Skip to content
Airleaf
Shop
Air quality now: Benguela

Angola · Benguela · 5 cities

Air quality in Benguela today The AQI right now, city by city

Right now, Balombo has the cleanest air of the 5 cities we track in Benguela (AQI 30, Good), and Lobito the worst (AQI 56, Moderate). Balombo has the most tree cover, at 15.6% — #13 of 35 cities measured in Angola.

Every city is measured the same way, over the same 2 km around its center: the air quality right now, from ground stations where there are any, and its tree cover.

AQI 49

Average right now

Good

US EPA index, across 5 cities
cities tracked
5
average tree cover
6.6%
Angola: 11.5%
worst air now: Lobito
56
cleanest air now: Balombo
30

Lower is better on the US EPA index: 0–50 is Good, above 300 is Hazardous. Measured by Airleaf, refreshed hourly.

Benguela · average AQI 49

Air quality today across Benguela, city by city

Current air quality and tree cover for cities in Benguela, Angola
Benguela56Moderate6.8%52.8K#23 of 35
Lobito56Moderate3.2%62.4K#28 of 35
Bocoio49Good7.1%71.9K#22 of 35
Balombo30Good15.6%45.2K#13 of 35
Baía Farta55Moderate0.3%39.4K#34 of 35

Air quality is the US AQI from ground monitoring stations via OpenAQ where available, otherwise the Open-Meteo / CAMS model, refreshed hourly. Tree cover is measured within 2 km of each city center from Sentinel-2 imagery; the rank compares every city measured in Angola.

Deforestation · 2001–2025

How much forest has Benguela lost?

Since 2001, Benguela has lost about 171,000 hectares of forest (about 240,000 football pitches): 18% of the forest it had in 2000. Most of it (97%) was deforestation, forest cleared for good, mainly for farms, pasture and plantations.

Forest lost since 2001
171,000 haabout 240,000 football pitches
Share of its forest
18%of what there was in 2000
Cleared for good
166,000 hadeforestation: turned into farms, mines or towns
Forest lost each year in Benguela, 2001–2025

Hectares of forest lost each year

Forest lost each year in Benguela, 2001–2025. Use the left and right arrow keys to read each year.22.7K

Show the figures as a table
Forest lost each year in Benguela, 2001–2025
YearCleared for goodCan grow backTotal
20011,180 ha31 ha1,220 ha
2002675 ha21 ha696 ha
20033,230 ha57 ha3,290 ha
20042,420 ha23 ha2,450 ha
20052,630 ha57 ha2,690 ha
20061,320 ha8 ha1,330 ha
20077,470 ha101 ha7,570 ha
20081,280 ha15 ha1,300 ha
20095,450 ha231 ha5,680 ha
20102,700 ha70 ha2,770 ha
201122,500 ha219 ha22,700 ha
201215,200 ha327 ha15,500 ha
20135,590 ha327 ha5,910 ha
20146,180 ha245 ha6,430 ha
20155,530 ha154 ha5,690 ha
20167,050 ha208 ha7,260 ha
201711,400 ha394 ha11,800 ha
20186,410 ha276 ha6,680 ha
20195,410 ha262 ha5,680 ha
20208,900 ha209 ha9,110 ha
20217,540 ha310 ha7,850 ha
20226,180 ha240 ha6,420 ha
20237,170 ha376 ha7,550 ha
202410,900 ha510 ha11,400 ha
202511,200 ha825 ha12,100 ha

Forest loss has stayed about the same: about 9,060 hectares a year in 2021–2025, against 8,110 hectares a year in 2016–2020. The worst year was 2011, when about 22,700 hectares of forest were lost.

What is causing deforestation in Benguela?

  • Farms, pasture and plantationscleared for good97% · 165,000 ha
  • Shifting farmingcan grow back2.4% · 4,090 ha

Also: logging, towns and roads, wildfires, storms, floods and other natural causes, mining and energy, unknown causes.

Causes for 2025 are estimates, based on what caused forest loss in the same places up to 2024.

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. How it's measured

Other regions in Angola

BengoBíeCabindaCuanza NorteCubangoCuneneHuamboHuílaKwanza SulLuandaLuanda NorteLunda SulMalanjeMoxicoNamibeUígeZaire

Clean-air buying guides

Cleaner air at home in Benguela

Picked by tested clean-air delivery rate (CADR), noise and running cost, from independent test labels. No brand pays to be listed.

All buying guides

Your own street

Check any address in Benguela, not just the big cities.

Open the map