Breathe Meter

See Where Our Air Ranks Compared to Other U.S. Cities.

Pittsburgh, PA

24.7%

Rectangular graphic of breathe meter showing rainbow gradient from red to violet
Dirtiest (0%)
Cleanest (100%)
Choose a city on the map to compare.

Portland, ME

42.28%

Boston, MA

76.54%

Albany, NY

83%

New York City, NY

54.01%

Philadelphia, PA

29.63%

Pittsburgh, PA

24.7%

Charleston, WV

63.27%

Washington, D.C.

69.75%

Louisville, KY

14.51%

Columbus, OH

22.53%

Raleigh, NC

74.38%

Columbia, SC

63.27%

Atlanta, GA

24.07%

Miami, FL

70.06%

Nashville, TN

54.01%

Indianapolis, IN

8.64%

Jackson, MS

8.95%

Huntsville, AL

73.15%

Baton Rouge, LA

33.64%

Little Rock, AR

22.53%

Detroit, MI

14.81%

Madison, WI

29.94%

Minneapolis, MN

72.84%

Bismarck, ND

63.27%

Pierre, SD

99.38%

Lincoln, NE

81.17%

Chicago, IL

17.90%

Des Moines, IA

58.95%

St. Louis, MO

27.78%

Wichita, KS

10.49%

Oklahoma City, OK

12.65%

Dallas, TX

28.09%

Austin, TX

15.74%

Denver, CO

57.41%

Santa Fe, NM

96.91%

Phoenix, AZ

33.02%

Las Vegas, NV

72.22%

Salt Lake City, UT

38.27%

Boise, ID

38.89%

Cheyenne, WY

95.06%

Helena, MT

83.02%

Los Angeles, CA

4.32%

San Francisco, CA

24.38%

Portland, OR

42.28%

Seattle, WA

43.21%

Anchorage, AK

94.75%

Honolulu, HI

99.07%

Percentile rank for average annual particle pollution out of 324 urban areas using U.S. EPA data from 2020-2022 (Clean Air Task Force, 2023).

Air Quality By City

Air Quality Percentile Ranking
Air Quality Percentile
Region
Regions
Compare to Pittsburgh
0%

Spokane-Spokane Valley, WA

0

Santa Rosa, CA

0

Rockford, IL

0

Roanoke Rapids, NC

0

Owensboro, KY

0

Kingsville, TX

0

Killeen-Temple, TX

0

Jackson, TN

0

Grand Island, NE

0

Casper, WY

0

Billings, MT

0

Augusta-Waterville, ME

0
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What is Particle Pollution?

Particle pollution, or soot, occurs year-round. It is a mixture of solid particles and liquid droplets. Fine particles are a subset of this group, the smallest of which measure 2.5 microns or less in diameter–1/30th the width of a human hair.

PM2.5 is especially dangerous because the microscopic particles can be inhaled deeply into the lungs and enter the bloodstream, causing serious health effects. Toxic gases can also “hitchhike” into the body on fine particles, bypassing the defenses of our nose and throat.

Some particle pollution is emitted directly; other particle pollution forms when precursors–such as sulfur dioxides, nitrogen oxides and ammonia–combine in the atmosphere. Sources include power plants, coke- and steel-making facilities, other industrial facilities, residential wood burning, motor vehicles and construction equipment.