City report · North Sumatra, Indonesia
Medan Air quality today
Air quality in Medan currently reads AQI 128 (Unhealthy for sensitive groups): Sensitive groups should limit long or intense outdoor activity.
Air quality right now
AQI 128
Unhealthy for sensitive groups
- PM2.5, fine particles (µg/m³)
- 46.5
- tree cover
- 15.7%
- trees in this area
- 49.3K
- more trees needed
- 60.6K
Measured across a 2 km radius around Medan, Medan City, North Sumatra, Indonesia (12.57 km²), from a satellite image of Sep 9, 2026. Lower AQI is better: 0–50 is Good, above 300 is Hazardous.
Medan · AQI 128 (Unhealthy for sensitive groups)
Medan's tree count comes to 49,323 trees across 12.57 km², 19 points below the 35% tree-cover level considered healthy for this area, so roughly 60,633 more trees would close the gap.
Air quality detail
Air quality in Medan today: AQI 128, Unhealthy for sensitive groups
Main pollutant: PM2.5 · Observed Nov 11, 21:00 local time via World Air Quality Index Project ground stations, US EPA index. Values in µg/m³.
Ground station · Medan, Indonesia, 20.4 km away
Health signal
Sensitive groups should limit long or intense outdoor activity.
PM2.5
46.5
PM10
—
NO₂
—
O₃
—
SO₂
—
CO
—
Data: World Air Quality Index Project, BMKG | Badan Meteorologi, Klimatologi dan Geofisika
- 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 Medan's daily AQI at 97 on average, from 79 on Nov 11 to an hourly peak of 179 on Nov 6.
This is the US EPA AQI. How it differs from Indonesia's ISPU
Where Medan stands: the most polluted cities in the world right now · the cleanest
Tree cover detail
Tree cover in Medan: Critically low
15.7% tree cover against a 35% healthy-neighborhood target, across 12.57 km².
Trees in this area
49,323
Target trees
109,956
More trees needed
60,633
CO₂ if planted / yr
1,334 t
Deforestation · 2001–2025
How much forest has Medan lost?
Since 2001, the area within 10 km of Medan has lost about 505 hectares of forest (about 710 football pitches): 22% of the forest it had in 2000. Most of it (99%) was deforestation, forest cleared for good, mainly for farms, pasture and plantations.
2021: satellite photo from February 2021 of a 5 × 5 km area about 7 km northeast of the city center.
- Forest lost since 2001
- 505 haabout 710 football pitches
- Share of its forest
- 22%of what there was in 2000
- Cleared for good
- 499 hadeforestation: turned into farms, mines or towns
The worst year was 2014, when about 149 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 | 8 ha | under 1 ha | 8 ha |
| 2002 | 5 ha | under 1 ha | 5 ha |
| 2003 | 12 ha | under 1 ha | 13 ha |
| 2004 | 9 ha | under 1 ha | 9 ha |
| 2005 | 8 ha | under 1 ha | 9 ha |
| 2006 | 7 ha | under 1 ha | 7 ha |
| 2007 | 20 ha | under 1 ha | 20 ha |
| 2008 | 10 ha | under 1 ha | 10 ha |
| 2009 | 20 ha | under 1 ha | 20 ha |
| 2010 | 35 ha | under 1 ha | 35 ha |
| 2011 | 8 ha | under 1 ha | 8 ha |
| 2012 | 38 ha | 1 ha | 40 ha |
| 2013 | 13 ha | under 1 ha | 13 ha |
| 2014 | 149 ha | under 1 ha | 149 ha |
| 2015 | 23 ha | under 1 ha | 23 ha |
| 2016 | 23 ha | under 1 ha | 23 ha |
| 2017 | 7 ha | under 1 ha | 7 ha |
| 2018 | 20 ha | under 1 ha | 20 ha |
| 2019 | 8 ha | under 1 ha | 8 ha |
| 2020 | 11 ha | under 1 ha | 11 ha |
| 2021 | 18 ha | under 1 ha | 18 ha |
| 2022 | 17 ha | under 1 ha | 17 ha |
| 2023 | 9 ha | under 1 ha | 9 ha |
| 2024 | 9 ha | under 1 ha | 9 ha |
| 2025 | 13 ha | 1 ha | 14 ha |
What is causing deforestation around Medan?
- Farms, pasture and plantationscleared for good50% · 251 ha
- Towns and roadscleared for good49% · 247 ha
- Unknown causescause unknown1.4% · 7 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
- 9,050 ha
- Forest in 2020
- 9,260 ha
- Overall change
- +212 hamore forest than in 2000
Comparing satellite maps from 2000 and 2020, the forest around Medan grew from about 9,050 hectares to 9,260 hectares, a net gain of about 212 hectares (+2.3%). New forest grew on about 967 hectares, while 754 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 Medan
Same 2 km radius, same index — so they compare directly.
- Binjai20.2 km
Indonesia
- Tree cover
- 50%
- Air quality
- 53
- Belawan21.4 km
Indonesia
- Tree cover
- 38%
- Air quality
- 113
- Percut22.4 km
Indonesia
- Tree cover
- 30%
- Air quality
- 128
- Perbaungan32.2 km
Indonesia
- Tree cover
- 54%
- Air quality
- 128
- Tebingtinggi61.9 km
Indonesia
- Tree cover
- 35%
- Air quality
- 52
- Pematangsiantar82.5 km
Indonesia
- Tree cover
- 24%
- Air quality
- 35
Also compared:Medan vs JakartaMedan vs SurabayaMedan vs BandungMedan vs Palembang
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Frequently asked
Questions about Medan
What is the air quality (AQI) in Medan right now?
The latest reading for Medan shows an AQI of 128 (Unhealthy for sensitive groups), measured Nov 11, 21:00 local time by the Medan, Indonesia ground monitoring station, 20.4 km away, via OpenAQ. The main pollutant is PM2.5. Sensitive groups should limit long or intense outdoor activity.
Is it safe to exercise outside in Medan today?
At AQI 128 (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 Medan been like this week?
Over the last 7 days, the CAMS air-quality model put Medan's daily AQI at 97 on average, from 79 on Nov 11 to an hourly peak of 179 on Nov 6. On 4 of those days the average was above 100, unhealthy for sensitive groups.
Is Medan's AQI the same as Indonesia's ISPU?
No. Airleaf shows the US EPA Air Quality Index (AQI), the scale used by IQAir and most air-quality apps. Indonesia's official index is the ISPU (Indeks Standar Pencemar Udara), published by the environment ministry from its own monitoring stations. Its bands are 0–50 Baik (good), 51–100 Sedang (moderate), 101–200 Tidak Sehat (unhealthy), 201–300 Sangat Tidak Sehat (very unhealthy) and over 300 Berbahaya (hazardous). The two indexes use different breakpoints and averaging times, so the same air can score differently on each.
How much forest has the area around Medan lost since 2001?
Since 2001, the area within 10 km of Medan has lost about 505 hectares of forest (about 710 football pitches): 22% of the forest it had in 2000. Most of it (99%) was deforestation, forest cleared for good, mainly for farms, pasture and plantations. Comparing satellite maps from 2000 and 2020, the forest around Medan grew from about 9,050 hectares to 9,260 hectares, a net gain of about 212 hectares (+2.3%). New forest grew on about 967 hectares, while 754 hectares were lost.
What is the tree count in Medan?
Medan has an estimated 49,323 trees across the 12.57 km² measured — 15.7% tree cover, 19 percentage points short of the 35% tree-cover target set for this area.
How many more trees does Medan need?
Medan needs roughly 60,633 more trees to close a 19-point shortfall against its 35% tree-cover target — about 1,334 t of extra CO₂ absorbed per year once grown.
How are Medan's air quality and tree cover measured?
Air quality is measured by ground monitoring stations near Medan, 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 Medan; the tree count is an estimate derived from that cover.
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