Air quality comparison · Australia, 1375 km apart
Brisbane vs Melbourne Air quality index (AQI) today
Brisbane has cleaner air than Melbourne right now: AQI 11 (Good) against 17 (Good).
Both sit in the same EPA band, so the health advice is the same for each today. But over the past 7 days, on modeled daily averages, Melbourne averaged AQI 42 against 48, and it was the cleaner of the two on 4 of those days. Brisbane has lost more forest since 2001. Melbourne has more tree cover.
Updated . Lower is better on the US EPA index: 0–50 is Good, above 300 is Hazardous. Measured by Airleaf.
Brisbane11Melbourne17
Head to head
Brisbane vs Melbourne at a glance
Brisbane and Melbourne are level, each ahead on 3 of 6 measures. The better figure in each row is marked.
| Brisbane | Melbourne | |
|---|---|---|
| Air quality nowUS AQI. Lower is better. | 11 (better) | 17 |
| PM2.5Fine particles, µg/m³. | 2 (better) | 3.1 |
| Past week's averageUS AQI, 7 days. | 48 | 42 (better) |
| Forest lost since 2001Within 10 km of the center. | 178 ha | 32 ha (better) |
| Tree coverWithin 2 km of the center. | 20.0% | 20.2% (better) |
| Trees still neededTo reach a healthy canopy. | 26.8K (better) | 29.5K |
Air quality today
What is the air like in Brisbane and Melbourne right now?
Brisbane has cleaner air than Melbourne right now: AQI 11 (Good) against 17 (Good). PM2.5 is setting the index in both.
Both readings come from nearby ground stations.
BrisbaneMelbourne
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).
Brisbane: Ground station · 99ElizabethSt, 3.4 km away · median of 2 stations. Data: OpenAQ · AirGradient, cardboardpig, EJ on M.
Melbourne: Ground station · Melbourne CBD, 900 m away · median of 3 stations. Data: World Air Quality Index Project, Environment Protection Authority | EPA Victoria.
The past week
Which had cleaner air over the past 7 days?
But over the past 7 days, on modeled daily averages, Melbourne averaged AQI 42 against 48, and it was the cleaner of the two on 4 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
- Brisbane3Melbourne4
- Average AQI
- Brisbane48Melbourne42
- Worst day, AQI
- Brisbane57Melbourne52
The daily numbers (7 days)
| Day | Brisbane | Melbourne |
|---|---|---|
| Nov 5 | 46 | 43 |
| Nov 6 | 49 | 51 |
| Nov 7 | 57 | 26 |
| Nov 8 | 50 | 35 |
| Nov 9 | 40 | 47 |
| Nov 10 | 54 | 40 |
| Nov 11 | 42 | 52 |
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 Brisbane and Melbourne today?
Air quality is satisfactory for everyone. Both are in the same EPA band today (Good), so the advice is the same.
Exercise outdoors
A good day to be active outside.
Windows
Open them to air the house.
Masks
Not needed.
Air purifier
Not needed.
Against everywhere else
How do Brisbane and Melbourne compare with the rest of the world?
Right now Brisbane's air is cleaner than 95% of the 5,420 places Airleaf tracks, and Melbourne's is cleaner than 91%. Within Australia, that is 80% and 45% of its 21 measured places.
Cleaner air than…
- Brisbane
- Beats 95%
- Melbourne
- Beats 91%
More tree cover than…
- Brisbane
- Beats 47%
- Melbourne
- Beats 47%
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, Brisbane or Melbourne?
Brisbane has lost more: about 178 ha of forest within 10 km of its center from 2001 to 2025, against 32 ha around Melbourne. 163 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 33 ha lost.
Worst year: 2003, with 6 ha lost.
| Brisbane | Melbourne | |
|---|---|---|
| Forest lost since 2001Cleared, burned or logged. | 178 ha | 32 ha (better) |
| Share of its forestOf what it had in 2000. | 4.1% (better) | 4.4% |
| Cleared for goodTurned into farms, mines or towns. | 163 ha | 21 ha (better) |
| Recent trend2021–2025 against the five years before. | Too little to call | Too little to call |
| Main known cause | Towns and roads (92%) | Towns and roads (65%) |
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.
Brisbane
2017: satellite photo from August 2017 of a 5 × 5 km area in the city center.
Melbourne
2017: satellite photo from February 2017 of a 5 × 5 km area in the city center.
Trees
Which has more trees, Brisbane or Melbourne?
Melbourne has more tree cover: 20.2% of the land within 2 km of its center against 20.0% around Brisbane, or about 60,731 trees against 53,658.
The dark mark is each place's canopy target: 30% of the land, raised where air quality is poor.
| Brisbane | Melbourne | |
|---|---|---|
| Trees standingEstimated from the canopy area. | 53.7K | 60.7K (better) |
| Trees still neededTo reach the target. Fewer is better. | 26.8K (better) | 29.5K |
| CO₂ absorbed each yearBy the trees already standing. | 1.2M kg | 1.3M 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
Brisbane vs Melbourne: your questions answered
Is Brisbane cleaner than Melbourne?
On air quality, yes, right now: Brisbane reads AQI 11 against 17, a gap of 6 points on the US EPA index. This is a live reading rather than an annual average, so it can reverse within a day. But over the past 7 days, on modeled daily averages, Melbourne averaged AQI 42 against 48, and it was the cleaner of the two on 4 of those days.
Is it safe to exercise outdoors in Brisbane and Melbourne today?
The advice is the same for both today. Air quality is satisfactory for everyone. Brisbane reads AQI 11 and Melbourne reads AQI 17.
Which has lost more forest, Brisbane or Melbourne?
Brisbane has lost more: about 178 ha of forest within 10 km of its center from 2001 to 2025, against 32 ha around Melbourne. 163 ha of that was cleared for good, for farms, mines or towns.
Which has more trees, Brisbane or Melbourne?
Melbourne has more tree cover: 20.2% of the land within 2 km of its center against 20.0% around Brisbane, or about 60,731 trees against 53,658. Both figures describe the same-sized circle of ground around each center, not the whole municipality.
How many more trees do Brisbane and Melbourne need?
Brisbane needs about 26,829 more to reach its canopy target of 30%, and Melbourne about 29,464 to reach 30%. The target starts at 30% of the land and rises where air quality is poor.
Are Brisbane and Melbourne 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 Brisbane vs Melbourne 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 26, 2026 and Mar 10, 2026), and the forest figures are published yearly.
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