Accra
2 km around Victoriaborg
Air quality now
AQI 78
11.0%
tree cover
56.9K more trees would reach 30% tree cover
Africa · air quality report · 13 cities
Ghana air quality today The AQI right now, city by city
Right now the 13 cities Airleaf measures in Ghana average AQI 82 (moderate). The worst air is in Medina Estates, at AQI 88, and the cleanest in Accra, at AQI 78.
At ground stations alone, which measure rather than estimate, the average is AQI 85 across 3 cities. None of the 13 measured cities is over AQI 100 today.
Average right now
AQI 82
Moderate
US EPA index, across 13 cities
- cities measured
- 13
- worst air: Medina Estates
- 88
- cleanest air: Accra
- 78
- average tree cover
- 21.3%
Updated . Lower is better on the US EPA index: 0–50 is Good, above 300 is Hazardous. Measured by Airleaf.
Ghana · average AQI 82
Air quality right now in the 8 largest cities in Ghana
Moderate
Kumasi
2 km around Adum
Air quality now
AQI 96
19.5%
tree cover
33.0K more trees would reach 30% tree cover
Tamale
2 km around Tamale
Air quality now
AQI 65
14.6%
tree cover
48.4K more trees would reach 30% tree cover
Takoradi
2 km around Takoradi
Air quality now
AQI 75
13.7%
tree cover
49.2K more trees would reach 30% tree cover
Cape Coast
2 km around Cape Coast
Air quality now
AQI 72
25.5%
tree cover
7.4K more trees would reach 30% tree cover
Atsiaman
2 km around Achiaman
Air quality now
AQI 85
12.8%
tree cover
54.0K more trees would reach 30% tree cover
Ashaiman
2 km around Ashaiman
Air quality now
AQI 88
2.3%
tree cover
86.8K more trees would reach 30% tree cover
Obuase
2 km around Obuasi
Air quality now
AQI 67
45.3%
tree cover
Healthy tree cover
Across the country
How clean is the air across Ghana today?
None of the 13 measured cities is over AQI 100 today. Unusually sensitive people should consider limiting long outdoor exertion.
13 measured cities
- Moderate13 (100%)
Every measured city, including model estimates where no ground station is near.
In aggregate
Ghana in numbers
Every figure below is read the same way over the same 2 km area per city, so they add up and compare like for like. Averaged across the 13 of 13 cities measured so far in Ghana.
- Average air quality
- AQI 82Mean of the latest reading per city
- Average tree cover
- 21.3%10 of 13 below their target
- Trees counted
- 827KAcross every measured area
- More trees needed
- 499KTo bring each area to its target
Worst air quality right now
Cleanest air right now
Greenest cities in Ghana
Least tree cover in Ghana
Excludes barren and desert sites
Against everywhere else
How does Ghana compare with other countries?
Right now the cities of Ghana average cleaner air than 15% of the 171 countries Airleaf has enough cities to average, and more tree cover than 43%.
Cleaner air than…
- Ghana
- Beats 15%
More tree cover than…
- Ghana
- Beats 43%
See the most polluted and cleanest air rankings for every country.
Deforestation · 2001–2025
How much forest has Ghana lost?
Since 2001, Ghana has lost about 1.88 million hectares of forest (about 19,000 km²): 27% of the forest it had in 2000. Most of it (98%) was deforestation, forest cleared for good, mainly for farms, pasture and plantations.
- Forest lost since 2001
- 1.88 million haabout 19,000 km²
- Share of its forest
- 27%of what there was in 2000
- Cleared for good
- 1.84 million 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 | 43,100 ha | 858 ha | 43,900 ha |
| 2002 | 78,000 ha | 1,090 ha | 79,000 ha |
| 2003 | 24,700 ha | 426 ha | 25,100 ha |
| 2004 | 17,400 ha | 289 ha | 17,700 ha |
| 2005 | 40,900 ha | 735 ha | 41,700 ha |
| 2006 | 27,100 ha | 433 ha | 27,600 ha |
| 2007 | 39,800 ha | 510 ha | 40,300 ha |
| 2008 | 37,800 ha | 429 ha | 38,200 ha |
| 2009 | 38,100 ha | 413 ha | 38,500 ha |
| 2010 | 19,400 ha | 305 ha | 19,700 ha |
| 2011 | 36,100 ha | 272 ha | 36,400 ha |
| 2012 | 36,500 ha | 479 ha | 37,000 ha |
| 2013 | 80,500 ha | 1,210 ha | 81,700 ha |
| 2014 | 120,000 ha | 1,570 ha | 121,000 ha |
| 2015 | 57,300 ha | 641 ha | 57,900 ha |
| 2016 | 118,000 ha | 2,550 ha | 120,000 ha |
| 2017 | 114,000 ha | 2,310 ha | 116,000 ha |
| 2018 | 150,000 ha | 2,590 ha | 153,000 ha |
| 2019 | 87,600 ha | 1,260 ha | 88,900 ha |
| 2020 | 135,000 ha | 2,660 ha | 138,000 ha |
| 2021 | 99,800 ha | 2,150 ha | 102,000 ha |
| 2022 | 116,000 ha | 3,060 ha | 119,000 ha |
| 2023 | 111,000 ha | 2,180 ha | 113,000 ha |
| 2024 | 106,000 ha | 2,200 ha | 109,000 ha |
| 2025 | 106,000 ha | 11,400 ha | 117,000 ha |
Forest loss has stayed about the same: about 112,000 hectares a year in 2021–2025, against 123,000 hectares a year in 2016–2020. The worst year was 2018, when about 153,000 hectares of forest were lost.
What is causing deforestation in Ghana?
- Farms, pasture and plantationscleared for good86% · 1.61 million ha
- Mining and energycleared for good8.5% · 160,000 ha
- Towns and roadscleared for good3.6% · 68,600 ha
Also: shifting farming, logging, wildfires, storms, floods and other natural causes, 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
Ghana as a whole
30.9% of Ghana was forested as of 2024, against a 30% benchmark. That already clears the benchmark — the city reports above show where cover is still thin locally. Source: World Bank (FAO).
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Clean-air buying guides
Cleaner air at home in Ghana
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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 Ghana: your questions answered
What is the air quality in Ghana today?
Right now the 13 cities Airleaf measures in Ghana average AQI 82 (moderate). The worst air is in Medina Estates, at AQI 88, and the cleanest in Accra, at AQI 78. At ground stations alone, which measure rather than estimate, the average is AQI 85 across 3 cities. None of the 13 measured cities is over AQI 100 today.
Which city in Ghana has the worst air right now?
Medina Estates, at AQI 88 (Moderate) on the US EPA index. Unusually sensitive people should consider limiting long outdoor exertion.
Which city in Ghana has the cleanest air right now?
Accra, at AQI 78 (Moderate). Both lists rank current readings, from ground stations wherever Ghana has at least three cities with one.
Is the air in Ghana safe to breathe today?
It depends on the city. 13 cities are Moderate. At the national average of AQI 82: Unusually sensitive people should consider limiting long outdoor exertion.
How much forest has Ghana lost since 2001?
About 1.88 million ha from 2001 to 2025, 27% of the forest it had in 2000, from the University of Maryland's yearly satellite maps of forest loss. 1.84 million ha of it was cleared for good, for farms, mines or towns.
Which city in Ghana has the most trees?
Twifu Praso, with 59.7% tree cover within 2 km of its center, measured from Sentinel-2 satellite images.
How does Airleaf measure air quality in Ghana?
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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