Country comparison · 705 cities measured
China vs South Africa Air quality index (AQI) and deforestation
South Africa has cleaner air than China right now: its cities average AQI 63 against 114.
At ground stations alone, which measure rather than estimate, the averages are China 125 (433 cities) and South Africa 68 (34 cities). China has lost more forest since 2001. China has more tree cover in its cities.
Average of 639 cities
AQI 114
Unhealthy for sensitive groups
Cleaner on average
- At ground stations
- AQI 125
- Tree cover
- 22.9%
- Forest lost since 2001
- 13.5 million ha
Average of 66 cities
AQI 63
Moderate
Cleaner on average
- At ground stations
- AQI 68
- Tree cover
- 21.8%
- Forest lost since 2001
- 1.66 million ha
Updated . Lower is better on the US EPA index: 0–50 is Good, above 300 is Hazardous. Measured by Airleaf.
China114South Africa63
Head to head
China vs South Africa at a glance
South Africa is ahead on 4 of 6 measures, and China on 2. The better figure in each row is marked.
| China | South Africa | |
|---|---|---|
| Average air qualityUS AQI, all measured cities. | 114 | 63 (better) |
| At ground stationsCities with a current station reading. | 125 | 68 (better) |
| Cities over AQI 100Not fine for sensitive groups. | 55% | 6% (better) |
| Forest lost since 2001The whole country. | 13.5 million ha | 1.66 million ha (better) |
| Share of its forest lostOf what it had in 2000. | 8.3% (better) | 28% |
| Average tree coverAcross its measured cities. | 22.9% (better) | 21.8% |
Air quality today
Is South Africa cleaner than China?
On air quality, yes, right now. South Africa has cleaner air than China right now: its cities average AQI 63 against 114.
At ground stations alone, which measure rather than estimate, the averages are China 125 (433 cities) and South Africa 68 (34 cities).
55% of the measured cities in China are over AQI 100 today, the point where the air stops being fine for sensitive groups, against 6% in South Africa.
How each country's cities split across the air quality bands
China
- Good47 (7%)
- Moderate241 (38%)
- Unhealthy for sensitive groups141 (22%)
- Unhealthy190 (30%)
- Very unhealthy20 (3%)
South Africa
- Good23 (35%)
- Moderate39 (59%)
- Unhealthy for sensitive groups4 (6%)
Every measured city, including model estimates where no ground station is near.
Against everywhere else
How do China and South Africa compare with other countries?
Right now the cities of China average cleaner air than 4% of the 171 countries Airleaf has enough cities to average, and those of South Africa than 32%.
Cleaner air than…
- China
- Beats 4%
- South Africa
- Beats 32%
More tree cover than…
- China
- Beats 46%
- South Africa
- Beats 45%
Deforestation · 2001–2025
Which country has lost more forest, China or South Africa?
China has lost more: about 13.5 million ha of forest from 2001 to 2025, against 1.66 million ha in South Africa, or 8.1 times as much. 2.24 million ha of China's was cleared for good, for farms, mines or towns; the rest burned, was logged or can grow back.
The whole country, from the yearly satellite maps of forest loss: unlike the city averages above, this counts every forest, not just the land around cities.
Worst year: 2008, with 739,000 ha lost.
Worst year: 2006, with 105,000 ha lost.
| China | South Africa | |
|---|---|---|
| Forest lost since 2001Cleared, burned or logged. | 13.5 million ha | 1.66 million ha (better) |
| Share of its forestOf what it had in 2000. | 8.3% (better) | 28% |
| Cleared for goodTurned into farms, mines or towns. | 2.24 million ha | 169,000 ha (better) |
| Recent trend2021–2025 against the five years before. | Holding steady | Slowing down |
| Main known cause | Logging (75%) | Logging (77%) |
Trees
Which country has more tree cover, China or South Africa?
China does: its measured cities average 22.9% tree cover against 21.8%, a gap of 1.1 percentage points.
| China | South Africa | |
|---|---|---|
| Trees standingSummed across measured cities. | 43.8M (better) | 4.4M |
| Cities below their targetShort of the canopy target. | 81% | 73% (better) |
| Trees still neededTo reach those targets. | 27.4M | 2.2M (better) |
Behind the averages
The cities behind China and South Africa
An average says nothing about how far apart the best and worst places are. These are the measured cities at each end.
South Africa
- Greenest measured city
- Pinetown60.7% tree cover
- Worst air right now
- EmalahleniAQI 221
Reading these numbers
What a country average is, and is not
It is a mean of cities
Not a national statistic. Each figure is the average across the cities Airleaf has measured: 639 in China and 66 in South Africa, each read over the same 2 km radius, on the US EPA index. Rural land and unmeasured towns are not in it.
Coverage shapes the number
A country measured mostly in its capital reads differently from one measured across dozens of towns. China rests on 639 cities against 66, so its average is the steadier of the two. Forest figures come from the University of Maryland's Global Forest Change maps.
Frequently asked
China vs South Africa: your questions answered
Is South Africa cleaner than China?
On air quality, yes, right now: South Africa's cities average AQI 63 against 114 on the US EPA index. These are live readings averaged across cities, so the gap moves with the weather. At ground stations alone, which measure rather than estimate, the averages are China 125 (433 cities) and South Africa 68 (34 cities).
Which country has lost more forest, China or South Africa?
China has lost more: about 13.5 million ha of forest from 2001 to 2025, against 1.66 million ha in South Africa, or 8.1 times as much. 2.24 million ha of China's was cleared for good, for farms, mines or towns; the rest burned, was logged or can grow back.
Which country has more tree cover, China or South Africa?
China does: its measured cities average 22.9% tree cover against 21.8%, a gap of 1.1 percentage points.
How many cities are the China and South Africa figures based on?
639 measured cities in China and 66 in South Africa. Every one was read the same way, so the two averages are directly comparable, but a country with more measured cities has the more settled figure.
Why are there two air quality averages for each country?
The first covers every measured city, using a ground station where one is close and a model estimate everywhere else. The second counts only cities with a current station reading, which is measured rather than estimated but covers fewer places. Airleaf's world rankings use the station figures only.
Does this cover the whole of China and South Africa?
The air and tree figures are not: they are the cities Airleaf has measured, each over the same 2 km radius, so treat them as a comparison of urban air and urban tree cover. The forest figures are: they count every forest in the country.
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