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Airleaf

Country comparison · 198 cities measured

Germany vs Pakistan Air quality index (AQI) and deforestation

Germany has cleaner air than Pakistan right now: its cities average AQI 52 against 334.

At ground stations alone, which measure rather than estimate, the averages are Germany 52 (69 cities) and Pakistan 301 (57 cities). Germany has lost more forest since 2001. Germany has more tree cover in its cities.

Germany

Average of 71 cities

AQI 52

Moderate

Cleaner on average

At ground stations
AQI 52
Tree cover
38.4%
Forest lost since 2001
1.49 million ha
Pakistan

Average of 127 cities

AQI 334

Hazardous

At ground stations
AQI 301
Tree cover
12.5%
Forest lost since 2001
10,300 ha

Updated . Lower is better on the US EPA index: 0–50 is Good, above 300 is Hazardous. Measured by Airleaf.

Head to head

Germany vs Pakistan at a glance

Germany is ahead on 4 of 6 measures, and Pakistan on 2. The better figure in each row is marked.

Germany and Pakistan compared on air quality, forest loss and tree cover
GermanyPakistan
Average air qualityUS AQI, all measured cities.52 (better)334
At ground stationsCities with a current station reading.52 (better)301
Cities over AQI 100Not fine for sensitive groups.3% (better)86%
Forest lost since 2001The whole country.1.49 million ha10,300 ha (better)
Share of its forest lostOf what it had in 2000.12%1% (better)
Average tree coverAcross its measured cities.38.4% (better)12.5%

Air quality today

Is Germany cleaner than Pakistan?

On air quality, yes, right now. Germany has cleaner air than Pakistan right now: its cities average AQI 52 against 334.

At ground stations alone, which measure rather than estimate, the averages are Germany 52 (69 cities) and Pakistan 301 (57 cities).

3% of the measured cities in Germany are over AQI 100 today, the point where the air stops being fine for sensitive groups, against 86% in Pakistan.

How each country's cities split across the air quality bands

Germany

  • Good29 (41%)
  • Moderate40 (56%)
  • Unhealthy for sensitive groups2 (3%)

Pakistan

  • Good1 (1%)
  • Moderate17 (13%)
  • Unhealthy for sensitive groups15 (12%)
  • Unhealthy24 (19%)
  • Very unhealthy20 (16%)
  • Hazardous50 (39%)

Every measured city, including model estimates where no ground station is near.

Against everywhere else

How do Germany and Pakistan compare with other countries?

Right now the cities of Germany average cleaner air than 50% of the 171 countries Airleaf has enough cities to average, and those of Pakistan than 0%.

Cleaner air than…

Germany
Beats 50%
Pakistan
Beats 0%

More tree cover than…

Germany
Beats 85%
Pakistan
Beats 22%

Deforestation · 2001–2025

Which country has lost more forest, Germany or Pakistan?

Germany has lost more: about 1.49 million ha of forest from 2001 to 2025, against 10,300 ha in Pakistan, or 145 times as much. 43,700 ha of Germany'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.

Germany
20012025

Worst year: 2021, with 202,000 ha lost.

Pakistan
20012025

Worst year: 2006, with 1,340 ha lost.

Forest loss in Germany and Pakistan, 2001 to 2025
GermanyPakistan
Forest lost since 2001Cleared, burned or logged.1.49 million ha10,300 ha (better)
Share of its forestOf what it had in 2000.12%1% (better)
Cleared for goodTurned into farms, mines or towns.43,700 ha784 ha (better)
Recent trend2021–2025 against the five years before.Speeding upSpeeding up
Main known causeLogging (96%)Logging (69%)

Trees

Which country has more tree cover, Germany or Pakistan?

Germany does: its measured cities average 38.4% tree cover against 12.5%, a gap of 26.0 percentage points.

Germany38.4%
Pakistan12.5%
Tree figures for Germany and Pakistan
GermanyPakistan
Trees standingSummed across measured cities.8.3M (better)5.0M
Cities below their targetShort of the canopy target.17% (better)95%
Trees still neededTo reach those targets.190K (better)11.5M

Behind the averages

The cities behind Germany and Pakistan

An average says nothing about how far apart the best and worst places are. These are the measured cities at each end.

Germany

Greenest measured city
Bergisch Gladbach59.9% tree cover
Worst air right now
RegensburgAQI 115

Pakistan

Greenest measured city
Dhirkot78.0% tree cover
Worst air right now
KasurAQI 805

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: 71 in Germany and 127 in Pakistan, 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. Pakistan rests on 127 cities against 71, so its average is the steadier of the two. Forest figures come from the University of Maryland's Global Forest Change maps.

Frequently asked

Germany vs Pakistan: your questions answered

Is Germany cleaner than Pakistan?

On air quality, yes, right now: Germany's cities average AQI 52 against 334 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 Germany 52 (69 cities) and Pakistan 301 (57 cities).

Which country has lost more forest, Germany or Pakistan?

Germany has lost more: about 1.49 million ha of forest from 2001 to 2025, against 10,300 ha in Pakistan, or 145 times as much. 43,700 ha of Germany'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, Germany or Pakistan?

Germany does: its measured cities average 38.4% tree cover against 12.5%, a gap of 26.0 percentage points.

How many cities are the Germany and Pakistan figures based on?

71 measured cities in Germany and 127 in Pakistan. 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 Germany and Pakistan?

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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