City report · Alborz Province, Iran
Karaj Air quality today
Air quality in Karaj currently reads AQI 81 (Moderate): Unusually sensitive people should consider limiting long outdoor exertion.
Air quality right now
AQI 81
Moderate
- PM2.5, fine particles (µg/m³)
- 21.4
- tree cover
- 7.3%
- trees in this area
- 22.9K
- more trees needed
- 71.3K
Measured across a 2 km radius around Jahanshahr, Karaj, Alborz Province, Iran (12.57 km²), from a satellite image of Sep 18, 2026. Lower AQI is better: 0–50 is Good, above 300 is Hazardous.
Karaj · AQI 81 (Moderate)
Karaj's tree count comes to 22,934 trees across 12.57 km², 23 points below the 30% tree-cover level considered healthy for this area, so roughly 71,314 more trees would close the gap.
Air quality detail
Air quality in Karaj today: AQI 81, Moderate
Main pollutant: PM2.5 · Observed Nov 11, 10:30 local time via Open-Meteo / CAMS, US EPA index. Values in µg/m³.
Model estimate · no ground station nearby
Health signal
Unusually sensitive people should consider limiting long outdoor exertion.
PM2.5
21.4
PM10
29.0
NO₂
86.7
O₃
25.0
SO₂
44.8
CO
1162.0
- Outdoor exercise
- Fine for most people; unusually sensitive people should take long or hard exercise easier
- Windows
- Fine to open; close them if you are sensitive to pollution
- Mask
- Not needed for most people
- Air purifier
- Worth running if you are sensitive
Over the last 7 days, the CAMS air-quality model put Karaj's daily AQI at 56 on average, from 38 on Nov 8 to an hourly peak of 99 on Nov 5.
Where Karaj stands: the most polluted cities in the world right now · the cleanest
Tree cover detail
Tree cover in Karaj: Critically low
7.3% tree cover against a 30% healthy-neighborhood target, across 12.57 km².
Trees in this area
22,934
Target trees
94,248
More trees needed
71,314
CO₂ if planted / yr
1,569 t
Deforestation · 2001–2025
How much forest has Karaj lost?
There was almost no forest around Karaj in 2000, so there has been almost nothing to lose since. Only fairly dense woodland counts as forest in these maps, so scattered street and garden trees don't show up here.
2017: satellite photo from June 2017 of a 5 × 5 km area in the city center.
Forest gained and lost, 2000–2020
- Forest in 2000
- 207 ha
- Forest in 2020
- 290 ha
- Overall change
- +83 hamore forest than in 2000
Comparing satellite maps from 2000 and 2020, the forest around Karaj grew from about 207 hectares to 290 hectares, a net gain of about 83 hectares (+40%). New forest grew on about 84 hectares, while 1 hectare were lost.
These 2000 and 2020 maps, from the University of Maryland, count any land with trees taller than 5 m as forest, including plantations and orchards. Forest that was cut or burned and had grown back by 2020 counts in both years, so the loss here is smaller than the yearly figures.
These figures cover everything within 10 km of the city center, a wider area than the report above, because forest is usually lost at a city's edges.
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. Forest gained and lost 2000–2020: Potapov et al. 2022, UMD GLAD Global Land Cover and Land Use Change, CC BY 4.0. Images: contains modified Copernicus Sentinel data. How it's measured
In the same region
Measured cities near Karaj
Same 2 km radius, same index — so they compare directly.
- Qods16.3 km
Iran
- Tree cover
- 4%
- Air quality
- 177
- Shahrīār20.2 km
Iran
- Tree cover
- 34%
- Air quality
- 193
- Naz̧arābād37.2 km
Iran
- Tree cover
- 3%
- Air quality
- 85
- Eslamshahr38.2 km
Iran
- Tree cover
- 2%
- Air quality
- 168
- Robāţ Karīm39.6 km
Iran
- Tree cover
- 2%
- Air quality
- 107
Also compared:Karaj vs MashhadKaraj vs IsfahanKaraj vs Tabriz
Build your own
Compare Karaj with anywhere
This place
Karaj
Use this data
Put Karaj's numbers on your site
Free to embed. Updates itself as the measurement refreshes.
Frequently asked
Questions about Karaj
What is the air quality (AQI) in Karaj right now?
The latest reading for Karaj shows an AQI of 81 (Moderate), observed Nov 11, 10:30 local time via Open-Meteo / CAMS, US EPA index. The main pollutant is PM2.5. Unusually sensitive people should consider limiting long outdoor exertion.
Is it safe to exercise outside in Karaj today?
At AQI 81 (Moderate): fine for most people; unusually sensitive people should take long or hard exercise easier. Windows: fine to open; close them if you are sensitive to pollution. Masks: not needed for most people. The reading changes through the day, so check again before a long run or ride.
What has the air quality in Karaj been like this week?
Over the last 7 days, the CAMS air-quality model put Karaj's daily AQI at 56 on average, from 38 on Nov 8 to an hourly peak of 99 on Nov 5. No day averaged above 100, the level where the air turns unhealthy for sensitive groups.
How much forest has the area around Karaj lost since 2001?
There was almost no forest around Karaj in 2000, so there has been almost nothing to lose since. Only fairly dense woodland counts as forest in these maps, so scattered street and garden trees don't show up here. Comparing satellite maps from 2000 and 2020, the forest around Karaj grew from about 207 hectares to 290 hectares, a net gain of about 83 hectares (+40%). New forest grew on about 84 hectares, while 1 hectare were lost.
What is the tree count in Karaj?
Karaj has an estimated 22,934 trees across the 12.57 km² measured — 7.3% tree cover, 23 percentage points short of the 30% tree-cover target set for this area.
How many more trees does Karaj need?
Karaj needs roughly 71,314 more trees to close a 23-point shortfall against its 30% tree-cover target — about 1,569 t of extra CO₂ absorbed per year once grown.
How are Karaj's air quality and tree cover measured?
Air quality comes from ground monitoring stations via OpenAQ where one reports nearby, and otherwise, as here, from the Open-Meteo / CAMS model, which may differ from street-level monitors. Tree cover is measured from Sentinel-2 L2A (ESA Copernicus) via Earth Search satellite imagery at 10 m detail across a 2 km radius around Jahanshahr; the tree count is an estimate derived from that cover.
See your own area
What does your neighborhood look like?
Pick any point and radius to get the same air-quality and tree-cover breakdown.
Check my address