Praia
2 km around Praia
Air quality now
AQI 73
1.7%
tree cover
88.2K more trees would reach 30% tree cover
Africa · air quality report · 4 cities
Cabo Verde air quality today The AQI right now, city by city
Right now the 4 cities Airleaf measures in Cabo Verde average AQI 72 (moderate). The worst air is in Espargos, at AQI 79, and the cleanest in Assomada, at AQI 67.
None of the 4 measured cities is over AQI 100 today.
Average right now
AQI 72
Moderate
US EPA index, across 4 cities
- cities measured
- 4
- worst air: Espargos
- 79
- cleanest air: Assomada
- 67
- average tree cover
- 3.4%
Updated . Lower is better on the US EPA index: 0–50 is Good, above 300 is Hazardous. Measured by Airleaf.
Cabo Verde · average AQI 72
Air quality right now in all 4 cities in Cabo Verde
Moderate
Mindelo
2 km around Mindelo
Air quality now
AQI 68
0.7%
tree cover
79.4K more trees would reach 30% tree cover
Espargos
2 km around Espargos
Air quality now
AQI 79
1.0%
tree cover
91.1K more trees would reach 30% tree cover
Assomada
2 km around Santa Catarina
Air quality now
AQI 67
10.4%
tree cover
61.6K more trees would reach 30% tree cover
Across the country
How clean is the air across Cabo Verde today?
None of the 4 measured cities is over AQI 100 today. Unusually sensitive people should consider limiting long outdoor exertion.
4 measured cities
- Moderate4 (100%)
Every measured city, including model estimates where no ground station is near.
Against everywhere else
How does Cabo Verde compare with other countries?
Right now the cities of Cabo Verde average cleaner air than 24% of the 171 countries Airleaf has enough cities to average, and more tree cover than 7%.
Cleaner air than…
- Cabo Verde
- Beats 24%
More tree cover than…
- Cabo Verde
- Beats 7%
See the most polluted and cleanest air rankings for every country.
Deforestation · 2001–2025
How much forest has Cabo Verde lost?
Since 2001, Cabo Verde has lost about 90 hectares of forest (about 130 football pitches): 1.4% of the forest it had in 2000. Most of it (74%) was deforestation, forest cleared for good, mainly for farms, pasture and plantations.
- Forest lost since 2001
- 90 haabout 130 football pitches
- Share of its forest
- 1.4%of what there was in 2000
- Cleared for good
- 66 hadeforestation: turned into farms, mines or towns
Hectares of forest lost each year
Show the figures as a table
| Year | Cleared for good | Can grow back | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2001 | 4 ha | 1 ha | 5 ha |
| 2002 | 11 ha | under 1 ha | 11 ha |
| 2003 | 8 ha | under 1 ha | 9 ha |
| 2004 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2005 | 5 ha | under 1 ha | 5 ha |
| 2006 | 5 ha | under 1 ha | 5 ha |
| 2007 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2008 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2009 | 7 ha | under 1 ha | 8 ha |
| 2010 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2011 | 8 ha | 2 ha | 10 ha |
| 2012 | 5 ha | 3 ha | 8 ha |
| 2013 | 8 ha | 2 ha | 10 ha |
| 2014 | 2 ha | 1 ha | 3 ha |
| 2015 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2016 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2017 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2018 | under 1 ha | 10 ha | 11 ha |
| 2019 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2020 | 3 ha | under 1 ha | 3 ha |
| 2021 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2022 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2023 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2024 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2025 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
The worst year was 2002, when about 11 hectares of forest were lost.
What is causing deforestation in Cabo Verde?
- Farms, pasture and plantationscleared for good70% · 63 ha
- Wildfirescan grow back15% · 13 ha
- Towns and roadscleared for good3.6% · 3 ha
Also: unknown causes.
Causes for 2025 are estimates, based on what caused forest loss in the same places up to 2024.
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. How it's measured
Cabo Verde as a whole
12.5% of Cabo Verde was forested as of 2024, against a 30% benchmark. Closing that gap nationally would take roughly 70.5M trees across 70.5K hectares. Source: World Bank (FAO).
Build your own
Compare Cabo Verde with another country
This place
Cabo Verde
Clean-air buying guides
Cleaner air at home in Cabo Verde
Picked by tested clean-air delivery rate (CADR), noise and running cost, from independent test labels. No brand pays to be listed.
- The best air purifiers for wildfire smoke and smog
Air purifiers that keep up with wildfire smoke and winter smog, ranked by verified smoke CADR, with the room each one clears on a smoky day.
- The best air purifiers under $200
Good HEPA air purifiers under $200 at the makers' own prices, compared on verified clean air, room size and what the filters cost each year.
- NIOSH-approved N95 masks for smoke and smog
NIOSH-approved N95 masks and P100 respirators for smog and smoke, and how to get the fit right. Cloth and surgical masks do little against PM2.5.
Frequently asked
Air quality in Cabo Verde: your questions answered
What is the air quality in Cabo Verde today?
Right now the 4 cities Airleaf measures in Cabo Verde average AQI 72 (moderate). The worst air is in Espargos, at AQI 79, and the cleanest in Assomada, at AQI 67. None of the 4 measured cities is over AQI 100 today.
Which city in Cabo Verde has the worst air right now?
Espargos, at AQI 79 (Moderate) on the US EPA index. Unusually sensitive people should consider limiting long outdoor exertion.
Which city in Cabo Verde has the cleanest air right now?
Assomada, at AQI 67 (Moderate). Both lists rank current readings, from ground stations wherever Cabo Verde has at least three cities with one.
Is the air in Cabo Verde safe to breathe today?
It depends on the city. 4 cities are Moderate. At the national average of AQI 72: Unusually sensitive people should consider limiting long outdoor exertion.
How much forest has Cabo Verde lost since 2001?
About 90 ha from 2001 to 2025, 1% of the forest it had in 2000, from the University of Maryland's yearly satellite maps of forest loss. 66 ha of it was cleared for good, for farms, mines or towns.
How does Airleaf measure air quality in Cabo Verde?
Each city's reading is the US EPA air quality index, from ground monitoring stations where one has reported recently nearby, and from the CAMS atmospheric model elsewhere; each city's report says which. Tree cover is measured over the same 2 km radius in every city, so the cities compare like for like.
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