Air quality comparison · United States, 712.1 mi (1146 km) apart
Chicago vs New York Air quality index (AQI) today
New York has cleaner air than Chicago right now: AQI 55 (Moderate) against 128 (Unhealthy for sensitive groups).
That puts them in different EPA bands, so the health advice differs today. But over the past 6 days, on modeled daily averages, Chicago averaged AQI 35 against 46, and it was the cleaner of the two on 3 of those days. New York has lost more forest since 2001. New York has more tree cover.
United States
AQI 128
Unhealthy for sensitive groups
Cleaner right now
- PM2.5
- 46.4 µg/m³3.1× WHO guideline
- Main pollutant
- PM2.5
- Source
- Ground station
- Reading
- Nov 11, 07:00 local
United States
AQI 55
Moderate
Cleaner right now
- PM2.5
- 4.7 µg/m³
- Main pollutant
- NO₂
- Source
- Ground station
- Reading
- Nov 11, 08:00 local
Updated . Lower is better on the US EPA index: 0–50 is Good, above 300 is Hazardous. Measured by Airleaf.
Chicago128New York55
Head to head
Chicago vs New York at a glance
New York is ahead on 4 of 6 measures, and Chicago on 2. The better figure in each row is marked.
| Chicago | New York | |
|---|---|---|
| Air quality nowUS AQI. Lower is better. | 128 | 55 (better) |
| PM2.5Fine particles, µg/m³. | 46.4 | 4.7 (better) |
| Past week's averageUS AQI, 6 days. | 35 (better) | 46 |
| Forest lost since 2001Within 10 km of the center. | 5 acres (2 ha) (better) | 94 acres (38 ha) |
| Tree coverWithin 1.2 mi (2 km) of the center. | 8.2% | 14.9% (better) |
| Trees still neededTo reach a healthy canopy. | 82.9K | 24.5K (better) |
Air quality today
What is the air like in Chicago and New York right now?
New York has cleaner air than Chicago right now: AQI 55 (Moderate) against 128 (Unhealthy for sensitive groups). PM2.5 is setting the index in Chicago, and NO₂ in New York.
Chicago's PM2.5 is about 3.1× the WHO's 24-hour guideline of 15 µg/m³.
Both readings come from nearby ground stations.
ChicagoNew York
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).
The past week
Which had cleaner air over the past 6 days?
But over the past 6 days, on modeled daily averages, Chicago averaged AQI 35 against 46, and it was the cleaner of the two on 3 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
- Chicago3New York3
- Average AQI
- Chicago35New York46
- Worst day, AQI
- Chicago52New York58
The daily numbers (6 days)
| Day | Chicago | New York |
|---|---|---|
| Nov 5 | 32 | 53 |
| Nov 6 | 11 | 58 |
| Nov 7 | 32 | 50 |
| Nov 8 | 35 | 28 |
| Nov 9 | 47 | 36 |
| Nov 10 | 52 | 48 |
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 Chicago and New York today?
Chicago (AQI 128, Unhealthy for sensitive groups): Sensitive groups should limit long or intense outdoor activity.
New York (AQI 55, Moderate): Unusually sensitive people should consider limiting long outdoor exertion.
Exercise outdoors
- Chicago
- Children, older adults and people with asthma or heart disease should cut down long or hard exercise.
- New York
- Fine for most people; unusually sensitive people should take long or hard exercise easier.
Windows
- Chicago
- Close them to keep the outside air out.
- New York
- Fine to open; close them if you are sensitive to pollution.
Masks
- Chicago
- Sensitive groups: an N95 outdoors.
- New York
- Not needed for most people.
Air purifier
- Chicago
- Run one, especially in bedrooms.
- New York
- Worth running if you are sensitive.
Against everywhere else
How do Chicago and New York compare with the rest of the world?
Right now Chicago's air is cleaner than 13% of the 5,420 places Airleaf tracks, and New York's is cleaner than 54%. Within United States, that is 1% and 29% of its 308 measured places.
Cleaner air than…
- Chicago
- Beats 13%
- New York
- Beats 54%
More tree cover than…
- Chicago
- Beats 17%
- New York
- Beats 34%
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, Chicago or New York?
New York has lost more: about 94 acres (38 ha) of forest within 10 km of its center from 2001 to 2025, against 5 acres (2 ha) around Chicago. 83 acres (33 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: 2003, with under 1 ha lost.
Worst year: 2023, with 28 acres (11 ha) lost.
| Chicago | New York | |
|---|---|---|
| Forest lost since 2001Cleared, burned or logged. | 5 acres (2 ha) (better) | 94 acres (38 ha) |
| Share of its forestOf what it had in 2000. | under 1% (better) | 3.6% |
| Cleared for goodTurned into farms, mines or towns. | under 1 ha (better) | 83 acres (33 ha) |
| Recent trend2021–2025 against the five years before. | Too little to call | Too little to call |
| Main known cause | Towns and roads (42%) | Towns and roads (87%) |
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.
Chicago
2018: satellite photo from August 2018 of a 5 × 5 km area in the city center.
New York
2017: satellite photo from July 2017 of a 5 × 5 km area in the city center.
Trees
Which has more trees, Chicago or New York?
New York has more tree cover: 14.9% of the land within 1.2 mi (2 km) of its center against 8.2% around Chicago, or about 24,154 trees against 25,375.
The dark mark is each place's canopy target: 30% of the land, raised where air quality is poor.
| Chicago | New York | |
|---|---|---|
| Trees standingEstimated from the canopy area. | 25.4K (better) | 24.2K |
| Trees still neededTo reach the target. Fewer is better. | 82.9K | 24.5K (better) |
| CO₂ absorbed each yearBy the trees already standing. | 558K kg (better) | 531K kg |
Tree cover on the satellite image
The same 1.2 mi (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 1.2 mi (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
Chicago vs New York: your questions answered
Is New York cleaner than Chicago?
On air quality, yes, right now: New York reads AQI 55 against 128, a gap of 73 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 6 days, on modeled daily averages, Chicago averaged AQI 35 against 46, and it was the cleaner of the two on 3 of those days.
Is it safe to exercise outdoors in Chicago and New York today?
In Chicago, at AQI 128: Sensitive groups should limit long or intense outdoor activity. In New York, at AQI 55: Unusually sensitive people should consider limiting long outdoor exertion.
Which has lost more forest, Chicago or New York?
New York has lost more: about 94 acres (38 ha) of forest within 10 km of its center from 2001 to 2025, against 5 acres (2 ha) around Chicago. 83 acres (33 ha) of that was cleared for good, for farms, mines or towns.
Which has more trees, Chicago or New York?
New York has more tree cover: 14.9% of the land within 1.2 mi (2 km) of its center against 8.2% around Chicago, or about 24,154 trees against 25,375. Both figures describe the same-sized circle of ground around each center, not the whole municipality.
How many more trees do Chicago and New York need?
Chicago needs about 82,932 more to reach its canopy target of 35%, and New York about 24,478 to reach 30%. The target starts at 30% of the land and rises where air quality is poor.
Are Chicago and New York 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 Chicago vs New York 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 11, 2026 and Sep 8, 2026), and the forest figures are published yearly.
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