Colombo
2 km around Colombo 11
Air quality now
AQI 77
12.1%
tree cover
40.9K more trees would reach 30% tree cover
Asia · air quality report · 7 cities
Sri Lanka air quality today The AQI right now, city by city
Right now the 7 cities Airleaf measures in Sri Lanka average AQI 46 (good). The worst air is in Dehiwala-Mount Lavinia, at AQI 91, and the cleanest in Kalmunai, at AQI 11.
None of the 7 measured cities is over AQI 100 today, and 57% have Good air.
Average right now
AQI 46
Good
US EPA index, across 7 cities
- cities measured
- 7
- worst air: Dehiwala-Mount Lavinia
- 91
- cleanest air: Kalmunai
- 11
- average tree cover
- 37.5%
Updated . Lower is better on the US EPA index: 0–50 is Good, above 300 is Hazardous. Measured by Airleaf.
Sri Lanka · average AQI 46
Air quality right now in all 7 cities in Sri Lanka
Moderate
Jaffna
2 km around Chundikuli
Air quality now
AQI 34
42.0%
tree cover
Healthy tree cover
Negombo
2 km around Negombo
Air quality now
AQI 51
40.7%
tree cover
Healthy tree cover
Kandy
2 km around Kandy
Air quality now
AQI 30
74.4%
tree cover
Healthy tree cover
Trincomalee
2 km around Arunagiri Nagar
Air quality now
AQI 25
39.9%
tree cover
Healthy tree cover
Dehiwala-Mount Lavinia
2 km around Watarappala
Air quality now
AQI 91
29.1%
tree cover
2.4K more trees would reach 30% tree cover
Kalmunai
2 km around Kalmunai Kudy
Air quality now
AQI 11
24.0%
tree cover
12.5K more trees would reach 30% tree cover
Across the country
How clean is the air across Sri Lanka today?
None of the 7 measured cities is over AQI 100 today, and 57% have Good air. Air quality is satisfactory for everyone.
7 measured cities
- Good4 (57%)
- Moderate3 (43%)
Every measured city, including model estimates where no ground station is near.
Against everywhere else
How does Sri Lanka compare with other countries?
Right now the cities of Sri Lanka average cleaner air than 61% of the 171 countries Airleaf has enough cities to average, and more tree cover than 82%.
Cleaner air than…
- Sri Lanka
- Beats 61%
More tree cover than…
- Sri Lanka
- Beats 82%
See the most polluted and cleanest air rankings for every country.
Deforestation · 2001–2025
How much forest has Sri Lanka lost?
Since 2001, Sri Lanka has lost about 250,000 hectares of forest (about 2,500 km²): 6.3% of the forest it had in 2000. Most of it (95%) was deforestation, forest cleared for good, mainly for farms, pasture and plantations.
- Forest lost since 2001
- 250,000 haabout 2,500 km²
- Share of its forest
- 6.3%of what there was in 2000
- Cleared for good
- 237,000 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 | 3,450 ha | 324 ha | 3,780 ha |
| 2002 | 3,120 ha | 318 ha | 3,430 ha |
| 2003 | 2,980 ha | 183 ha | 3,160 ha |
| 2004 | 5,180 ha | 435 ha | 5,610 ha |
| 2005 | 4,180 ha | 497 ha | 4,670 ha |
| 2006 | 7,180 ha | 575 ha | 7,750 ha |
| 2007 | 9,810 ha | 469 ha | 10,300 ha |
| 2008 | 5,900 ha | 604 ha | 6,500 ha |
| 2009 | 13,100 ha | 978 ha | 14,000 ha |
| 2010 | 6,730 ha | 479 ha | 7,210 ha |
| 2011 | 14,100 ha | 640 ha | 14,800 ha |
| 2012 | 13,800 ha | 696 ha | 14,500 ha |
| 2013 | 7,490 ha | 485 ha | 7,980 ha |
| 2014 | 11,700 ha | 750 ha | 12,400 ha |
| 2015 | 7,020 ha | 401 ha | 7,420 ha |
| 2016 | 16,900 ha | 613 ha | 17,500 ha |
| 2017 | 12,600 ha | 543 ha | 13,100 ha |
| 2018 | 12,700 ha | 539 ha | 13,200 ha |
| 2019 | 10,000 ha | 322 ha | 10,300 ha |
| 2020 | 10,900 ha | 400 ha | 11,300 ha |
| 2021 | 12,900 ha | 419 ha | 13,300 ha |
| 2022 | 8,130 ha | 319 ha | 8,450 ha |
| 2023 | 11,500 ha | 312 ha | 11,800 ha |
| 2024 | 11,400 ha | 397 ha | 11,800 ha |
| 2025 | 14,500 ha | 807 ha | 15,300 ha |
Forest loss has stayed about the same: about 12,100 hectares a year in 2021–2025, against 13,100 hectares a year in 2016–2020. The worst year was 2016, when about 17,500 hectares of forest were lost.
What is causing deforestation in Sri Lanka?
- Farms, pasture and plantationscleared for good89% · 223,000 ha
- Towns and roadscleared for good3.9% · 9,700 ha
- Loggingcan grow back3.1% · 7,810 ha
Also: mining and energy, storms, floods and other natural causes, shifting farming, wildfires, 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
Sri Lanka as a whole
34.4% of Sri Lanka 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).
Build your own
Compare Sri Lanka with another country
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Sri Lanka
Clean-air buying guides
Cleaner air at home in Sri Lanka
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 Sri Lanka: your questions answered
What is the air quality in Sri Lanka today?
Right now the 7 cities Airleaf measures in Sri Lanka average AQI 46 (good). The worst air is in Dehiwala-Mount Lavinia, at AQI 91, and the cleanest in Kalmunai, at AQI 11. None of the 7 measured cities is over AQI 100 today, and 57% have Good air.
Which city in Sri Lanka has the worst air right now?
Dehiwala-Mount Lavinia, at AQI 91 (Moderate) on the US EPA index. Unusually sensitive people should consider limiting long outdoor exertion.
Which city in Sri Lanka has the cleanest air right now?
Kalmunai, at AQI 11 (Good). Both lists rank current readings, from ground stations wherever Sri Lanka has at least three cities with one.
Is the air in Sri Lanka safe to breathe today?
It depends on the city. 4 cities are Good, 3 cities are Moderate. At the national average of AQI 46: Air quality is satisfactory for everyone.
How much forest has Sri Lanka lost since 2001?
About 250,000 ha from 2001 to 2025, 6% of the forest it had in 2000, from the University of Maryland's yearly satellite maps of forest loss. 237,000 ha of it was cleared for good, for farms, mines or towns.
How does Airleaf measure air quality in Sri Lanka?
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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