Air quality comparison · Chad, 656 km apart
Abéché vs N'Djamena Air quality index (AQI) today
N'Djamena has cleaner air than Abéché right now: AQI 70 (Moderate) against 133 (Unhealthy for sensitive groups).
That puts them in different EPA bands, so the health advice differs today. Over the past 6 days, on modeled daily averages, N'Djamena averaged AQI 78 against 91, and it was the cleaner of the two on 6 of those days. N'Djamena has more tree cover.
Chad
AQI 133
Unhealthy for sensitive groups
Cleaner right now
- PM2.5
- 55.1 µg/m³3.7× WHO guideline
- Main pollutant
- PM2.5
- Source
- Model estimate
- Reading
- Nov 10, 23:00 local
Chad
AQI 70
Moderate
Cleaner right now
- PM2.5
- 18.6 µg/m³1.2× WHO guideline
- Main pollutant
- PM2.5
- Source
- Model estimate
- Reading
- Nov 11, 07:00 local
Updated . Lower is better on the US EPA index: 0–50 is Good, above 300 is Hazardous. Measured by Airleaf.
Abéché133N'Djamena70
Head to head
Abéché vs N'Djamena at a glance
N'Djamena is ahead on 5 of 5 measures, and Abéché on 0. The better figure in each row is marked.
| Abéché | N'Djamena | |
|---|---|---|
| Air quality nowUS AQI. Lower is better. | 133 | 70 (better) |
| PM2.5Fine particles, µg/m³. | 55.1 | 18.6 (better) |
| Past week's averageUS AQI, 6 days. | 91 | 78 (better) |
| Tree coverWithin 2 km of the center. | 1.6% | 13.5% (better) |
| Trees still neededTo reach a healthy canopy. | 105K | 46.2K (better) |
Air quality today
What is the air like in Abéché and N'Djamena right now?
N'Djamena has cleaner air than Abéché right now: AQI 70 (Moderate) against 133 (Unhealthy for sensitive groups). PM2.5 is setting the index in both.
Abéché's PM2.5 is about 3.7× the WHO's 24-hour guideline of 15 µg/m³. N'Djamena's PM2.5 is about 1.2× the WHO's 24-hour guideline of 15 µg/m³.
Both readings are model estimates, with no ground station close enough to either.
AbéchéN'Djamena
Concentrations at the same moment as the index above, for the pollutants both places report. Lower is better. The dark marks on the PM2.5 and PM10 rows show the WHO's 24-hour guidelines (15 and 45 µg/m³).
Abéché: Model estimate · no ground station nearby. Data: Open-Meteo / CAMS, US EPA index.
N'Djamena: Model estimate · no ground station nearby. Data: Open-Meteo / CAMS, US EPA index.
The past week
Which had cleaner air over the past 6 days?
Over the past 6 days, on modeled daily averages, N'Djamena averaged AQI 78 against 91, and it was the cleaner of the two on 6 of those days. A single reading can catch a city on a bad afternoon; the week says whether it was the weather or the place.
- Cleaner days
- Abéché0N'Djamena6
- Average AQI
- Abéché91N'Djamena78
- Worst day, AQI
- Abéché103N'Djamena91
The daily numbers (6 days)
| Day | Abéché | N'Djamena |
|---|---|---|
| Nov 5 | 95 | 91 |
| Nov 6 | 91 | 83 |
| Nov 7 | 103 | 82 |
| Nov 8 | 89 | 70 |
| Nov 9 | 86 | 70 |
| Nov 10 | 84 | 69 |
Daily averages from the CAMS atmospheric model for both places, so the week compares like with like. They can differ from today's reading at the top of the page wherever that comes from a ground station.
What it means today
Is it safe to go outside in Abéché and N'Djamena today?
Abéché (AQI 133, Unhealthy for sensitive groups): Sensitive groups should limit long or intense outdoor activity.
N'Djamena (AQI 70, Moderate): Unusually sensitive people should consider limiting long outdoor exertion.
Exercise outdoors
- Abéché
- Children, older adults and people with asthma or heart disease should cut down long or hard exercise.
- N'Djamena
- Fine for most people; unusually sensitive people should take long or hard exercise easier.
Windows
- Abéché
- Close them to keep the outside air out.
- N'Djamena
- Fine to open; close them if you are sensitive to pollution.
Masks
- Abéché
- Sensitive groups: an N95 outdoors.
- N'Djamena
- Not needed for most people.
Air purifier
- Abéché
- Run one, especially in bedrooms.
- N'Djamena
- Worth running if you are sensitive.
Against everywhere else
How do Abéché and N'Djamena compare with the rest of the world?
Right now Abéché's air is cleaner than 13% of the 5,420 places Airleaf tracks, and N'Djamena's is cleaner than 38%. Within Chad, that is 0% and 25% of its 5 measured places.
Cleaner air than…
- Abéché
- Beats 13%
- N'Djamena
- Beats 38%
More tree cover than…
- Abéché
- Beats 3%
- N'Djamena
- Beats 31%
Includes model estimates as well as station readings, so it can differ from our most polluted and cleanest air rankings, which use station readings only.
Satellite timelapses
Watch both change, year by year
A clear satellite photo a year of the land around each city. Press play, turn on the forest cleared since the first year, or drag the before and after.
Abéché
2017: satellite photo from February 2017 of a 5 × 5 km area in the city center.
N'Djamena
2017: satellite photo from January 2017 of a 5 × 5 km area in the city center.
Trees
Which has more trees, Abéché or N'Djamena?
N'Djamena has more tree cover: 13.5% of the land within 2 km of its center against 1.6% around Abéché, or about 37,831 trees against 5,027.
The dark mark is each place's canopy target: 30% of the land, raised where air quality is poor.
| Abéché | N'Djamena | |
|---|---|---|
| Trees standingEstimated from the canopy area. | 5.0K | 37.8K (better) |
| Trees still neededTo reach the target. Fewer is better. | 105K | 46.2K (better) |
| CO₂ absorbed each yearBy the trees already standing. | 111K kg | 832K kg (better) |
Tree cover on the satellite image
The same 2 km radius around each center, with the tree cover the satellite found marked on it.
Reading these numbers
How this comparison is made
Air quality index
The US EPA index, computed from current pollutant concentrations: ground stations where a place has them nearby, and the CAMS atmospheric model everywhere else. It moves hour to hour, so it is a snapshot rather than a verdict on either place. The guideline marks are from the WHO's 2021 air quality guidelines.
Trees and forest
Tree cover is the share of ground under canopy within 2 km of each center, read from Sentinel-2 satellite imagery at 10 m detail. It measures that circle, not the whole municipality, which is what makes the two comparable. Forest loss comes from the University of Maryland's Global Forest Change maps.
More on the method on the About Airleaf page.
Frequently asked
Abéché vs N'Djamena: your questions answered
Is N'Djamena cleaner than Abéché?
On air quality, yes, right now: N'Djamena reads AQI 70 against 133, a gap of 63 points on the US EPA index. This is a live reading rather than an annual average, so it can reverse within a day. Over the past 6 days, on modeled daily averages, N'Djamena averaged AQI 78 against 91, and it was the cleaner of the two on 6 of those days.
Is it safe to exercise outdoors in Abéché and N'Djamena today?
In Abéché, at AQI 133: Sensitive groups should limit long or intense outdoor activity. In N'Djamena, at AQI 70: Unusually sensitive people should consider limiting long outdoor exertion.
Which has more trees, Abéché or N'Djamena?
N'Djamena has more tree cover: 13.5% of the land within 2 km of its center against 1.6% around Abéché, or about 37,831 trees against 5,027. Both figures describe the same-sized circle of ground around each center, not the whole municipality.
How many more trees do Abéché and N'Djamena need?
Abéché needs about 104,929 more to reach its canopy target of 35%, and N'Djamena about 46,238 to reach 30%. The target starts at 30% of the land and rises where air quality is poor.
Are Abéché and N'Djamena measured the same way?
The method is the same: the US EPA index for air, and Sentinel-2 satellite imagery at 10 m detail over an identical radius for trees. Both readings are model estimates, with no ground station close enough to either. Nothing is adjusted for population, city limits or climate.
How often does the Abéché vs N'Djamena comparison update?
The air readings refresh about once an hour, and each reading's local time is shown at the top of the page. Tree cover comes from the latest clear satellite image of each area (Sep 15, 2026 and Sep 14, 2026), and the forest figures are published yearly.
Keep going
Compare them with somewhere else
Build your own
Compare Abéché with somewhere else
This place
Abéché