City report · Pyongyang, North Korea
Pyongyang Air quality today
Air quality in Pyongyang currently reads AQI 80 (Moderate): Unusually sensitive people should consider limiting long outdoor exertion.
AQI 80
Air quality right now
Moderate
- PM2.5, fine particles (µg/m³)
- 25.8
- tree cover
- 24.3%
- trees in this area
- 65.3K
- more trees needed
- 15.3K
Measured across a 2 km radius around Pyongyang, North Korea (12.57 km²), from a satellite image of Sep 18, 2026. Lower AQI is better: 0–50 is Good, above 300 is Hazardous.
Pyongyang · AQI 80 (Moderate)
Pyongyang's tree count comes to 65,348 trees across 10.76 km² of land, 6 points below the 30% tree-cover level considered healthy for this area, so roughly 15,328 more trees would close the gap.
Air quality detail
Air quality in Pyongyang today: AQI 80, Moderate
Main pollutant: PM2.5 · Observed Nov 11, 19:00 local time via Open-Meteo / CAMS, corrected with 5 ground-station cities within 185 km, US EPA index. Values in µg/m³.
Estimate · model corrected with 5 station cities within 185 km, e.g. Kaesŏng and Sinuiju
Health signal
Unusually sensitive people should consider limiting long outdoor exertion.
PM2.5
25.8
PM10
32.1
NO₂
16.7
O₃
40.0
SO₂
13.6
CO
651.0
- 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 Pyongyang's daily AQI at 65 on average, from 38 on Nov 8 to an hourly peak of 152 on Nov 11.
Where Pyongyang stands: the most polluted cities in the world right now · the cleanest
Tree cover detail
Tree cover in Pyongyang: Below target
24.3% tree cover against a 30% healthy-neighborhood target, across 10.76 km² of land.
Trees in this area
65,348
Target trees
80,676
More trees needed
15,328
CO₂ if planted / yr
337.2 t
Deforestation · 2001–2025
How much forest has Pyongyang lost?
Since 2001, the area within 10 km of Pyongyang has lost about 22 hectares of forest (about 30 football pitches): 7.8% of the forest it had in 2000. The biggest cause was logging (48%), after which forest can grow back. About 4 hectares (17%) was deforestation: forest cleared for good for farms, mines or towns.
2017: satellite photo from July 2017 of a 5 × 5 km area in the city center.
- Forest lost since 2001
- 22 haabout 30 football pitches
- Share of its forest
- 7.8%of what there was in 2000
- Cleared for good
- 4 hadeforestation: turned into farms, mines or towns
The worst year was 2006, when about 13 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 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2003 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2004 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2005 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2006 | 1 ha | 12 ha | 13 ha |
| 2007 | 1 ha | 2 ha | 3 ha |
| 2008 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2009 | under 1 ha | 1 ha | 2 ha |
| 2010 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 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 Pyongyang?
- Loggingcan grow back48% · 10 ha
- Wildfirescan grow back29% · 6 ha
- Towns and roadscleared for good16% · 4 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
- 1,690 ha
- Forest in 2020
- 1,890 ha
- Overall change
- +195 hamore forest than in 2000
Comparing satellite maps from 2000 and 2020, the forest around Pyongyang grew from about 1,690 hectares to 1,890 hectares, a net gain of about 195 hectares (+12%). New forest grew on about 233 hectares, while 39 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 Pyongyang
Same 2 km radius, same index — so they compare directly.
- Kangsŏn18.5 km
North Korea
- Tree cover
- 33%
- Air quality
- 72
- P’yŏngsŏng25.7 km
North Korea
- Tree cover
- 31%
- Air quality
- 139
- Songnim-ni31.6 km
North Korea
- Tree cover
- 23%
- Air quality
- 52
- Paek'ak49.4 km
North Korea
- Tree cover
- 5%
- Air quality
- 97
Also compared:Pyongyang vs HamhŭngPyongyang vs Kaesŏng
Build your own
Compare Pyongyang with anywhere
This place
Pyongyang
Use this data
Put Pyongyang's numbers on your site
Free to embed. Updates itself as the measurement refreshes.
Frequently asked
Questions about Pyongyang
What is the air quality (AQI) in Pyongyang right now?
The latest reading for Pyongyang shows an AQI of 80 (Moderate), observed Nov 11, 19:00 local time via Open-Meteo / CAMS, corrected with 5 ground-station cities within 185 km, 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 Pyongyang today?
At AQI 80 (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 Pyongyang been like this week?
Over the last 7 days, the CAMS air-quality model put Pyongyang's daily AQI at 65 on average, from 38 on Nov 8 to an hourly peak of 152 on Nov 11. On 1 of those days the average was above 100, unhealthy for sensitive groups.
How much forest has the area around Pyongyang lost since 2001?
Since 2001, the area within 10 km of Pyongyang has lost about 22 hectares of forest (about 30 football pitches): 7.8% of the forest it had in 2000. The biggest cause was logging (48%), after which forest can grow back. About 4 hectares (17%) was deforestation: forest cleared for good for farms, mines or towns. Comparing satellite maps from 2000 and 2020, the forest around Pyongyang grew from about 1,690 hectares to 1,890 hectares, a net gain of about 195 hectares (+12%). New forest grew on about 233 hectares, while 39 hectares were lost.
What is the tree count in Pyongyang?
Pyongyang has an estimated 65,348 trees across the 10.76 km² of land measured — 24.3% tree cover, 6 percentage points short of the 30% tree-cover target set for this area.
How many more trees does Pyongyang need?
Pyongyang needs roughly 15,328 more trees to close a 6-point shortfall against its 30% tree-cover target — about 337.2 t of extra CO₂ absorbed per year once grown.
How are Pyongyang'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 Pyongyang; 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