Air quality comparison · Spain, 246 km apart
Valencia vs Zaragoza Air quality index (AQI) today
Zaragoza has cleaner air than Valencia right now: AQI 42 (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, Valencia averaged AQI 51 against 52, and it was the cleaner of the two on 4 of those days. Zaragoza has lost more forest since 2001. Zaragoza has more tree cover.
Updated . Lower is better on the US EPA index: 0–50 is Good, above 300 is Hazardous. Measured by Airleaf.
Valencia53Zaragoza42
Head to head
Valencia vs Zaragoza at a glance
Zaragoza is ahead on 4 of 6 measures, and Valencia on 2. The better figure in each row is marked.
| Valencia | Zaragoza | |
|---|---|---|
| Air quality nowUS AQI. Lower is better. | 53 | 42 (better) |
| PM2.5Fine particles, µg/m³. | 10 | 7.6 (better) |
| Past week's averageUS AQI, 6 days. | 51 (better) | 52 |
| Forest lost since 2001Within 10 km of the center. | 8 ha (better) | 69 ha |
| Tree coverWithin 2 km of the center. | 12.3% | 13.5% (better) |
| Trees still neededTo reach a healthy canopy. | 55.6K | 50.3K (better) |
Air quality today
What is the air like in Valencia and Zaragoza right now?
Zaragoza has cleaner air than Valencia right now: AQI 42 (Good) against 53 (Moderate). PM2.5 is setting the index in both.
Both readings come from nearby ground stations.
ValenciaZaragoza
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, Valencia averaged AQI 51 against 52, 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
- Valencia4Zaragoza2
- Average AQI
- Valencia51Zaragoza52
- Worst day, AQI
- Valencia60Zaragoza63
The daily numbers (6 days)
| Day | Valencia | Zaragoza |
|---|---|---|
| Nov 5 | 41 | 55 |
| Nov 6 | 55 | 57 |
| Nov 7 | 60 | 63 |
| Nov 8 | 58 | 60 |
| Nov 9 | 55 | 43 |
| Nov 10 | 37 | 32 |
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 Valencia and Zaragoza today?
Valencia (AQI 53, Moderate): Unusually sensitive people should consider limiting long outdoor exertion.
Zaragoza (AQI 42, Good): Air quality is satisfactory for everyone.
Exercise outdoors
- Valencia
- Fine for most people; unusually sensitive people should take long or hard exercise easier.
- Zaragoza
- A good day to be active outside.
Windows
- Valencia
- Fine to open; close them if you are sensitive to pollution.
- Zaragoza
- Open them to air the house.
Masks
- Valencia
- Not needed for most people.
- Zaragoza
- Not needed.
Air purifier
- Valencia
- Worth running if you are sensitive.
- Zaragoza
- Not needed.
Against everywhere else
How do Valencia and Zaragoza compare with the rest of the world?
Right now Valencia's air is cleaner than 56% of the 5,420 places Airleaf tracks, and Zaragoza's is cleaner than 68%. Within Spain, that is 16% and 25% of its 57 measured places.
Cleaner air than…
- Valencia
- Beats 56%
- Zaragoza
- Beats 68%
More tree cover than…
- Valencia
- Beats 27%
- Zaragoza
- Beats 31%
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, Valencia or Zaragoza?
Zaragoza has lost more: about 69 ha of forest within 10 km of its center from 2001 to 2025, against 8 ha around Valencia. 49 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: 2022, with 1 ha lost.
Worst year: 2001, with 16 ha lost.
| Valencia | Zaragoza | |
|---|---|---|
| Forest lost since 2001Cleared, burned or logged. | 8 ha (better) | 69 ha |
| Share of its forestOf what it had in 2000. | 2.7% (better) | 12% |
| Cleared for goodTurned into farms, mines or towns. | 8 ha (better) | 49 ha |
| Recent trend2021–2025 against the five years before. | Too little to call | Too little to call |
| Main known cause | Farms, pasture and plantations (59%) | Farms, pasture and plantations (59%) |
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.
Valencia
2017: satellite photo from June 2017 of a 5 × 5 km area in the city center.
Zaragoza
2017: satellite photo from July 2017 of a 5 × 5 km area in the city center.
Trees
Which has more trees, Valencia or Zaragoza?
Zaragoza has more tree cover: 13.5% of the land within 2 km of its center against 12.3% around Valencia, or about 41,139 trees against 38,642.
The dark mark is each place's canopy target: 30% of the land, raised where air quality is poor.
| Valencia | Zaragoza | |
|---|---|---|
| Trees standingEstimated from the canopy area. | 38.6K | 41.1K (better) |
| Trees still neededTo reach the target. Fewer is better. | 55.6K | 50.3K (better) |
| CO₂ absorbed each yearBy the trees already standing. | 850K kg | 905K 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
Valencia vs Zaragoza: your questions answered
Is Zaragoza cleaner than Valencia?
On air quality, yes, right now: Zaragoza reads AQI 42 against 53, a gap of 11 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, Valencia averaged AQI 51 against 52, and it was the cleaner of the two on 4 of those days.
Is it safe to exercise outdoors in Valencia and Zaragoza today?
In Valencia, at AQI 53: Unusually sensitive people should consider limiting long outdoor exertion. In Zaragoza, at AQI 42: Air quality is satisfactory for everyone.
Which has lost more forest, Valencia or Zaragoza?
Zaragoza has lost more: about 69 ha of forest within 10 km of its center from 2001 to 2025, against 8 ha around Valencia. 49 ha of that was cleared for good, for farms, mines or towns.
Which has more trees, Valencia or Zaragoza?
Zaragoza has more tree cover: 13.5% of the land within 2 km of its center against 12.3% around Valencia, or about 41,139 trees against 38,642. Both figures describe the same-sized circle of ground around each center, not the whole municipality.
How many more trees do Valencia and Zaragoza need?
Valencia needs about 55,606 more to reach its canopy target of 30%, and Zaragoza about 50,281 to reach 30%. The target starts at 30% of the land and rises where air quality is poor.
Are Valencia and Zaragoza 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 Valencia vs Zaragoza 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 11, 2026 and Sep 19, 2026), and the forest figures are published yearly.
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