City report · England, United Kingdom
Manchester Air quality today
Air quality in Manchester currently reads AQI 53 (Moderate): Unusually sensitive people should consider limiting long outdoor exertion.
Air quality right now
AQI 53
Moderate
- PM2.5, fine particles (µg/m³)
- 10.0
- tree cover
- 13.3%
- trees in this area
- 41.6K
- more trees needed
- 52.3K
Measured across a 1.2 mi (2 km) radius around Central Retail District, Manchester, UK (4.9 sq mi), from a satellite image of Jul 12, 2026. Lower AQI is better: 0–50 is Good, above 300 is Hazardous.
Manchester · AQI 53 (Moderate)
Manchester's tree count comes to 41,616 trees across 4.8 sq mi (12.52 km²) of land, 17 points below the 30% tree-cover level considered healthy for this area, so roughly 52,255 more trees would close the gap.
Air quality detail
Air quality in Manchester today: AQI 53, Moderate
Main pollutant: PM2.5 · Observed Nov 11, 15:00 local time via OpenAQ ground stations, US EPA index. Values in µg/m³.
Ground station · Salford Eccles, 3.8 mi (6.1 km) away
Health signal
Unusually sensitive people should consider limiting long outdoor exertion.
PM2.5
10.0
PM10
14.0
NO₂
23.0
O₃
—
SO₂
—
CO
—
Data: OpenAQ · DEFRA
- 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 Manchester's daily AQI at 64 on average, from 31 on Nov 5 to an hourly peak of 98 on Nov 7.
This is the US EPA AQI. How it differs from the UK's Daily Air Quality Index
Where Manchester stands: the most polluted cities in the world right now · the cleanest
Tree cover detail
Tree cover in Manchester: Critically low
13.3% tree cover against a 30% healthy-neighborhood target, across 4.8 sq mi (12.52 km²) of land.
Trees in this area
41,616
Target trees
93,871
More trees needed
52,255
CO₂ if planted / yr
1,150 t
Deforestation · 2001–2025
How much forest has Manchester lost?
Since 2001, the area within 10 km of Manchester has lost about 26 hectares of forest (about 36 football pitches): under 1% of the forest it had in 2000. The biggest cause was towns and roads (34%). About 10 hectares (40%) was deforestation: forest cleared for good for farms, mines or towns.
2018: satellite photo from June 2018 of a 5 × 5 km area in the city center.
- Forest lost since 2001
- 26 haabout 36 football pitches
- Share of its forest
- under 1%of what there was in 2000
- Cleared for good
- 10 hadeforestation: turned into farms, mines or towns
The worst year was 2010, when about 5 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 | 1 ha | 2 ha | 3 ha |
| 2002 | 1 ha | 1 ha | 3 ha |
| 2003 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2004 | 1 ha | 1 ha | 2 ha |
| 2005 | 2 ha | 2 ha | 3 ha |
| 2006 | under 1 ha | 1 ha | 2 ha |
| 2007 | under 1 ha | 2 ha | 2 ha |
| 2008 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | 1 ha |
| 2009 | 1 ha | 1 ha | 3 ha |
| 2010 | 1 ha | 4 ha | 5 ha |
| 2011 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2012 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2013 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 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 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 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 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2021 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2022 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2023 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2024 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2025 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
What is causing deforestation around Manchester?
- Towns and roadscleared for good34% · 9 ha
- Farms, pasture and plantationscleared for good5.8% · 2 ha
- Loggingcan grow back1.9% · under 1 ha
Also: 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
- 2,120 ha
- Forest in 2020
- 2,570 ha
- Overall change
- +453 hamore forest than in 2000
Comparing satellite maps from 2000 and 2020, the forest around Manchester grew from about 2,120 hectares to 2,570 hectares, a net gain of about 453 hectares (+21%). New forest grew on about 510 hectares, while 58 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 Manchester
Same 2 km radius, same index — so they compare directly.
- Bolton17.0 km
United Kingdom
- Tree cover
- 28%
- Air quality
- 39
- Warrington24.4 km
United Kingdom
- Tree cover
- 25%
- Air quality
- 25
- Wigan27.0 km
United Kingdom
- Tree cover
- 31%
- Air quality
- 25
- St Helens32.7 km
United Kingdom
- Tree cover
- 31%
- Air quality
- 25
- Blackburn33.9 km
United Kingdom
- Tree cover
- 29%
- Air quality
- 64
- Burnley35.5 km
United Kingdom
- Tree cover
- 35%
- Air quality
- 67
Also compared:Manchester vs LondonManchester vs BirminghamManchester vs GlasgowManchester vs Sheffield
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Frequently asked
Questions about Manchester
What is the air quality (AQI) in Manchester right now?
The latest reading for Manchester shows an AQI of 53 (Moderate), measured Nov 11, 15:00 local time by the Salford Eccles ground monitoring station, 3.8 mi (6.1 km) away, via OpenAQ. The main pollutant is PM2.5. Unusually sensitive people should consider limiting long outdoor exertion.
Is it safe to exercise outside in Manchester today?
At AQI 53 (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 Manchester been like this week?
Over the last 7 days, the CAMS air-quality model put Manchester's daily AQI at 64 on average, from 31 on Nov 5 to an hourly peak of 98 on Nov 7. No day averaged above 100, the level where the air turns unhealthy for sensitive groups.
Is Manchester's AQI the same as the UK's Daily Air Quality Index?
No. Airleaf shows the US EPA Air Quality Index (AQI), the scale used by IQAir and most air-quality apps. The UK's Daily Air Quality Index (DAQI), published by Defra, runs from 1 to 10: 1–3 low, 4–6 moderate, 7–9 high and 10 very high. It is a different scale altogether, so a US AQI figure can't be read on it directly; both, though, are built from the same main pollutants, with fine particles (PM2.5) usually the one that decides the reading.
How much forest has the area around Manchester lost since 2001?
Since 2001, the area within 10 km of Manchester has lost about 26 hectares of forest (about 36 football pitches): under 1% of the forest it had in 2000. The biggest cause was towns and roads (34%). About 10 hectares (40%) was deforestation: forest cleared for good for farms, mines or towns. Comparing satellite maps from 2000 and 2020, the forest around Manchester grew from about 2,120 hectares to 2,570 hectares, a net gain of about 453 hectares (+21%). New forest grew on about 510 hectares, while 58 hectares were lost.
What is the tree count in Manchester?
Manchester has an estimated 41,616 trees across the 4.8 sq mi (12.52 km²) of land measured — 13.3% tree cover, 17 percentage points short of the 30% tree-cover target set for this area.
How many more trees does Manchester need?
Manchester needs roughly 52,255 more trees to close a 17-point shortfall against its 30% tree-cover target — about 1,150 t of extra CO₂ absorbed per year once grown.
How are Manchester's air quality and tree cover measured?
Air quality is measured by ground monitoring stations near Central Retail District, 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 1.2 mi (2 km) radius around Central Retail District; the tree count is an estimate derived from that cover.
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