Air quality comparison · Germany, 456 km apart
Köln vs Munich Air quality index (AQI) today
Köln has cleaner air than Munich right now: AQI 47 (Good) against 53 (Moderate).
That puts them in different EPA bands, so the health advice differs today. But over the past 6 days, on modeled daily averages, Munich averaged AQI 67 against 72, and it was the cleaner of the two on 4 of those days. Munich has lost more forest since 2001. Munich has more tree cover.
Updated . Lower is better on the US EPA index: 0–50 is Good, above 300 is Hazardous. Measured by Airleaf.
Köln47Munich53
Head to head
Köln vs Munich at a glance
Köln and Munich are level, each ahead on 3 of 6 measures. The better figure in each row is marked.
| Köln | Munich | |
|---|---|---|
| Air quality nowUS AQI. Lower is better. | 47 (better) | 53 |
| PM2.5Fine particles, µg/m³. | 8.4 (better) | 10.1 |
| Past week's averageUS AQI, 6 days. | 72 | 67 (better) |
| Forest lost since 2001Within 10 km of the center. | 83 ha (better) | 488 ha |
| Tree coverWithin 2 km of the center. | 27.1% | 27.7% (better) |
| Trees still neededTo reach a healthy canopy. | 8.3K | 7.2K (better) |
Air quality today
What is the air like in Köln and Munich right now?
Köln has cleaner air than Munich right now: AQI 47 (Good) against 53 (Moderate). PM2.5 is setting the index in both.
Both readings come from nearby ground stations.
KölnMunich
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 6 days?
But over the past 6 days, on modeled daily averages, Munich averaged AQI 67 against 72, 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
- Köln2Munich4
- Average AQI
- Köln72Munich67
- Worst day, AQI
- Köln82Munich75
The daily numbers (6 days)
| Day | Köln | Munich |
|---|---|---|
| Nov 5 | 53 | 63 |
| Nov 6 | 67 | 74 |
| Nov 7 | 82 | 75 |
| Nov 8 | 76 | 73 |
| Nov 9 | 81 | 69 |
| Nov 10 | 73 | 45 |
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 Köln and Munich today?
Köln (AQI 47, Good): Air quality is satisfactory for everyone.
Munich (AQI 53, Moderate): Unusually sensitive people should consider limiting long outdoor exertion.
Exercise outdoors
- Köln
- A good day to be active outside.
- Munich
- Fine for most people; unusually sensitive people should take long or hard exercise easier.
Windows
- Köln
- Open them to air the house.
- Munich
- Fine to open; close them if you are sensitive to pollution.
Masks
- Köln
- Not needed.
- Munich
- Not needed for most people.
Air purifier
- Köln
- Not needed.
- Munich
- Worth running if you are sensitive.
Against everywhere else
How do Köln and Munich compare with the rest of the world?
Right now Köln's air is cleaner than 64% of the 5,420 places Airleaf tracks, and Munich's is cleaner than 56%. Within Germany, that is 89% and 74% of its 71 measured places.
Cleaner air than…
- Köln
- Beats 64%
- Munich
- Beats 56%
More tree cover than…
- Köln
- Beats 62%
- Munich
- Beats 64%
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, Köln or Munich?
Munich has lost more: about 488 ha of forest within 10 km of its center from 2001 to 2025, against 83 ha around Köln. 19 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: 2010, with 7 ha lost.
Worst year: 2016, with 163 ha lost.
| Köln | Munich | |
|---|---|---|
| Forest lost since 2001Cleared, burned or logged. | 83 ha (better) | 488 ha |
| Share of its forestOf what it had in 2000. | 1.2% (better) | 7.5% |
| Cleared for goodTurned into farms, mines or towns. | 60 ha | 19 ha (better) |
| Recent trend2021–2025 against the five years before. | Too little to call | Too little to call |
| Main known cause | Towns and roads (72%) | Logging (94%) |
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.
Köln
2017: satellite photo from August 2017 of a 5 × 5 km area in the city center.
Munich
2017: satellite photo from July 2017 of a 5 × 5 km area about 7 km south of the city center.
Trees
Which has more trees, Köln or Munich?
Munich has more tree cover: 27.7% of the land within 2 km of its center against 27.1% around Köln, or about 86,674 trees against 77,815.
The dark mark is each place's canopy target: 30% of the land, raised where air quality is poor.
| Köln | Munich | |
|---|---|---|
| Trees standingEstimated from the canopy area. | 77.8K | 86.7K (better) |
| Trees still neededTo reach the target. Fewer is better. | 8.3K | 7.2K (better) |
| CO₂ absorbed each yearBy the trees already standing. | 1.7M kg | 1.9M 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
Köln vs Munich: your questions answered
Is Köln cleaner than Munich?
On air quality, yes, right now: Köln reads AQI 47 against 53, a gap of 6 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, Munich averaged AQI 67 against 72, and it was the cleaner of the two on 4 of those days.
Is it safe to exercise outdoors in Köln and Munich today?
In Köln, at AQI 47: Air quality is satisfactory for everyone. In Munich, at AQI 53: Unusually sensitive people should consider limiting long outdoor exertion.
Which has lost more forest, Köln or Munich?
Munich has lost more: about 488 ha of forest within 10 km of its center from 2001 to 2025, against 83 ha around Köln. 19 ha of that was cleared for good, for farms, mines or towns.
Which has more trees, Köln or Munich?
Munich has more tree cover: 27.7% of the land within 2 km of its center against 27.1% around Köln, or about 86,674 trees against 77,815. Both figures describe the same-sized circle of ground around each center, not the whole municipality.
How many more trees do Köln and Munich need?
Köln needs about 8,327 more to reach its canopy target of 30%, and Munich about 7,197 to reach 30%. The target starts at 30% of the land and rises where air quality is poor.
Are Köln and Munich 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 Köln vs Munich 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 (Aug 16, 2026 and Sep 19, 2026), and the forest figures are published yearly.
Keep going
Compare them with somewhere else
Build your own
Compare Köln with somewhere else
This place
Köln