City report · Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of the Congo
Kinshasa Air quality today
Air quality in Kinshasa currently reads AQI 121 (Unhealthy for sensitive groups): Sensitive groups should limit long or intense outdoor activity.
AQI 121
Air quality right now
Unhealthy for sensitive groups
- PM2.5, fine particles (µg/m³)
- 43.8
- tree cover
- 1.0%
- trees in this area
- 3.1K
- more trees needed
- 106K
Measured across a 2 km radius around Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of the Congo (12.57 km²), from a satellite image of Sep 15, 2026. Lower AQI is better: 0–50 is Good, above 300 is Hazardous.
Kinshasa · AQI 121 (Unhealthy for sensitive groups)
Kinshasa's tree count comes to 3,129 trees across 12.52 km² of land, 34 points below the 35% tree-cover level considered healthy for this area, so roughly 106,387 more trees would close the gap.
Air quality detail
Air quality in Kinshasa today: AQI 121, Unhealthy for sensitive groups
Main pollutant: PM2.5 · Observed Nov 11, 19:00 local time via OpenAQ ground stations, US EPA index. Values in µg/m³.
Ground station · WASARU / KINAQ Huilleries, 2.1 km away · median of 3 stations
Health signal
Sensitive groups should limit long or intense outdoor activity.
PM2.5
43.8
PM10
—
NO₂
—
O₃
—
SO₂
—
CO
—
Data: OpenAQ · AirGradient, KINAQ Huilleries
- Outdoor exercise
- Children, older adults and people with asthma or heart disease should cut down long or hard exercise
- Windows
- Close them to keep the outside air out
- Mask
- Sensitive groups: an N95 outdoors
- Air purifier
- Run one, especially in bedrooms
Over the last 7 days, the CAMS air-quality model put Kinshasa's daily AQI at 58 on average, from 47 on Nov 7 to an hourly peak of 78 on Nov 9.
Where Kinshasa stands: the most polluted cities in the world right now · the cleanest
Tree cover detail
Tree cover in Kinshasa: Critically low
1.0% tree cover against a 35% healthy-neighborhood target, across 12.52 km² of land.
Trees in this area
3,129
Target trees
109,516
More trees needed
106,387
CO₂ if planted / yr
2,341 t
Deforestation · 2001–2025
How much forest has Kinshasa lost?
Since 2001, the area within 10 km of Kinshasa has lost about 100 hectares of forest (about 140 football pitches): 9.5% of the forest it had in 2000. Most of it (66%) was deforestation, forest cleared for good, mainly for towns and roads.
2017: satellite photo from July 2017 of a 5 × 5 km area about 7 km west of the city center.
- Forest lost since 2001
- 100 haabout 140 football pitches
- Share of its forest
- 9.5%of what there was in 2000
- Cleared for good
- 66 hadeforestation: turned into farms, mines or towns
The worst year was 2023, when about 29 hectares of forest were lost.
Hectares of forest lost each year
Show the figures as a table
| Year | Cleared for good | Can grow back | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2001 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2002 | 2 ha | 2 ha | 3 ha |
| 2003 | 2 ha | 3 ha | 5 ha |
| 2004 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2005 | 2 ha | 6 ha | 7 ha |
| 2006 | under 1 ha | 1 ha | 2 ha |
| 2007 | 2 ha | under 1 ha | 3 ha |
| 2008 | 5 ha | 7 ha | 12 ha |
| 2009 | 2 ha | 2 ha | 4 ha |
| 2010 | 3 ha | 4 ha | 7 ha |
| 2011 | 5 ha | 4 ha | 9 ha |
| 2012 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2013 | 2 ha | 1 ha | 3 ha |
| 2014 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2015 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2016 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2017 | 2 ha | 1 ha | 4 ha |
| 2018 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2019 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2020 | under 1 ha | 2 ha | 2 ha |
| 2021 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2022 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2023 | 29 ha | under 1 ha | 29 ha |
| 2024 | 3 ha | under 1 ha | 3 ha |
| 2025 | 5 ha | under 1 ha | 5 ha |
What is causing deforestation around Kinshasa?
- Towns and roadscleared for good64% · 64 ha
- Storms, floods and other natural causescan grow back26% · 26 ha
- Shifting farmingcan grow back3.2% · 3 ha
Also: farms, pasture and plantations, unknown causes.
Causes for 2025 are estimates, based on what caused forest loss in the same places up to 2024.
Forest gained and lost, 2000–2020
- Forest in 2000
- 1,030 ha
- Forest in 2020
- 762 ha
- Overall change
- −265 haless forest than in 2000
Comparing satellite maps from 2000 and 2020, the forest around Kinshasa shrank from about 1,030 hectares to 762 hectares, a net loss of about 265 hectares (−26%). New forest grew on about 108 hectares, but 373 hectares 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 Kinshasa
Same 2 km radius, same index — so they compare directly.
- Inkisi93.9 km
Democratic Republic of the Congo
- Tree cover
- 16%
- Air quality
- 56
- Mbanza-Ngungu115.1 km
Democratic Republic of the Congo
- Tree cover
- 15%
- Air quality
- 103
- Nkayi225.4 km
Republic of the Congo
- Tree cover
- 11%
- Air quality
- 52
- Mbanza Kongo246.3 km
Angola
- Tree cover
- 19%
- Air quality
- 106
- Bandundu Province255.4 km
Democratic Republic of the Congo
- Tree cover
- 28%
- Air quality
- 46
- Matadi265.0 km
Democratic Republic of the Congo
- Tree cover
- 4%
- Air quality
- 32
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Frequently asked
Questions about Kinshasa
What is the air quality (AQI) in Kinshasa right now?
The latest reading for Kinshasa shows an AQI of 121 (Unhealthy for sensitive groups), measured Nov 11, 19:00 local time by 3 ground monitoring stations via OpenAQ (the median of their readings; the nearest is WASARU / KINAQ Huilleries, 2.1 km away). The main pollutant is PM2.5. Sensitive groups should limit long or intense outdoor activity.
Is it safe to exercise outside in Kinshasa today?
At AQI 121 (Unhealthy for sensitive groups): children, older adults and people with asthma or heart disease should cut down long or hard exercise. Windows: close them to keep the outside air out. Masks: sensitive groups: an N95 outdoors. The reading changes through the day, so check again before a long run or ride.
What has the air quality in Kinshasa been like this week?
Over the last 7 days, the CAMS air-quality model put Kinshasa's daily AQI at 58 on average, from 47 on Nov 7 to an hourly peak of 78 on Nov 9. No day averaged above 100, the level where the air turns unhealthy for sensitive groups.
How much forest has the area around Kinshasa lost since 2001?
Since 2001, the area within 10 km of Kinshasa has lost about 100 hectares of forest (about 140 football pitches): 9.5% of the forest it had in 2000. Most of it (66%) was deforestation, forest cleared for good, mainly for towns and roads. Comparing satellite maps from 2000 and 2020, the forest around Kinshasa shrank from about 1,030 hectares to 762 hectares, a net loss of about 265 hectares (−26%). New forest grew on about 108 hectares, but 373 hectares were lost.
What is the tree count in Kinshasa?
Kinshasa has an estimated 3,129 trees across the 12.52 km² of land measured — 1.0% tree cover, 34 percentage points short of the 35% tree-cover target set for this area.
How many more trees does Kinshasa need?
Kinshasa needs roughly 106,387 more trees to close a 34-point shortfall against its 35% tree-cover target — about 2,341 t of extra CO₂ absorbed per year once grown.
How are Kinshasa's air quality and tree cover measured?
Air quality is measured by ground monitoring stations near Kinshasa, via OpenAQ; the 7-day trend is the Open-Meteo / CAMS model's estimate. 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 Kinshasa; the tree count is an estimate derived from that cover.
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