Air quality comparison · China, 1517 km apart
Beijing vs Chengdu Air quality index (AQI) today
Chengdu has cleaner air than Beijing right now: AQI 129 (Unhealthy for sensitive groups) against 171 (Unhealthy).
That puts them in different EPA bands, so the health advice differs today. Over the past 6 days, on modeled daily averages, Chengdu averaged AQI 135 against 162, and it was the cleaner of the two on 5 of those days. Chengdu has lost more forest since 2001. Beijing has more tree cover.
China
AQI 171
Unhealthy
Cleaner right now
- PM2.5
- 84.6 µg/m³5.6× WHO guideline
- Main pollutant
- PM2.5
- Source
- Ground station
- Reading
- Nov 12, 01:00 local
China
AQI 129
Unhealthy for sensitive groups
Cleaner right now
- PM2.5
- 47 µg/m³3.1× WHO guideline
- Main pollutant
- PM2.5
- Source
- Ground station
- Reading
- Nov 12, 01:00 local
Updated . Lower is better on the US EPA index: 0–50 is Good, above 300 is Hazardous. Measured by Airleaf.
Beijing171Chengdu129
Head to head
Beijing vs Chengdu at a glance
Chengdu is ahead on 4 of 6 measures, and Beijing on 2. The better figure in each row is marked.
| Beijing | Chengdu | |
|---|---|---|
| Air quality nowUS AQI. Lower is better. | 171 | 129 (better) |
| PM2.5Fine particles, µg/m³. | 84.6 | 47 (better) |
| Past week's averageUS AQI, 6 days. | 162 | 135 (better) |
| Forest lost since 2001Within 10 km of the center. | under 1 ha (better) | 8 ha |
| Tree coverWithin 2 km of the center. | 19.6% (better) | 17.7% |
| Trees still neededTo reach a healthy canopy. | 61.0K | 54.2K (better) |
Air quality today
What is the air like in Beijing and Chengdu right now?
Chengdu has cleaner air than Beijing right now: AQI 129 (Unhealthy for sensitive groups) against 171 (Unhealthy). PM2.5 is setting the index in both.
Beijing's PM2.5 is about 5.6× the WHO's 24-hour guideline of 15 µg/m³. Chengdu's PM2.5 is about 3.1× the WHO's 24-hour guideline of 15 µg/m³.
Both readings come from nearby ground stations.
BeijingChengdu
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).
Beijing: Ground station · Temple of Heaven, Dongcheng, Beijing (东城天坛), 2.5 km away · median of 5 stations. Data: World Air Quality Index Project, Beijing Environmental Protection Monitoring Center (北京市环境保护监测中心).
Chengdu: Ground station · Dàshí xī lù, Chengdu (成都大石西路), 4.3 km away · median of 4 stations. Data: World Air Quality Index Project, Chengdu Environmental Protection Agency (成都市环境监测中心站_成都市环境监测中心站), Sichuan Province Environmental Protection Agency (四川省环保重点城市环境空气质量实时监测结果), China National Urban air quality real-time publishing platform (全国城市空气质量实时发布平台), U.S. Consulate Chengdu Air Quality Monitor.
The past week
Which had cleaner air over the past 6 days?
Over the past 6 days, on modeled daily averages, Chengdu averaged AQI 135 against 162, and it was the cleaner of the two on 5 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
- Beijing1Chengdu5
- Average AQI
- Beijing162Chengdu135
- Worst day, AQI
- Beijing201Chengdu169
The daily numbers (6 days)
| Day | Beijing | Chengdu |
|---|---|---|
| Nov 5 | 189 | 149 |
| Nov 6 | 166 | 169 |
| Nov 7 | 143 | 130 |
| Nov 8 | 108 | 91 |
| Nov 9 | 165 | 123 |
| Nov 10 | 201 | 148 |
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 Beijing and Chengdu today?
Beijing (AQI 171, Unhealthy): Everyone should limit long outdoor exertion; sensitive groups more so.
Chengdu (AQI 129, Unhealthy for sensitive groups): Sensitive groups should limit long or intense outdoor activity.
Exercise outdoors
- Beijing
- Everyone should cut down long or hard exercise; sensitive groups should avoid it.
- Chengdu
- Children, older adults and people with asthma or heart disease should cut down long or hard exercise.
Windows
- Beijing
- Keep them closed.
- Chengdu
- Close them to keep the outside air out.
Masks
- Beijing
- Wear an N95 outdoors.
- Chengdu
- Sensitive groups: an N95 outdoors.
Air purifier
- Beijing
- Run one.
- Chengdu
- Run one, especially in bedrooms.
Against everywhere else
How do Beijing and Chengdu compare with the rest of the world?
Right now Beijing's air is cleaner than 6% of the 5,420 places Airleaf tracks, and Chengdu's is cleaner than 14%. Within China, that is 8% and 31% of its 639 measured places.
Cleaner air than…
- Beijing
- Beats 6%
- Chengdu
- Beats 14%
More tree cover than…
- Beijing
- Beats 46%
- Chengdu
- Beats 41%
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.
Deforestation · 2001–2025
Which has lost more forest, Beijing or Chengdu?
Chengdu has lost more: about 8 ha of forest within 10 km of its center from 2001 to 2025, against under 1 ha around Beijing. 6 ha of that was cleared for good, for farms, mines or towns.
Measured within 10 km of each center, from the yearly satellite maps of forest loss: a wider circle than the one for tree cover, because forest is usually lost at a city's edges.
Worst year: 2002, with under 1 ha lost.
Worst year: 2005, with 2 ha lost.
| Beijing | Chengdu | |
|---|---|---|
| Forest lost since 2001Cleared, burned or logged. | under 1 ha (better) | 8 ha |
| Cleared for goodTurned into farms, mines or towns. | under 1 ha (better) | 6 ha |
| Recent trend2021–2025 against the five years before. | Too little to call | Too little to call |
| Main known cause | Not classified | Towns and roads (69%) |
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.
Beijing
2017: satellite photo from June 2017 of a 5 × 5 km area in the city center.
Chengdu
2017: satellite photo from July 2017 of a 5 × 5 km area in the city center.
Trees
Which has more trees, Beijing or Chengdu?
Beijing has more tree cover: 19.6% of the land within 2 km of its center against 17.7% around Chengdu, or about 58,620 trees against 55,495.
The dark mark is each place's canopy target: 30% of the land, raised where air quality is poor.
| Beijing | Chengdu | |
|---|---|---|
| Trees standingEstimated from the canopy area. | 58.6K (better) | 55.5K |
| Trees still neededTo reach the target. Fewer is better. | 61.0K | 54.2K (better) |
| CO₂ absorbed each yearBy the trees already standing. | 1.3M kg (better) | 1.2M kg |
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
Beijing vs Chengdu: your questions answered
Is Chengdu cleaner than Beijing?
On air quality, yes, right now: Chengdu reads AQI 129 against 171, a gap of 42 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, Chengdu averaged AQI 135 against 162, and it was the cleaner of the two on 5 of those days.
Is it safe to exercise outdoors in Beijing and Chengdu today?
In Beijing, at AQI 171: Everyone should limit long outdoor exertion; sensitive groups more so. In Chengdu, at AQI 129: Sensitive groups should limit long or intense outdoor activity.
Which has lost more forest, Beijing or Chengdu?
Chengdu has lost more: about 8 ha of forest within 10 km of its center from 2001 to 2025, against under 1 ha around Beijing. 6 ha of that was cleared for good, for farms, mines or towns.
Which has more trees, Beijing or Chengdu?
Beijing has more tree cover: 19.6% of the land within 2 km of its center against 17.7% around Chengdu, or about 58,620 trees against 55,495. Both figures describe the same-sized circle of ground around each center, not the whole municipality.
How many more trees do Beijing and Chengdu need?
Beijing needs about 61,012 more to reach its canopy target of 40%, and Chengdu about 54,241 to reach 35%. The target starts at 30% of the land and rises where air quality is poor.
Are Beijing and Chengdu 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 come from nearby ground stations. Nothing is adjusted for population, city limits or climate.
How often does the Beijing vs Chengdu 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 17, 2026 and Sep 5, 2026), and the forest figures are published yearly.
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