Montevideo
2 km around Centro
Air quality now
AQI 9
12.0%
tree cover
43.4K more trees would reach 30% tree cover
South America · air quality report · 5 cities
Uruguay air quality today The AQI right now, city by city
Right now the 5 cities Airleaf measures in Uruguay average AQI 26 (good). The worst air is in Rivera, at AQI 51, and the cleanest in Montevideo, at AQI 9.
None of the 5 measured cities is over AQI 100 today, and 80% have Good air.
Average right now
AQI 26
Good
US EPA index, across 5 cities
- cities measured
- 5
- worst air: Rivera
- 51
- cleanest air: Montevideo
- 9
- average tree cover
- 24.4%
Updated . Lower is better on the US EPA index: 0–50 is Good, above 300 is Hazardous. Measured by Airleaf.
Uruguay · average AQI 26
Air quality right now in all 5 cities in Uruguay
Good
Salto
2 km around Centro
Air quality now
AQI 36
35.5%
tree cover
Healthy tree cover
Maldonado
2 km around Maldonado
Air quality now
AQI 16
17.4%
tree cover
39.6K more trees would reach 30% tree cover
Rivera
2 km around Lavalleja
Air quality now
AQI 51
41.9%
tree cover
Healthy tree cover
Paysandú
2 km around 60000 Paysandú
Air quality now
AQI 16
15.1%
tree cover
46.4K more trees would reach 30% tree cover
Across the country
How clean is the air across Uruguay today?
None of the 5 measured cities is over AQI 100 today, and 80% have Good air. Air quality is satisfactory for everyone.
5 measured cities
- Good4 (80%)
- Moderate1 (20%)
Every measured city, including model estimates where no ground station is near.
Against everywhere else
How does Uruguay compare with other countries?
Right now the cities of Uruguay average cleaner air than 91% of the 171 countries Airleaf has enough cities to average, and more tree cover than 51%.
Cleaner air than…
- Uruguay
- Beats 91%
More tree cover than…
- Uruguay
- Beats 51%
See the most polluted and cleanest air rankings for every country.
Deforestation · 2001–2025
How much forest has Uruguay lost?
Since 2001, Uruguay has lost about 444,000 hectares of forest (about 4,400 km²): 27% of the forest it had in 2000. Most of it was lost to logging, so much of it can grow back. About 42,800 hectares (9.6%) was deforestation: forest cleared for good for farms, mines or towns.
- Forest lost since 2001
- 444,000 haabout 4,400 km²
- Share of its forest
- 27%of what there was in 2000
- Cleared for good
- 42,800 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 | 1,190 ha | 6,370 ha | 7,560 ha |
| 2002 | 904 ha | 5,910 ha | 6,820 ha |
| 2003 | 1,210 ha | 9,300 ha | 10,500 ha |
| 2004 | 1,800 ha | 13,200 ha | 15,000 ha |
| 2005 | 1,780 ha | 14,000 ha | 15,700 ha |
| 2006 | 2,110 ha | 18,700 ha | 20,800 ha |
| 2007 | 2,080 ha | 19,200 ha | 21,300 ha |
| 2008 | 2,590 ha | 20,800 ha | 23,400 ha |
| 2009 | 2,390 ha | 16,700 ha | 19,000 ha |
| 2010 | 1,310 ha | 16,300 ha | 17,600 ha |
| 2011 | 2,950 ha | 24,800 ha | 27,800 ha |
| 2012 | 4,200 ha | 27,000 ha | 31,200 ha |
| 2013 | 2,060 ha | 16,900 ha | 18,900 ha |
| 2014 | 2,670 ha | 22,900 ha | 25,600 ha |
| 2015 | 867 ha | 16,600 ha | 17,400 ha |
| 2016 | 2,200 ha | 21,300 ha | 23,500 ha |
| 2017 | 1,900 ha | 19,600 ha | 21,500 ha |
| 2018 | 797 ha | 18,500 ha | 19,300 ha |
| 2019 | 582 ha | 13,800 ha | 14,400 ha |
| 2020 | 485 ha | 12,100 ha | 12,600 ha |
| 2021 | 1,070 ha | 15,800 ha | 16,900 ha |
| 2022 | 1,600 ha | 14,100 ha | 15,700 ha |
| 2023 | 2,260 ha | 18,400 ha | 20,600 ha |
| 2024 | 1,090 ha | 10,300 ha | 11,300 ha |
| 2025 | 664 ha | 8,620 ha | 9,280 ha |
Forest loss has stayed about the same: about 14,800 hectares a year in 2021–2025, against 18,200 hectares a year in 2016–2020. The worst year was 2012, when about 31,200 hectares of forest were lost.
What is causing deforestation in Uruguay?
- Loggingcan grow back88% · 392,000 ha
- Farms, pasture and plantationscleared for good9.2% · 40,700 ha
- Unknown causescause unknown1.4% · 6,000 ha
Also: storms, floods and other natural causes, towns and roads, wildfires, mining and energy.
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
Uruguay as a whole
11.5% of Uruguay was forested as of 2024, against a 30% benchmark. Closing that gap nationally would take roughly 3.2B trees across 3.2M hectares. Source: World Bank (FAO).
Build your own
Compare Uruguay with another country
This place
Uruguay
Clean-air buying guides
Cleaner air at home in Uruguay
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 Uruguay: your questions answered
What is the air quality in Uruguay today?
Right now the 5 cities Airleaf measures in Uruguay average AQI 26 (good). The worst air is in Rivera, at AQI 51, and the cleanest in Montevideo, at AQI 9. None of the 5 measured cities is over AQI 100 today, and 80% have Good air.
Which city in Uruguay has the worst air right now?
Rivera, at AQI 51 (Moderate) on the US EPA index. Unusually sensitive people should consider limiting long outdoor exertion.
Which city in Uruguay has the cleanest air right now?
Montevideo, at AQI 9 (Good). Both lists rank current readings, from ground stations wherever Uruguay has at least three cities with one.
Is the air in Uruguay safe to breathe today?
It depends on the city. 4 cities are Good, 1 city is Moderate. At the national average of AQI 26: Air quality is satisfactory for everyone.
How much forest has Uruguay lost since 2001?
About 444,000 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. 42,800 ha of it was cleared for good, for farms, mines or towns.
How does Airleaf measure air quality in Uruguay?
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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