Air quality comparison · Namibia, 587 km apart
Rundu vs Windhoek Air quality index (AQI) today
Windhoek has cleaner air than Rundu right now: AQI 52 (Moderate) against 61 (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, Windhoek averaged AQI 23 against 48, and it was the cleaner of the two on 7 of those days. Windhoek has more tree cover.
Updated . Lower is better on the US EPA index: 0–50 is Good, above 300 is Hazardous. Measured by Airleaf.
Rundu61Windhoek52
Head to head
Rundu vs Windhoek at a glance
Windhoek is ahead on 5 of 5 measures, and Rundu on 0. The better figure in each row is marked.
| Rundu | Windhoek | |
|---|---|---|
| Air quality nowUS AQI. Lower is better. | 61 | 52 (better) |
| PM2.5Fine particles, µg/m³. | 13 | 8 (better) |
| Past week's averageUS AQI, 7 days. | 48 | 23 (better) |
| Tree coverWithin 2 km of the center. | 3.4% | 10.8% (better) |
| Trees still neededTo reach a healthy canopy. | 83.3K | 60.3K (better) |
Air quality today
What is the air like in Rundu and Windhoek right now?
Windhoek has cleaner air than Rundu right now: AQI 52 (Moderate) against 61 (Moderate). PM2.5 is setting the index in both.
Both readings are model estimates, with no ground station close enough to either.
RunduWindhoek
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).
Rundu: Model estimate · no ground station nearby. Data: Open-Meteo / CAMS, US EPA index.
Windhoek: Model estimate · no ground station nearby. Data: Open-Meteo / CAMS, US EPA index.
The past week
Which had cleaner air over the past 7 days?
Over the past 7 days, on modeled daily averages, Windhoek averaged AQI 23 against 48, 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
- Rundu0Windhoek7
- Average AQI
- Rundu48Windhoek23
- Worst day, AQI
- Rundu63Windhoek57
The daily numbers (7 days)
| Day | Rundu | Windhoek |
|---|---|---|
| Nov 5 | 59 | 16 |
| Nov 6 | 45 | 5 |
| Nov 7 | 27 | 3 |
| Nov 8 | 39 | 5 |
| Nov 9 | 44 | 28 |
| Nov 10 | 62 | 50 |
| Nov 11 | 63 | 57 |
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 Rundu and Windhoek 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 Rundu and Windhoek compare with the rest of the world?
Right now Rundu's air is cleaner than 46% of the 5,420 places Airleaf tracks, and Windhoek's is cleaner than 58%. Within Namibia, that is 0% and 25% of its 5 measured places.
Cleaner air than…
- Rundu
- Beats 46%
- Windhoek
- Beats 58%
More tree cover than…
- Rundu
- Beats 7%
- Windhoek
- Beats 23%
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.
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.
Rundu
2017: satellite photo from July 2017 of a 5 × 5 km area in the city center.
Windhoek
2017: satellite photo from July 2017 of a 5 × 5 km area in the city center.
Trees
Which has more trees, Rundu or Windhoek?
Windhoek has more tree cover: 10.8% of the land within 2 km of its center against 3.4% around Rundu, or about 33,929 trees against 10,649.
The dark mark is each place's canopy target: 30% of the land, raised where air quality is poor.
| Rundu | Windhoek | |
|---|---|---|
| Trees standingEstimated from the canopy area. | 10.6K | 33.9K (better) |
| Trees still neededTo reach the target. Fewer is better. | 83.3K | 60.3K (better) |
| CO₂ absorbed each yearBy the trees already standing. | 234K kg | 746K 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
Rundu vs Windhoek: your questions answered
Is Windhoek cleaner than Rundu?
On air quality, yes, right now: Windhoek reads AQI 52 against 61, a gap of 9 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, Windhoek averaged AQI 23 against 48, and it was the cleaner of the two on 7 of those days.
Is it safe to exercise outdoors in Rundu and Windhoek today?
The advice is the same for both today. Unusually sensitive people should consider limiting long outdoor exertion. Rundu reads AQI 61 and Windhoek reads AQI 52.
Which has more trees, Rundu or Windhoek?
Windhoek has more tree cover: 10.8% of the land within 2 km of its center against 3.4% around Rundu, or about 33,929 trees against 10,649. Both figures describe the same-sized circle of ground around each center, not the whole municipality.
How many more trees do Rundu and Windhoek need?
Rundu needs about 83,316 more to reach its canopy target of 30%, and Windhoek about 60,319 to reach 30%. The target starts at 30% of the land and rises where air quality is poor.
Are Rundu and Windhoek 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 are model estimates, with no ground station close enough to either. Nothing is adjusted for population, city limits or climate.
How often does the Rundu vs Windhoek 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 17, 2026 and Sep 19, 2026), and the forest figures are published yearly.
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