City report · Texas, United States
McAllen Air quality today
Air quality in McAllen currently reads AQI 24 (Good): Air quality is satisfactory for everyone.
Air quality right now
AQI 24
Good
- PM2.5, fine particles (µg/m³)
- 4.4
- tree cover
- 25.1%
- trees in this area
- 78.9K
- more trees needed
- 15.4K
Measured across a 1.2 mi (2 km) radius around McAllen, TX, USA (4.9 sq mi), from a satellite image of Oct 17, 2026. Lower AQI is better: 0–50 is Good, above 300 is Hazardous.
McAllen · AQI 24 (Good)
McAllen's tree count comes to 78,854 trees across 4.9 sq mi (12.57 km²), 5 points below the 30% tree-cover level considered healthy for this area, so roughly 15,394 more trees would close the gap.
Air quality detail
Air quality in McAllen today: AQI 24, Good
Main pollutant: PM2.5 · Observed Nov 11, 08:00 local time via OpenAQ ground stations, US EPA index. Values in µg/m³.
Ground station · Mission C43, 4.1 mi (6.6 km) away
Health signal
Air quality is satisfactory for everyone.
PM2.5
4.4
PM10
12.0
NO₂
—
O₃
39.3
SO₂
—
CO
—
Data: OpenAQ · AirNow
- Outdoor exercise
- A good day to be active outside
- Windows
- Open them to air the house
- Mask
- Not needed
- Air purifier
- Not needed
Over the last 7 days, the CAMS air-quality model put McAllen's daily AQI at 30 on average, from 19 on Nov 6 to an hourly peak of 53 on Nov 7.
Where McAllen stands: the most polluted cities in the world right now · the cleanest
Tree cover detail
Tree cover in McAllen: Below target
25.1% tree cover against a 30% healthy-neighborhood target, across 4.9 sq mi (12.57 km²).
Trees in this area
78,854
Target trees
94,248
More trees needed
15,394
CO₂ if planted / yr
338.7 t
Deforestation · 2001–2025
How much forest has McAllen lost?
Since 2001, the area within 10 km of McAllen has lost about 210 acres (85 hectares) of forest (about 160 football fields): 31% of the forest it had in 2000. Most of it (94%) was deforestation, forest cleared for good, mainly for towns and roads.
2017: satellite photo from October 2017 of a 5 × 5 km area in the city center.
- Forest lost since 2001
- 210 acres (85 ha)about 160 football fields
- Share of its forest
- 31%of what there was in 2000
- Cleared for good
- 198 acres (80 ha)deforestation: turned into farms, mines or towns
The worst year was 2005, when about 26 acres (10 hectares) of forest were lost.
Acres of forest lost each year
Show the figures as a table
| Year | Cleared for good | Can grow back | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2001 | 4 acres (2 ha) | under 1 ha | 4 acres (2 ha) |
| 2002 | 11 acres (4 ha) | under 1 ha | 11 acres (4 ha) |
| 2003 | 12 acres (5 ha) | under 1 ha | 14 acres (6 ha) |
| 2004 | 23 acres (9 ha) | under 1 ha | 23 acres (9 ha) |
| 2005 | 25 acres (10 ha) | under 1 ha | 26 acres (10 ha) |
| 2006 | 11 acres (5 ha) | under 1 ha | 12 acres (5 ha) |
| 2007 | 7 acres (3 ha) | 2 acres (1 ha) | 9 acres (4 ha) |
| 2008 | 12 acres (5 ha) | under 1 ha | 12 acres (5 ha) |
| 2009 | 7 acres (3 ha) | under 1 ha | 8 acres (3 ha) |
| 2010 | 5 acres (2 ha) | under 1 ha | 6 acres (2 ha) |
| 2011 | 5 acres (2 ha) | under 1 ha | 5 acres (2 ha) |
| 2012 | 10 acres (4 ha) | under 1 ha | 12 acres (5 ha) |
| 2013 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2014 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2015 | 6 acres (2 ha) | under 1 ha | 6 acres (2 ha) |
| 2016 | 5 acres (2 ha) | under 1 ha | 5 acres (2 ha) |
| 2017 | 3 acres (1 ha) | under 1 ha | 3 acres (1 ha) |
| 2018 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2019 | 7 acres (3 ha) | under 1 ha | 7 acres (3 ha) |
| 2020 | 20 acres (8 ha) | under 1 ha | 20 acres (8 ha) |
| 2021 | 4 acres (2 ha) | under 1 ha | 4 acres (2 ha) |
| 2022 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2023 | 3 acres (1 ha) | under 1 ha | 3 acres (1 ha) |
| 2024 | 17 acres (7 ha) | under 1 ha | 17 acres (7 ha) |
| 2025 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
What is causing deforestation around McAllen?
- Towns and roadscleared for good64% · 133 acres (54 ha)
- Farms, pasture and plantationscleared for good30% · 64 acres (26 ha)
- Unknown causescause unknown5.8% · 12 acres (5 ha)
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
- 2,310 acres (934 ha)
- Forest in 2020
- 2,440 acres (989 ha)
- Overall change
- +136 acres (55 ha)more forest than in 2000
Comparing satellite maps from 2000 and 2020, the forest around McAllen grew from about 2,310 acres (934 hectares) to 2,440 acres (989 hectares), a net gain of about 136 acres (55 hectares) (+5.9%). New forest grew on about 339 acres (137 hectares), while 203 acres (82 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 McAllen
Same 2 km radius, same index — so they compare directly.
- Reynosa14.8 km
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- Tree cover
- 9%
- Air quality
- 24
- Brownsville80.5 km
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- Tree cover
- 33%
- Air quality
- 57
- Heroica Matamoros81.0 km
Mexico
- Tree cover
- 20%
- Air quality
- 56
- Nuevo Laredo190.6 km
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- Tree cover
- 10%
- Air quality
- 47
- Laredo192.5 km
United States
- Tree cover
- 15%
- Air quality
- 47
- Corpus Christi195.9 km
United States
- Tree cover
- 10%
- Air quality
- 18
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Frequently asked
Questions about McAllen
What is the air quality (AQI) in McAllen right now?
The latest reading for McAllen shows an AQI of 24 (Good), measured Nov 11, 08:00 local time by the Mission C43 ground monitoring station, 4.1 mi (6.6 km) away, via OpenAQ. The main pollutant is PM2.5. Air quality is satisfactory for everyone.
Is it safe to exercise outside in McAllen today?
At AQI 24 (Good): a good day to be active outside. Windows: open them to air the house. Masks: not needed. The reading changes through the day, so check again before a long run or ride.
What has the air quality in McAllen been like this week?
Over the last 7 days, the CAMS air-quality model put McAllen's daily AQI at 30 on average, from 19 on Nov 6 to an hourly peak of 53 on Nov 7. No day averaged above 100, the level where the air turns unhealthy for sensitive groups.
How much forest has the area around McAllen lost since 2001?
Since 2001, the area within 10 km of McAllen has lost about 210 acres (85 hectares) of forest (about 160 football fields): 31% of the forest it had in 2000. Most of it (94%) was deforestation, forest cleared for good, mainly for towns and roads. Comparing satellite maps from 2000 and 2020, the forest around McAllen grew from about 2,310 acres (934 hectares) to 2,440 acres (989 hectares), a net gain of about 136 acres (55 hectares) (+5.9%). New forest grew on about 339 acres (137 hectares), while 203 acres (82 hectares) were lost.
What is the tree count in McAllen?
McAllen has an estimated 78,854 trees across the 4.9 sq mi (12.57 km²) measured — 25.1% tree cover, 5 percentage points short of the 30% tree-cover target set for this area.
How many more trees does McAllen need?
McAllen needs roughly 15,394 more trees to close a 5-point shortfall against its 30% tree-cover target — about 338.7 t of extra CO₂ absorbed per year once grown.
How are McAllen's air quality and tree cover measured?
Air quality is measured by ground monitoring stations near McAllen, 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 McAllen; the tree count is an estimate derived from that cover.
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