Air quality comparison · Austria, 163 km apart
Graz vs Linz Air quality index (AQI) today
Linz has cleaner air than Graz right now: AQI 60 (Moderate) against 73 (Moderate).
Both sit in the same EPA band, so the health advice is the same for each today. Over the past 7 days, on modeled daily averages, Linz averaged AQI 66 against 90, and it was the cleaner of the two on 6 of those days. Graz has lost more forest since 2001. Linz has more tree cover.
Updated . Lower is better on the US EPA index: 0–50 is Good, above 300 is Hazardous. Measured by Airleaf.
Graz73Linz60
Head to head
Graz vs Linz at a glance
Linz is ahead on 6 of 6 measures, and Graz on 0. The better figure in each row is marked.
| Graz | Linz | |
|---|---|---|
| Air quality nowUS AQI. Lower is better. | 73 | 60 (better) |
| PM2.5Fine particles, µg/m³. | 21 | 13.8 (better) |
| Past week's averageUS AQI, 7 days. | 90 | 66 (better) |
| Forest lost since 2001Within 10 km of the center. | 1,300 ha | 1,250 ha (better) |
| Tree coverWithin 2 km of the center. | 28.3% | 37.1% (better) |
| Trees still neededTo reach a healthy canopy. | 5.3K | 0 (better) |
Air quality today
What is the air like in Graz and Linz right now?
Linz has cleaner air than Graz right now: AQI 60 (Moderate) against 73 (Moderate). PM2.5 is setting the index in both.
Graz's PM2.5 is about 1.4× the WHO's 24-hour guideline of 15 µg/m³.
Both readings come from nearby ground stations.
GrazLinz
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 7 days?
Over the past 7 days, on modeled daily averages, Linz averaged AQI 66 against 90, and it was the cleaner of the two on 6 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
- Graz1Linz6
- Average AQI
- Graz90Linz66
- Worst day, AQI
- Graz105Linz82
The daily numbers (7 days)
| Day | Graz | Linz |
|---|---|---|
| Nov 4 | 76 | 48 |
| Nov 5 | 94 | 54 |
| Nov 6 | 94 | 55 |
| Nov 7 | 85 | 67 |
| Nov 8 | 81 | 82 |
| Nov 9 | 93 | 77 |
| Nov 10 | 105 | 76 |
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 Graz and Linz today?
Unusually sensitive people should consider limiting long outdoor exertion. Both are in the same EPA band today (Moderate), so the advice is the same.
Exercise outdoors
Fine for most people; unusually sensitive people should take long or hard exercise easier.
Windows
Fine to open; close them if you are sensitive to pollution.
Masks
Not needed for most people.
Air purifier
Worth running if you are sensitive.
Against everywhere else
How do Graz and Linz compare with the rest of the world?
Right now Graz's air is cleaner than 35% of the 5,420 places Airleaf tracks, and Linz's is cleaner than 47%. Within Austria, that is 40% and 60% of its 6 measured places.
Cleaner air than…
- Graz
- Beats 35%
- Linz
- Beats 47%
More tree cover than…
- Graz
- Beats 65%
- Linz
- Beats 80%
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, Graz or Linz?
Graz has lost more: about 1,300 ha of forest within 10 km of its center from 2001 to 2025, against 1,250 ha around Linz. 193 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: 2024, with 121 ha lost.
Worst year: 2018, with 296 ha lost.
| Graz | Linz | |
|---|---|---|
| Forest lost since 2001Cleared, burned or logged. | 1,300 ha | 1,250 ha (better) |
| Share of its forestOf what it had in 2000. | 9.1% (better) | 13% |
| Cleared for goodTurned into farms, mines or towns. | 193 ha | 78 ha (better) |
| Recent trend2021–2025 against the five years before. | Speeding up | Slowing down |
| Main known cause | Logging (84%) | Logging (93%) |
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.
Graz
2017: satellite photo from August 2017 of a 5 × 5 km area about 7 km west of the city center.
Linz
2018: satellite photo from August 2018 of a 5 × 5 km area about 5 km west of the city center.
Trees
Which has more trees, Graz or Linz?
Linz has more tree cover: 37.1% of the land within 2 km of its center against 28.3% around Graz, or about 107,812 trees against 88,729.
The dark mark is each place's canopy target: 30% of the land, raised where air quality is poor.
| Graz | Linz | |
|---|---|---|
| Trees standingEstimated from the canopy area. | 88.7K | 108K (better) |
| Trees still neededTo reach the target. Fewer is better. | 5.3K | 0 (better) |
| CO₂ absorbed each yearBy the trees already standing. | 2.0M kg | 2.4M 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
Graz vs Linz: your questions answered
Is Linz cleaner than Graz?
On air quality, yes, right now: Linz reads AQI 60 against 73, a gap of 13 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, Linz averaged AQI 66 against 90, and it was the cleaner of the two on 6 of those days.
Is it safe to exercise outdoors in Graz and Linz today?
The advice is the same for both today. Unusually sensitive people should consider limiting long outdoor exertion. Graz reads AQI 73 and Linz reads AQI 60.
Which has lost more forest, Graz or Linz?
Graz has lost more: about 1,300 ha of forest within 10 km of its center from 2001 to 2025, against 1,250 ha around Linz. 193 ha of that was cleared for good, for farms, mines or towns.
Which has more trees, Graz or Linz?
Linz has more tree cover: 37.1% of the land within 2 km of its center against 28.3% around Graz, or about 107,812 trees against 88,729. Both figures describe the same-sized circle of ground around each center, not the whole municipality.
How many more trees do Graz and Linz need?
Graz needs about 5,330 more to reach its canopy target of 30%, and Linz about 0 to reach 30%. The target starts at 30% of the land and rises where air quality is poor.
Are Graz and Linz 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 Graz vs Linz 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 8, 2026 and Sep 6, 2026), and the forest figures are published yearly.
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