Guatemala City
2 km around Guatemala City Historical District
Air quality now
AQI 55
17.9%
tree cover
38.0K more trees would reach 30% tree cover
North America · air quality report · 15 cities
Guatemala air quality today The AQI right now, city by city
Right now the 15 cities Airleaf measures in Guatemala average AQI 66 (moderate). The worst air is in Escuintla, at AQI 123, and the cleanest in Jalapa, at AQI 21.
13% of the 15 measured cities are over AQI 100 today, where the air stops being fine for sensitive groups, and 27% have Good air.
Average right now
AQI 66
Moderate
US EPA index, across 15 cities
- cities measured
- 15
- worst air: Escuintla
- 123
- cleanest air: Jalapa
- 21
- average tree cover
- 39.4%
Updated . Lower is better on the US EPA index: 0–50 is Good, above 300 is Hazardous. Measured by Airleaf.
Guatemala · average AQI 66
Air quality right now in the 8 largest cities in Guatemala
Moderate
Cobán
2 km around Cobán
Air quality now
AQI 28
52.8%
tree cover
Healthy tree cover
Quetzaltenango
2 km around Zona 03
Air quality now
AQI 72
5.8%
tree cover
76.0K more trees would reach 30% tree cover
Jalapa
2 km around Jalapa
Air quality now
AQI 21
16.7%
tree cover
41.8K more trees would reach 30% tree cover
Escuintla
2 km around Clonia Izcuintlan
Air quality now
AQI 123
40.5%
tree cover
Healthy tree cover
Villa Nueva
2 km around Zona 1 de Villa Nueva
Air quality now
AQI 80
19.4%
tree cover
33.3K more trees would reach 30% tree cover
Mixco
2 km around Villa de Mixco
Air quality now
AQI 75
50.4%
tree cover
Healthy tree cover
Jutiapa
2 km around Jutiapa
Air quality now
AQI 32
30.7%
tree cover
Healthy tree cover
Across the country
How clean is the air across Guatemala today?
13% of the 15 measured cities are over AQI 100 today, where the air stops being fine for sensitive groups, and 27% have Good air. Unusually sensitive people should consider limiting long outdoor exertion.
15 measured cities
- Good4 (27%)
- Moderate9 (60%)
- Unhealthy for sensitive groups2 (13%)
Every measured city, including model estimates where no ground station is near.
In aggregate
Guatemala 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 15 of 15 cities measured so far in Guatemala.
- Average air quality
- AQI 66Mean of the latest reading per city
- Average tree cover
- 39.4%5 of 15 below their target
- Trees counted
- 1.8MAcross every measured area
- More trees needed
- 198KTo bring each area to its target
Worst air quality right now
Cleanest air right now
Greenest cities in Guatemala
Least tree cover in Guatemala
Excludes barren and desert sites
Against everywhere else
How does Guatemala compare with other countries?
Right now the cities of Guatemala average cleaner air than 30% of the 171 countries Airleaf has enough cities to average, and more tree cover than 87%.
Cleaner air than…
- Guatemala
- Beats 30%
More tree cover than…
- Guatemala
- Beats 87%
See the most polluted and cleanest air rankings for every country.
Deforestation · 2001–2025
How much forest has Guatemala lost?
Since 2001, Guatemala has lost about 1.93 million hectares of forest (about 19,000 km²): 25% of the forest it had in 2000. Most of it (81%) was deforestation, forest cleared for good, mainly for farms, pasture and plantations.
- Forest lost since 2001
- 1.93 million haabout 19,000 km²
- Share of its forest
- 25%of what there was in 2000
- Cleared for good
- 1.57 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 | 48,800 ha | 4,340 ha | 53,200 ha |
| 2002 | 51,000 ha | 4,110 ha | 55,100 ha |
| 2003 | 95,000 ha | 3,360 ha | 98,400 ha |
| 2004 | 52,100 ha | 4,170 ha | 56,200 ha |
| 2005 | 96,500 ha | 4,200 ha | 101,000 ha |
| 2006 | 48,400 ha | 4,050 ha | 52,500 ha |
| 2007 | 119,000 ha | 7,710 ha | 126,000 ha |
| 2008 | 69,900 ha | 6,570 ha | 76,500 ha |
| 2009 | 77,800 ha | 8,820 ha | 86,600 ha |
| 2010 | 52,700 ha | 6,600 ha | 59,300 ha |
| 2011 | 35,100 ha | 5,170 ha | 40,200 ha |
| 2012 | 71,600 ha | 12,200 ha | 83,700 ha |
| 2013 | 46,200 ha | 8,740 ha | 54,900 ha |
| 2014 | 53,300 ha | 8,360 ha | 61,700 ha |
| 2015 | 47,100 ha | 6,860 ha | 54,000 ha |
| 2016 | 128,000 ha | 49,800 ha | 178,000 ha |
| 2017 | 61,800 ha | 17,500 ha | 79,400 ha |
| 2018 | 54,100 ha | 16,600 ha | 70,700 ha |
| 2019 | 67,600 ha | 22,200 ha | 89,800 ha |
| 2020 | 61,400 ha | 36,500 ha | 97,900 ha |
| 2021 | 37,700 ha | 11,700 ha | 49,400 ha |
| 2022 | 36,300 ha | 9,770 ha | 46,000 ha |
| 2023 | 54,100 ha | 16,400 ha | 70,500 ha |
| 2024 | 68,500 ha | 72,600 ha | 141,000 ha |
| 2025 | 36,200 ha | 15,700 ha | 51,900 ha |
Forest loss is slowing down: about 71,800 hectares a year in 2021–2025, down from 103,000 hectares a year in 2016–2020. The worst year was 2016, when about 178,000 hectares of forest were lost.
What is causing deforestation in Guatemala?
- Farms, pasture and plantationscleared for good80% · 1.55 million ha
- Shifting farmingcan grow back10% · 198,000 ha
- Wildfirescan grow back6.8% · 132,000 ha
Also: logging, towns and roads, storms, floods and other natural causes, mining and energy, 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
Guatemala as a whole
33.1% of Guatemala 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).
Full directory
Every city we track in Guatemala
15 cities, A–Z
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Clean-air buying guides
Cleaner air at home in Guatemala
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 Guatemala: your questions answered
What is the air quality in Guatemala today?
Right now the 15 cities Airleaf measures in Guatemala average AQI 66 (moderate). The worst air is in Escuintla, at AQI 123, and the cleanest in Jalapa, at AQI 21. 13% of the 15 measured cities are over AQI 100 today, where the air stops being fine for sensitive groups, and 27% have Good air.
Which city in Guatemala has the worst air right now?
Escuintla, at AQI 123 (Unhealthy for sensitive groups) on the US EPA index. Sensitive groups should limit long or intense outdoor activity.
Which city in Guatemala has the cleanest air right now?
Jalapa, at AQI 21 (Good). Both lists rank current readings, from ground stations wherever Guatemala has at least three cities with one.
Is the air in Guatemala safe to breathe today?
It depends on the city. 4 cities are Good, 9 cities are Moderate, 2 cities are Unhealthy for sensitive groups. At the national average of AQI 66: Unusually sensitive people should consider limiting long outdoor exertion.
How much forest has Guatemala lost since 2001?
About 1.93 million ha from 2001 to 2025, 25% of the forest it had in 2000, from the University of Maryland's yearly satellite maps of forest loss. 1.57 million ha of it was cleared for good, for farms, mines or towns.
Which city in Guatemala has the most trees?
Chichicastenango, with 74.7% tree cover within 2 km of its center, measured from Sentinel-2 satellite images.
How does Airleaf measure air quality in Guatemala?
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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