ 53 µg/m³ 29
  • CO 3.97 mg/m³ 23

Modelled concentrations at the city’s location (CAMS). The sub-index uses the same averaging as the headline, so the highest one is the AQI.

Nearby cities

City AQI
Tianjin Tianjin 176
Jinan Shandong 156
Weifang Shandong 154
Dalian Liaoning 157
Yantai Shandong 139
Qingdao Shandong 124
Zhengzhou Henan 104

Where this number comes from

The Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service (CAMS) forecasts air pollution worldwide on a grid (about 11 km over Europe, about 45 km elsewhere). We take the grid value at Beijing’s coordinates and score it with the US EPA’s method. It is a model, not a measurement: a nearby monitoring station can read quite differently, especially next to busy roads or during fires and dust storms.

Full methodology · Data: CAMS via Open-Meteo (CC BY 4.0); city list: GeoNames (CC BY 4.0).

  • Good 0–50
  • Moderate 51–100
  • Unhealthy for sensitive groups 101–150
  • Unhealthy 151–200
  • Very unhealthy 201–300
  • Hazardous 301–500

Questions

What is the AQI in Beijing right now?

284 on the US EPA scale (Very unhealthy) at 19:00 UTC+8, 3 Nov. PM2.5 is the pollutant with the highest sub-index. This is a modelled estimate from the Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service (CAMS), not a reading from a monitoring station.

Is it safe to exercise outside in Beijing today?

Consider shortening outdoor exercise; sensitive groups should move it indoors. The EPA’s statement for “Very unhealthy”: Health alert: the risk of health effects is increased for everyone. General guidance, not medical advice.

Will the air in Beijing get better or worse tomorrow?

Over the next 24 hours the model expects the AQI to range from 223 around 15:00 to 404 around 22:00 (3 Nov). Forecasts beyond a day are less certain.

How does Beijing compare with other cities?

Right now it is the 3rd most polluted of 849 cities we track worldwide, and 1st of 25 in China, all on the same US EPA scale.

Why does another app show a different AQI for Beijing?

Apps differ in source (government stations, low-cost sensors or a model like this one), in scale (US EPA, European, or a national index) and in averaging (hourly or NowCast, 8-hour, 24-hour). This page uses the US EPA AQI with EPA’s NowCast for particles, computed from the CAMS forecast for the city’s location.