Air quality comparison · Pakistan, 1033 km apart
Karachi vs Lahore Air quality index (AQI) today
Karachi has cleaner air than Lahore right now: AQI 100 (Moderate) against 256 (Very unhealthy).
That puts them in different EPA bands, so the health advice differs today. Over the past 7 days, on modeled daily averages, Karachi averaged AQI 79 against 191, and it was the cleaner of the two on 7 of those days. Karachi has lost more forest since 2001. Lahore has more tree cover.
Updated . Lower is better on the US EPA index: 0–50 is Good, above 300 is Hazardous. Measured by Airleaf.
Karachi100Lahore256
Head to head
Karachi vs Lahore at a glance
Karachi and Lahore are level, each ahead on 3 of 6 measures. The better figure in each row is marked.
| Karachi | Lahore | |
|---|---|---|
| Air quality nowUS AQI. Lower is better. | 100 (better) | 256 |
| PM2.5Fine particles, µg/m³. | 35.3 (better) | 181.5 |
| Past week's averageUS AQI, 7 days. | 79 (better) | 191 |
| Forest lost since 2001Within 10 km of the center. | 5 ha | 3 ha (better) |
| Tree coverWithin 2 km of the center. | 1.7% | 32.4% (better) |
| Trees still neededTo reach a healthy canopy. | 88.9K | 39.6K (better) |
Air quality today
What is the air like in Karachi and Lahore right now?
Karachi has cleaner air than Lahore right now: AQI 100 (Moderate) against 256 (Very unhealthy). PM2.5 is setting the index in both.
Karachi's PM2.5 is about 2.4× the WHO's 24-hour guideline of 15 µg/m³. Lahore's PM2.5 is about 12× the WHO's 24-hour guideline of 15 µg/m³.
Both readings come from nearby ground stations.
KarachiLahore
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).
Karachi: Ground station · NED University City Campus, 1.6 km away · median of 16 stations. Data: OpenAQ · AirGradient, Hawanama, The Urban Unit, Pakistan Air Quality Initiative (PAQI پاکی).
Lahore: Ground station · CERP Office, 700 m away · median of 35 stations. Data: OpenAQ · AirGradient, Hawanama, Pakistan Air Quality Initiative (PAQI پاکی), The Urban Unit.
The past week
Which had cleaner air over the past 7 days?
Over the past 7 days, on modeled daily averages, Karachi averaged AQI 79 against 191, and it was the cleaner of the two on 7 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
- Karachi7Lahore0
- Average AQI
- Karachi79Lahore191
- Worst day, AQI
- Karachi91Lahore251
The daily numbers (7 days)
| Day | Karachi | Lahore |
|---|---|---|
| Nov 5 | 91 | 201 |
| Nov 6 | 82 | 157 |
| Nov 7 | 78 | 135 |
| Nov 8 | 74 | 177 |
| Nov 9 | 81 | 178 |
| Nov 10 | 74 | 235 |
| Nov 11 | 72 | 251 |
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 Karachi and Lahore today?
Karachi (AQI 100, Moderate): Unusually sensitive people should consider limiting long outdoor exertion.
Lahore (AQI 256, Very unhealthy): Health alert — everyone should avoid long outdoor exertion.
Exercise outdoors
- Karachi
- Fine for most people; unusually sensitive people should take long or hard exercise easier.
- Lahore
- Everyone should avoid long or hard exercise outdoors; sensitive groups, all outdoor exertion.
Windows
- Karachi
- Fine to open; close them if you are sensitive to pollution.
- Lahore
- Keep them closed.
Masks
- Karachi
- Not needed for most people.
- Lahore
- Wear an N95 if you go out.
Air purifier
- Karachi
- Worth running if you are sensitive.
- Lahore
- Run one on high.
Against everywhere else
How do Karachi and Lahore compare with the rest of the world?
Right now Karachi's air is cleaner than 20% of the 5,420 places Airleaf tracks, and Lahore's is cleaner than 2%. Within Pakistan, that is 93% and 51% of its 127 measured places.
Cleaner air than…
- Karachi
- Beats 20%
- Lahore
- Beats 2%
More tree cover than…
- Karachi
- Beats 3%
- Lahore
- Beats 73%
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, Karachi or Lahore?
Karachi has lost more: about 5 ha of forest within 10 km of its center from 2001 to 2025, against 3 ha around Lahore. under 1 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: 2001, with under 1 ha lost.
Worst year: 2001, with 3 ha lost.
| Karachi | Lahore | |
|---|---|---|
| Forest lost since 2001Cleared, burned or logged. | 5 ha | 3 ha (better) |
| Cleared for goodTurned into farms, mines or towns. | under 1 ha (better) | 1 ha |
| Recent trend2021–2025 against the five years before. | Too little to call | Too little to call |
| Main known cause | Storms, floods and other natural causes (36%) | Farms, pasture and plantations (34%) |
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.
Karachi
2017: satellite photo from January 2017 of a 5 × 5 km area in the city center.
Lahore
2017: satellite photo from June 2017 of a 5 × 5 km area in the city center.
Trees
Which has more trees, Karachi or Lahore?
Lahore has more tree cover: 32.4% of the land within 2 km of its center against 1.7% around Karachi, or about 101,788 trees against 5,341.
The dark mark is each place's canopy target: 30% of the land, raised where air quality is poor.
| Karachi | Lahore | |
|---|---|---|
| Trees standingEstimated from the canopy area. | 5.3K | 102K (better) |
| Trees still neededTo reach the target. Fewer is better. | 88.9K | 39.6K (better) |
| CO₂ absorbed each yearBy the trees already standing. | 118K kg | 2.2M 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
Karachi vs Lahore: your questions answered
Is Karachi cleaner than Lahore?
On air quality, yes, right now: Karachi reads AQI 100 against 256, a gap of 156 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, Karachi averaged AQI 79 against 191, and it was the cleaner of the two on 7 of those days.
Is it safe to exercise outdoors in Karachi and Lahore today?
In Karachi, at AQI 100: Unusually sensitive people should consider limiting long outdoor exertion. In Lahore, at AQI 256: Health alert — everyone should avoid long outdoor exertion.
Which has lost more forest, Karachi or Lahore?
Karachi has lost more: about 5 ha of forest within 10 km of its center from 2001 to 2025, against 3 ha around Lahore. under 1 ha of that was cleared for good, for farms, mines or towns.
Which has more trees, Karachi or Lahore?
Lahore has more tree cover: 32.4% of the land within 2 km of its center against 1.7% around Karachi, or about 101,788 trees against 5,341. Both figures describe the same-sized circle of ground around each center, not the whole municipality.
How many more trees do Karachi and Lahore need?
Karachi needs about 88,907 more to reach its canopy target of 30%, and Lahore about 39,584 to reach 45%. The target starts at 30% of the land and rises where air quality is poor.
Are Karachi and Lahore 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 Karachi vs Lahore 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 (Oct 24, 2026 and Sep 8, 2026), and the forest figures are published yearly.
Keep going
Compare them with somewhere else
Build your own
Compare Karachi with somewhere else
This place
Karachi