Air quality comparison · Nepal, 40 km apart
Biratnagar vs Dharān Air quality index (AQI) today
Dharān has cleaner air than Biratnagar right now: AQI 61 (Moderate) against 209 (Very unhealthy).
That puts them in different EPA bands, so the health advice differs today. Over the past 7 days, on modeled daily averages, Dharān averaged AQI 113 against 153, and it was the cleaner of the two on 7 of those days. Dharān has lost more forest since 2001. Dharān has more tree cover.
Nepal
AQI 209
Very unhealthy
Cleaner right now
- PM2.5
- 133.2 µg/m³8.9× WHO guideline
- Main pollutant
- PM2.5
- Source
- Ground station
- Reading
- Nov 12, 23:45 local
Nepal
AQI 61
Moderate
Cleaner right now
- PM2.5
- 14.6 µg/m³
- Main pollutant
- PM2.5
- Source
- Model estimate
- Reading
- Nov 12, 12:45 local
Updated . Lower is better on the US EPA index: 0–50 is Good, above 300 is Hazardous. Measured by Airleaf.
Biratnagar209Dharān61
Head to head
Biratnagar vs Dharān at a glance
Dharān is ahead on 5 of 6 measures, and Biratnagar on 1. The better figure in each row is marked.
| Biratnagar | Dharān | |
|---|---|---|
| Air quality nowUS AQI. Lower is better. | 209 | 61 (better) |
| PM2.5Fine particles, µg/m³. | 133.2 | 14.6 (better) |
| Past week's averageUS AQI, 7 days. | 153 | 113 (better) |
| Forest lost since 2001Within 10 km of the center. | 6 ha (better) | 61 ha |
| Tree coverWithin 2 km of the center. | 22.4% | 42.8% (better) |
| Trees still neededTo reach a healthy canopy. | 70.9K | 0 (better) |
Air quality today
What is the air like in Biratnagar and Dharān right now?
Dharān has cleaner air than Biratnagar right now: AQI 61 (Moderate) against 209 (Very unhealthy). PM2.5 is setting the index in both.
Biratnagar's PM2.5 is about 8.9× the WHO's 24-hour guideline of 15 µg/m³.
Biratnagar is read from a nearby ground station and Dharān is a model estimate, so the two are not quite like for like.
BiratnagarDharān
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).
Biratnagar: Ground station · Biratnagar Metropolitan City ward no 9 Office, 1.4 km away · median of 2 stations. Data: OpenAQ · AirGradient, Clean Energy Nepal (CEN).
Dharān: Estimate · model corrected with 12 station cities within 225 km, e.g. Biratnagar and Kishanganj. Data: Open-Meteo / CAMS, corrected with 12 ground-station cities within 225 km, US EPA index.
The past week
Which had cleaner air over the past 7 days?
Over the past 7 days, on modeled daily averages, Dharān averaged AQI 113 against 153, and it was the cleaner of the two on 7 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
- Biratnagar0Dharān7
- Average AQI
- Biratnagar153Dharān113
- Worst day, AQI
- Biratnagar182Dharān152
The daily numbers (7 days)
| Day | Biratnagar | Dharān |
|---|---|---|
| Nov 6 | 171 | 147 |
| Nov 7 | 182 | 152 |
| Nov 8 | 153 | 112 |
| Nov 9 | 140 | 94 |
| Nov 10 | 138 | 81 |
| Nov 11 | 146 | 97 |
| Nov 12 | 141 | 110 |
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 Biratnagar and Dharān today?
Biratnagar (AQI 209, Very unhealthy): Health alert — everyone should avoid long outdoor exertion.
Dharān (AQI 61, Moderate): Unusually sensitive people should consider limiting long outdoor exertion.
Exercise outdoors
- Biratnagar
- Everyone should avoid long or hard exercise outdoors; sensitive groups, all outdoor exertion.
- Dharān
- Fine for most people; unusually sensitive people should take long or hard exercise easier.
Windows
- Biratnagar
- Keep them closed.
- Dharān
- Fine to open; close them if you are sensitive to pollution.
Masks
- Biratnagar
- Wear an N95 if you go out.
- Dharān
- Not needed for most people.
Air purifier
- Biratnagar
- Run one on high.
- Dharān
- Worth running if you are sensitive.
Against everywhere else
How do Biratnagar and Dharān compare with the rest of the world?
Right now Biratnagar's air is cleaner than 3% of the 5,420 places Airleaf tracks, and Dharān's is cleaner than 46%. Within Nepal, that is 17% and 100% of its 13 measured places.
Cleaner air than…
- Biratnagar
- Beats 3%
- Dharān
- Beats 46%
More tree cover than…
- Biratnagar
- Beats 52%
- Dharān
- Beats 87%
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, Biratnagar or Dharān?
Dharān has lost more: about 61 ha of forest within 10 km of its center from 2001 to 2025, against 6 ha around Biratnagar. 29 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: 2007, with 1 ha lost.
Worst year: 2017, with 15 ha lost.
| Biratnagar | Dharān | |
|---|---|---|
| Forest lost since 2001Cleared, burned or logged. | 6 ha (better) | 61 ha |
| Cleared for goodTurned into farms, mines or towns. | 1 ha (better) | 29 ha |
| Recent trend2021–2025 against the five years before. | Too little to call | Too little to call |
| Main known cause | Farms, pasture and plantations (18%) | Farms, pasture and plantations (35%) |
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.
Biratnagar
2017: satellite photo from January 2017 of a 5 × 5 km area in the city center.
Dharān
2017: satellite photo from January 2017 of a 5 × 5 km area in the city center.
Trees
Which has more trees, Biratnagar or Dharān?
Dharān has more tree cover: 42.8% of the land within 2 km of its center against 22.4% around Biratnagar, or about 134,460 trees against 70,301.
The dark mark is each place's canopy target: 30% of the land, raised where air quality is poor.
| Biratnagar | Dharān | |
|---|---|---|
| Trees standingEstimated from the canopy area. | 70.3K | 134K (better) |
| Trees still neededTo reach the target. Fewer is better. | 70.9K | 0 (better) |
| CO₂ absorbed each yearBy the trees already standing. | 1.5M kg | 3.0M 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
Biratnagar vs Dharān: your questions answered
Is Dharān cleaner than Biratnagar?
On air quality, yes, right now: Dharān reads AQI 61 against 209, a gap of 148 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 7 days, on modeled daily averages, Dharān averaged AQI 113 against 153, and it was the cleaner of the two on 7 of those days.
Is it safe to exercise outdoors in Biratnagar and Dharān today?
In Biratnagar, at AQI 209: Health alert — everyone should avoid long outdoor exertion. In Dharān, at AQI 61: Unusually sensitive people should consider limiting long outdoor exertion.
Which has lost more forest, Biratnagar or Dharān?
Dharān has lost more: about 61 ha of forest within 10 km of its center from 2001 to 2025, against 6 ha around Biratnagar. 29 ha of that was cleared for good, for farms, mines or towns.
Which has more trees, Biratnagar or Dharān?
Dharān has more tree cover: 42.8% of the land within 2 km of its center against 22.4% around Biratnagar, or about 134,460 trees against 70,301. Both figures describe the same-sized circle of ground around each center, not the whole municipality.
How many more trees do Biratnagar and Dharān need?
Biratnagar needs about 70,929 more to reach its canopy target of 45%, and Dharān about 0 to reach 30%. The target starts at 30% of the land and rises where air quality is poor.
Why can two places 40 km apart read differently?
Air changes over short distances with traffic, industry, wind and hills, and each reading comes from the nearest ground stations or, where there are none, from a regional model. A gap of a few points between neighbors is within normal variation, while a gap that crosses an EPA band is worth noticing.
Are Biratnagar and Dharān 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. Biratnagar is read from a nearby ground station and Dharān is a model estimate, so the two are not quite like for like. Nothing is adjusted for population, city limits or climate.
How often does the Biratnagar vs Dharān 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 (Aug 11, 2026 and Aug 11, 2026), and the forest figures are published yearly.
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