Air quality comparison · Myanmar, 203.2 mi (327 km) apart
Nay Pyi Taw vs Yangon Air quality index (AQI) today
Yangon has cleaner air than Nay Pyi Taw right now: AQI 17 (Good) against 19 (Good).
Both sit in the same EPA band, so the health advice is the same for each today. But over the past 7 days, on modeled daily averages, Nay Pyi Taw averaged AQI 46 against 62, and it was the cleaner of the two on 7 of those days. Nay Pyi Taw has lost more forest since 2001. Nay Pyi Taw has more tree cover.
Myanmar
AQI 19
Good
Cleaner right now
- PM2.5
- 3.6 µg/m³
- Main pollutant
- PM2.5
- Source
- Model estimate
- Reading
- Nov 11, 15:30 local
Myanmar
AQI 17
Good
Cleaner right now
- PM2.5
- 3.1 µg/m³
- Main pollutant
- PM2.5
- Source
- Ground station
- Reading
- Nov 12, 00:30 local
Updated . Lower is better on the US EPA index: 0–50 is Good, above 300 is Hazardous. Measured by Airleaf.
Nay Pyi Taw19Yangon17
Head to head
Nay Pyi Taw vs Yangon at a glance
Yangon is ahead on 3 of 6 measures, and Nay Pyi Taw on 2. The better figure in each row is marked.
| Nay Pyi Taw | Yangon | |
|---|---|---|
| Air quality nowUS AQI. Lower is better. | 19 | 17 (better) |
| PM2.5Fine particles, µg/m³. | 3.6 | 3.1 (better) |
| Past week's averageUS AQI, 7 days. | 46 (better) | 62 |
| Forest lost since 2001Within 10 km of the center. | 71 ha | 8 ha (better) |
| Tree coverWithin 1.2 mi (2 km) of the center. | 64.2% (better) | 60.9% |
| Trees still neededTo reach a healthy canopy. | 0 | 0 |
Air quality today
What is the air like in Nay Pyi Taw and Yangon right now?
Yangon has cleaner air than Nay Pyi Taw right now: AQI 17 (Good) against 19 (Good). PM2.5 is setting the index in both.
Yangon is read from a nearby ground station and Nay Pyi Taw is a model estimate, so the two are not quite like for like.
Nay Pyi TawYangon
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).
Nay Pyi Taw: Model estimate · no ground station nearby. Data: Open-Meteo / CAMS, US EPA index.
Yangon: Ground station · Yangon, 4.2 mi (6.7 km) away. Data: OpenAQ · AirGradient, Yever.
The past week
Which had cleaner air over the past 7 days?
But over the past 7 days, on modeled daily averages, Nay Pyi Taw averaged AQI 46 against 62, 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
- Nay Pyi Taw7Yangon0
- Average AQI
- Nay Pyi Taw46Yangon62
- Worst day, AQI
- Nay Pyi Taw63Yangon74
The daily numbers (7 days)
| Day | Nay Pyi Taw | Yangon |
|---|---|---|
| Nov 5 | 50 | 64 |
| Nov 6 | 60 | 67 |
| Nov 7 | 63 | 74 |
| Nov 8 | 41 | 62 |
| Nov 9 | 40 | 65 |
| Nov 10 | 39 | 53 |
| Nov 11 | 27 | 46 |
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 Nay Pyi Taw and Yangon today?
Air quality is satisfactory for everyone. Both are in the same EPA band today (Good), so the advice is the same.
Exercise outdoors
A good day to be active outside.
Windows
Open them to air the house.
Masks
Not needed.
Air purifier
Not needed.
Against everywhere else
How do Nay Pyi Taw and Yangon compare with the rest of the world?
Right now Nay Pyi Taw's air is cleaner than 90% of the 5,420 places Airleaf tracks, and Yangon's is cleaner than 92%. Within Myanmar, that is 50% and 66% of its 33 measured places.
Cleaner air than…
- Nay Pyi Taw
- Beats 90%
- Yangon
- Beats 92%
More tree cover than…
- Nay Pyi Taw
- Beats 98%
- Yangon
- Beats 97%
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, Nay Pyi Taw or Yangon?
Nay Pyi Taw has lost more: about 71 ha of forest within 10 km of its center from 2001 to 2025, against 8 ha around Yangon. 70 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: 2006, with 15 ha lost.
Worst year: 2005, with 1 ha lost.
| Nay Pyi Taw | Yangon | |
|---|---|---|
| Forest lost since 2001Cleared, burned or logged. | 71 ha | 8 ha (better) |
| Share of its forestOf what it had in 2000. | 15% | 2.8% (better) |
| Cleared for goodTurned into farms, mines or towns. | 70 ha | 6 ha (better) |
| Recent trend2021–2025 against the five years before. | Too little to call | Too little to call |
| Main known cause | Towns and roads (63%) | Towns and roads (68%) |
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.
Nay Pyi Taw
2017: satellite photo from February 2017 of a 5 × 5 km area in the city center.
Yangon
2017: satellite photo from March 2017 of a 5 × 5 km area in the city center.
Trees
Which has more trees, Nay Pyi Taw or Yangon?
Nay Pyi Taw has more tree cover: 64.2% of the land within 1.2 mi (2 km) of its center against 60.9% around Yangon, or about 200,278 trees against 185,775.
The dark mark is each place's canopy target: 30% of the land, raised where air quality is poor.
| Nay Pyi Taw | Yangon | |
|---|---|---|
| Trees standingEstimated from the canopy area. | 200K (better) | 186K |
| Trees still neededTo reach the target. Fewer is better. | 0 | 0 |
| CO₂ absorbed each yearBy the trees already standing. | 4.4M kg (better) | 4.1M kg |
Tree cover on the satellite image
The same 1.2 mi (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 1.2 mi (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
Nay Pyi Taw vs Yangon: your questions answered
Is Yangon cleaner than Nay Pyi Taw?
On air quality, yes, right now: Yangon reads AQI 17 against 19, a gap of 2 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 7 days, on modeled daily averages, Nay Pyi Taw averaged AQI 46 against 62, and it was the cleaner of the two on 7 of those days.
Is it safe to exercise outdoors in Nay Pyi Taw and Yangon today?
The advice is the same for both today. Air quality is satisfactory for everyone. Nay Pyi Taw reads AQI 19 and Yangon reads AQI 17.
Which has lost more forest, Nay Pyi Taw or Yangon?
Nay Pyi Taw has lost more: about 71 ha of forest within 10 km of its center from 2001 to 2025, against 8 ha around Yangon. 70 ha of that was cleared for good, for farms, mines or towns.
Which has more trees, Nay Pyi Taw or Yangon?
Nay Pyi Taw has more tree cover: 64.2% of the land within 1.2 mi (2 km) of its center against 60.9% around Yangon, or about 200,278 trees against 185,775. Both figures describe the same-sized circle of ground around each center, not the whole municipality.
How many more trees do Nay Pyi Taw and Yangon need?
Nay Pyi Taw needs about 0 more to reach its canopy target of 30%, and Yangon about 0 to reach 30%. The target starts at 30% of the land and rises where air quality is poor.
Are Nay Pyi Taw and Yangon 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. Yangon is read from a nearby ground station and Nay Pyi Taw 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 Nay Pyi Taw vs Yangon 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 13, 2026 and Sep 13, 2026), and the forest figures are published yearly.
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