City report · Hungary
Budapest Air quality today
Air quality in Budapest currently reads AQI 65 (Moderate): Unusually sensitive people should consider limiting long outdoor exertion.
AQI 65
Air quality right now
Moderate
- PM2.5, fine particles (µg/m³)
- 16.5
- tree cover
- 29.3%
- trees in this area
- 81.8K
- more trees needed
- 2.0K
Measured across a 2 km radius around Budapest, Víziváros, Hungary (12.57 km²), from a satellite image of Sep 18, 2026. Lower AQI is better: 0–50 is Good, above 300 is Hazardous.
Budapest · AQI 65 (Moderate)
Budapest's tree count comes to 81,831 trees across 11.17 km² of land, 1 points below the 30% tree-cover level considered healthy for this area, so roughly 1,955 more trees would close the gap.
Air quality detail
Air quality in Budapest today: AQI 65, Moderate
Main pollutant: PM2.5 · Observed Nov 11, 19:00 local time via OpenAQ ground stations, US EPA index. Values in µg/m³.
Ground station · "Budapest Honved", 3.5 km away · median of 10 stations
Health signal
Unusually sensitive people should consider limiting long outdoor exertion.
PM2.5
16.5
PM10
17.0
NO₂
26.1
O₃
10.6
SO₂
—
CO
—
Data: OpenAQ · EEA, Hungary National Meteorological Service, HungaroMet, Hungarian Meteorological Service
- Outdoor exercise
- 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
- Mask
- Not needed for most people
- Air purifier
- Worth running if you are sensitive
Over the last 7 days, the CAMS air-quality model put Budapest's daily AQI at 72 on average, from 56 on Nov 4 to an hourly peak of 114 on Nov 6.
Where Budapest stands: the most polluted cities in the world right now · the cleanest
Tree cover detail
Tree cover in Budapest: Below target
29.3% tree cover against a 30% healthy-neighborhood target, across 11.17 km² of land.
Trees in this area
81,831
Target trees
83,786
More trees needed
1,955
CO₂ if planted / yr
43.0 t
Deforestation · 2001–2025
How much forest has Budapest lost?
Since 2001, the area within 10 km of Budapest has lost about 66 hectares of forest (about 93 football pitches): 1.4% of the forest it had in 2000. Most of it was lost to logging, so much of it can grow back. About 22 hectares (33%) was deforestation: forest cleared for good for farms, mines or towns.
2017: satellite photo from August 2017 of a 5 × 5 km area in the city center.
- Forest lost since 2001
- 66 haabout 93 football pitches
- Share of its forest
- 1.4%of what there was in 2000
- Cleared for good
- 22 hadeforestation: turned into farms, mines or towns
The worst year was 2017, when about 7 hectares of forest were lost.
Hectares of forest lost each year
Show the figures as a table
| Year | Cleared for good | Can grow back | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2001 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2002 | under 1 ha | 3 ha | 3 ha |
| 2003 | 5 ha | under 1 ha | 5 ha |
| 2004 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | 1 ha |
| 2005 | 1 ha | under 1 ha | 2 ha |
| 2006 | 1 ha | under 1 ha | 1 ha |
| 2007 | 1 ha | 2 ha | 3 ha |
| 2008 | under 1 ha | 1 ha | 2 ha |
| 2009 | 2 ha | 2 ha | 4 ha |
| 2010 | under 1 ha | 6 ha | 7 ha |
| 2011 | under 1 ha | 1 ha | 1 ha |
| 2012 | under 1 ha | 7 ha | 7 ha |
| 2013 | under 1 ha | 2 ha | 2 ha |
| 2014 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | 1 ha |
| 2015 | 1 ha | 5 ha | 6 ha |
| 2016 | under 1 ha | 1 ha | 1 ha |
| 2017 | 1 ha | 6 ha | 7 ha |
| 2018 | 2 ha | 3 ha | 5 ha |
| 2019 | under 1 ha | 1 ha | 2 ha |
| 2020 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2021 | 2 ha | under 1 ha | 2 ha |
| 2022 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2023 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | 1 ha |
| 2024 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | 1 ha |
| 2025 | under 1 ha | 2 ha | 2 ha |
What is causing deforestation around Budapest?
- Loggingcan grow back57% · 38 ha
- Towns and roadscleared for good33% · 22 ha
- Unknown causescause unknown11% · 7 ha
Causes for 2025 are estimates, based on what caused forest loss in the same places up to 2024.
Forest gained and lost, 2000–2020
- Forest in 2000
- 13,900 ha
- Forest in 2020
- 14,600 ha
- Overall change
- +664 hamore forest than in 2000
Comparing satellite maps from 2000 and 2020, the forest around Budapest grew from about 13,900 hectares to 14,600 hectares, a net gain of about 664 hectares (+4.8%). New forest grew on about 737 hectares, while 74 hectares were lost.
These 2000 and 2020 maps, from the University of Maryland, count any land with trees taller than 5 m as forest, including plantations and orchards. Forest that was cut or burned and had grown back by 2020 counts in both years, so the loss here is smaller than the yearly figures.
These figures cover everything within 10 km of the city center, a wider area than the report above, because forest is usually lost at a city's edges.
Source: Hansen/UMD/Google/USGS/NASA, Global Forest Change (GFC-2025-v1.13); causes: WRI/Google DeepMind drivers of forest loss; both CC BY 4.0, summed by Airleaf for each area. Forest gained and lost 2000–2020: Potapov et al. 2022, UMD GLAD Global Land Cover and Land Use Change, CC BY 4.0. Images: contains modified Copernicus Sentinel data. How it's measured
In the same region
Measured cities near Budapest
Same 2 km radius, same index — so they compare directly.
- Kecskemét82.2 km
Hungary
- Tree cover
- 20%
- Air quality
- 73
- Győr107.4 km
Hungary
- Tree cover
- 28%
- Air quality
- 99
- Nitra114.8 km
Slovakia
- Tree cover
- 35%
- Air quality
- 45
- Bratislava161.4 km
Slovakia
- Tree cover
- 41%
- Air quality
- 60
Also compared:Budapest vs DebrecenBudapest vs Szeged
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Frequently asked
Questions about Budapest
What is the air quality (AQI) in Budapest right now?
The latest reading for Budapest shows an AQI of 65 (Moderate), measured Nov 11, 19:00 local time by 10 ground monitoring stations via OpenAQ (the median of their readings; the nearest is "Budapest Honved", 3.5 km away). The main pollutant is PM2.5. Unusually sensitive people should consider limiting long outdoor exertion.
Is it safe to exercise outside in Budapest today?
At AQI 65 (Moderate): 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. The reading changes through the day, so check again before a long run or ride.
What has the air quality in Budapest been like this week?
Over the last 7 days, the CAMS air-quality model put Budapest's daily AQI at 72 on average, from 56 on Nov 4 to an hourly peak of 114 on Nov 6. No day averaged above 100, the level where the air turns unhealthy for sensitive groups.
How much forest has the area around Budapest lost since 2001?
Since 2001, the area within 10 km of Budapest has lost about 66 hectares of forest (about 93 football pitches): 1.4% of the forest it had in 2000. Most of it was lost to logging, so much of it can grow back. About 22 hectares (33%) was deforestation: forest cleared for good for farms, mines or towns. Comparing satellite maps from 2000 and 2020, the forest around Budapest grew from about 13,900 hectares to 14,600 hectares, a net gain of about 664 hectares (+4.8%). New forest grew on about 737 hectares, while 74 hectares were lost.
What is the tree count in Budapest?
Budapest has an estimated 81,831 trees across the 11.17 km² of land measured — 29.3% tree cover, 1 percentage points short of the 30% tree-cover target set for this area.
How many more trees does Budapest need?
Budapest needs roughly 1,955 more trees to close a 1-point shortfall against its 30% tree-cover target — about 43.0 t of extra CO₂ absorbed per year once grown.
How are Budapest's air quality and tree cover measured?
Air quality is measured by ground monitoring stations near Budapest, via OpenAQ; the 7-day trend is the Open-Meteo / CAMS model's estimate. Tree cover is measured from Sentinel-2 L2A (ESA Copernicus) via Earth Search satellite imagery at 10 m detail across a 2 km radius around Budapest; the tree count is an estimate derived from that cover.
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