Air quality comparison · Democratic Republic of the Congo, 1567 km apart
Kinshasa vs Lubumbashi Air quality index (AQI) today
Lubumbashi has cleaner air than Kinshasa right now: AQI 63 (Moderate) against 121 (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, Kinshasa averaged AQI 58 against 67, and it was the cleaner of the two on 4 of those days. Lubumbashi has lost more forest since 2001. Lubumbashi has more tree cover.
Democratic Republic of the Congo
AQI 121
Unhealthy for sensitive groups
Cleaner right now
- PM2.5
- 43.8 µg/m³2.9× WHO guideline
- Main pollutant
- PM2.5
- Source
- Ground station
- Reading
- Nov 11, 19:00 local
Democratic Republic of the Congo
AQI 63
Moderate
Cleaner right now
- PM2.5
- 16.7 µg/m³1.1× WHO guideline
- Main pollutant
- PM2.5
- Source
- Model estimate
- Reading
- Nov 11, 07:00 local
Updated . Lower is better on the US EPA index: 0–50 is Good, above 300 is Hazardous. Measured by Airleaf.
Kinshasa121Lubumbashi63
Head to head
Kinshasa vs Lubumbashi at a glance
Lubumbashi is ahead on 4 of 6 measures, and Kinshasa on 2. The better figure in each row is marked.
| Kinshasa | Lubumbashi | |
|---|---|---|
| Air quality nowUS AQI. Lower is better. | 121 | 63 (better) |
| PM2.5Fine particles, µg/m³. | 43.8 | 16.7 (better) |
| Past week's averageUS AQI, 6 days. | 58 (better) | 67 |
| Forest lost since 2001Within 10 km of the center. | 100 ha (better) | 124 ha |
| Tree coverWithin 2 km of the center. | 1.0% | 12.0% (better) |
| Trees still neededTo reach a healthy canopy. | 106K | 56.5K (better) |
Air quality today
What is the air like in Kinshasa and Lubumbashi right now?
Lubumbashi has cleaner air than Kinshasa right now: AQI 63 (Moderate) against 121 (Unhealthy for sensitive groups). PM2.5 is setting the index in both.
Kinshasa's PM2.5 is about 2.9× the WHO's 24-hour guideline of 15 µg/m³. Lubumbashi's PM2.5 is about 1.1× the WHO's 24-hour guideline of 15 µg/m³.
Kinshasa is read from a nearby ground station and Lubumbashi is a model estimate, so the two are not quite like for like.
KinshasaLubumbashi
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).
Kinshasa: Ground station · WASARU / KINAQ Huilleries, 2.1 km away · median of 3 stations. Data: OpenAQ · AirGradient, KINAQ Huilleries.
Lubumbashi: Model estimate · no ground station nearby. Data: Open-Meteo / CAMS, US EPA index.
The past week
Which had cleaner air over the past 6 days?
But over the past 6 days, on modeled daily averages, Kinshasa averaged AQI 58 against 67, and it was the cleaner of the two on 4 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
- Kinshasa4Lubumbashi2
- Average AQI
- Kinshasa58Lubumbashi67
- Worst day, AQI
- Kinshasa70Lubumbashi91
The daily numbers (6 days)
| Day | Kinshasa | Lubumbashi |
|---|---|---|
| Nov 5 | 58 | 78 |
| Nov 6 | 48 | 91 |
| Nov 7 | 47 | 63 |
| Nov 8 | 60 | 39 |
| Nov 9 | 64 | 65 |
| Nov 10 | 70 | 66 |
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 Kinshasa and Lubumbashi today?
Kinshasa (AQI 121, Unhealthy for sensitive groups): Sensitive groups should limit long or intense outdoor activity.
Lubumbashi (AQI 63, Moderate): Unusually sensitive people should consider limiting long outdoor exertion.
Exercise outdoors
- Kinshasa
- Children, older adults and people with asthma or heart disease should cut down long or hard exercise.
- Lubumbashi
- Fine for most people; unusually sensitive people should take long or hard exercise easier.
Windows
- Kinshasa
- Close them to keep the outside air out.
- Lubumbashi
- Fine to open; close them if you are sensitive to pollution.
Masks
- Kinshasa
- Sensitive groups: an N95 outdoors.
- Lubumbashi
- Not needed for most people.
Air purifier
- Kinshasa
- Run one, especially in bedrooms.
- Lubumbashi
- Worth running if you are sensitive.
Against everywhere else
How do Kinshasa and Lubumbashi compare with the rest of the world?
Right now Kinshasa's air is cleaner than 16% of the 5,420 places Airleaf tracks, and Lubumbashi's is cleaner than 44%. Within Democratic Republic of the Congo, that is 0% and 22% of its 38 measured places.
Cleaner air than…
- Kinshasa
- Beats 16%
- Lubumbashi
- Beats 44%
More tree cover than…
- Kinshasa
- Beats 2%
- Lubumbashi
- Beats 26%
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, Kinshasa or Lubumbashi?
Lubumbashi has lost more: about 124 ha of forest within 10 km of its center from 2001 to 2025, against 100 ha around Kinshasa. 124 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: 2023, with 29 ha lost.
Worst year: 2014, with 21 ha lost.
| Kinshasa | Lubumbashi | |
|---|---|---|
| Forest lost since 2001Cleared, burned or logged. | 100 ha (better) | 124 ha |
| Share of its forestOf what it had in 2000. | 9.5% (better) | 26% |
| Cleared for goodTurned into farms, mines or towns. | 66 ha (better) | 124 ha |
| Recent trend2021–2025 against the five years before. | Too little to call | Too little to call |
| Main known cause | Towns and roads (64%) | Towns and roads (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.
Kinshasa
2017: satellite photo from July 2017 of a 5 × 5 km area about 7 km west of the city center.
Lubumbashi
2017: satellite photo from August 2017 of a 5 × 5 km area in the city center.
Trees
Which has more trees, Kinshasa or Lubumbashi?
Lubumbashi has more tree cover: 12.0% of the land within 2 km of its center against 1.0% around Kinshasa, or about 37,699 trees against 3,129.
The dark mark is each place's canopy target: 30% of the land, raised where air quality is poor.
| Kinshasa | Lubumbashi | |
|---|---|---|
| Trees standingEstimated from the canopy area. | 3.1K | 37.7K (better) |
| Trees still neededTo reach the target. Fewer is better. | 106K | 56.5K (better) |
| CO₂ absorbed each yearBy the trees already standing. | 68.8K kg | 829K 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
Kinshasa vs Lubumbashi: your questions answered
Is Lubumbashi cleaner than Kinshasa?
On air quality, yes, right now: Lubumbashi reads AQI 63 against 121, a gap of 58 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, Kinshasa averaged AQI 58 against 67, and it was the cleaner of the two on 4 of those days.
Is it safe to exercise outdoors in Kinshasa and Lubumbashi today?
In Kinshasa, at AQI 121: Sensitive groups should limit long or intense outdoor activity. In Lubumbashi, at AQI 63: Unusually sensitive people should consider limiting long outdoor exertion.
Which has lost more forest, Kinshasa or Lubumbashi?
Lubumbashi has lost more: about 124 ha of forest within 10 km of its center from 2001 to 2025, against 100 ha around Kinshasa. 124 ha of that was cleared for good, for farms, mines or towns.
Which has more trees, Kinshasa or Lubumbashi?
Lubumbashi has more tree cover: 12.0% of the land within 2 km of its center against 1.0% around Kinshasa, or about 37,699 trees against 3,129. Both figures describe the same-sized circle of ground around each center, not the whole municipality.
How many more trees do Kinshasa and Lubumbashi need?
Kinshasa needs about 106,387 more to reach its canopy target of 35%, and Lubumbashi about 56,549 to reach 30%. The target starts at 30% of the land and rises where air quality is poor.
Are Kinshasa and Lubumbashi 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. Kinshasa is read from a nearby ground station and Lubumbashi is a model estimate, so the two are not quite like for like. Nothing is adjusted for population, city limits or climate.
How often does the Kinshasa vs Lubumbashi 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 15, 2026 and Sep 18, 2026), and the forest figures are published yearly.
Keep going
Compare them with somewhere else
Build your own
Compare Kinshasa with somewhere else
This place
Kinshasa