City report · Arizona, United States
Surprise Air quality today
Air quality in Surprise currently reads AQI 82 (Moderate): Unusually sensitive people should consider limiting long outdoor exertion.
Air quality right now
AQI 82
Moderate
- PM2.5, fine particles (µg/m³)
- 25.5
- tree cover
- 1.9%
- trees in this area
- 6.0K
- more trees needed
- 88.3K
Measured across a 1.2 mi (2 km) radius around Surprise Original Townsite, Surprise, AZ, USA (4.9 sq mi), from a satellite image of Sep 13, 2026. Lower AQI is better: 0–50 is Good, above 300 is Hazardous.
Surprise · AQI 82 (Moderate)
Surprise's tree count comes to 5,969 trees across 4.9 sq mi (12.57 km²), 28 points below the 30% tree-cover level considered healthy for this area, so roughly 88,279 more trees would close the gap.
Air quality detail
Air quality in Surprise today: AQI 82, Moderate
Main pollutant: PM2.5 · Observed Nov 11, 07:00 local time via OpenAQ ground stations, US EPA index. Values in µg/m³.
Ground station · West Phoenix, 14.9 mi (24 km) away · median of 4 stations
Health signal
Unusually sensitive people should consider limiting long outdoor exertion.
PM2.5
25.5
PM10
28.0
NO₂
35.8
O₃
3.9
SO₂
—
CO
1374.7
Data: OpenAQ · AirNow
- 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 Surprise's daily AQI at 60 on average, from 54 on Nov 10 to an hourly peak of 83 on Nov 5.
Where Surprise stands: the most polluted cities in the world right now · the cleanest
Tree cover detail
Tree cover in Surprise: Critically low
1.9% tree cover against a 30% healthy-neighborhood target, across 4.9 sq mi (12.57 km²).
Trees in this area
5,969
Target trees
94,248
More trees needed
88,279
CO₂ if planted / yr
1,942 t
Deforestation · 2001–2025
How much forest has Surprise lost?
There was very little forest around Surprise in 2000, about 12 acres (5 hectares), and about 9 acres (4 hectares) of it has been lost since. Only fairly dense woodland counts as forest in these maps, so scattered street and garden trees don't show up here.
2017: satellite photo from June 2017 of a 5 × 5 km area in the city center.
The worst year was 2007, when about 3 acres (1 hectare) 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 | 3 acres (1 ha) | under 1 ha | 3 acres (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 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2007 | 3 acres (1 ha) | under 1 ha | 3 acres (1 ha) |
| 2008 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 ha |
| 2009 | under 1 ha | under 1 ha | under 1 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 Surprise?
- Farms, pasture and plantationscleared for good39% · 3 acres (1 ha)
- Towns and roadscleared for good33% · 3 acres (1 ha)
- Unknown causescause unknown25% · under 1 ha
Causes for 2025 are estimates, based on what caused forest loss in the same places up to 2024.
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. Images: contains modified Copernicus Sentinel data. How it's measured
In the same region
Measured cities near Surprise
Same 2 km radius, same index — so they compare directly.
- Glendale17.0 km
United States
- Tree cover
- 5%
- Air quality
- 67
- Deer Valley19.3 km
United States
- Tree cover
- 2%
- Air quality
- 53
- Phoenix31.4 km
United States
- Tree cover
- 3%
- Air quality
- 67
- Scottsdale42.4 km
United States
- Tree cover
- 8%
- Air quality
- 36
- Tempe46.0 km
United States
- Tree cover
- 4%
- Air quality
- 26
- Mesa52.7 km
United States
- Tree cover
- 10%
- Air quality
- 36
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Frequently asked
Questions about Surprise
What is the air quality (AQI) in Surprise right now?
The latest reading for Surprise shows an AQI of 82 (Moderate), measured Nov 11, 07:00 local time by 4 ground monitoring stations via OpenAQ (the median of their readings; the nearest is West Phoenix, 14.9 mi (24 km) away). The main pollutant is PM2.5. Unusually sensitive people should consider limiting long outdoor exertion.
Is it safe to exercise outside in Surprise today?
At AQI 82 (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 Surprise been like this week?
Over the last 7 days, the CAMS air-quality model put Surprise's daily AQI at 60 on average, from 54 on Nov 10 to an hourly peak of 83 on Nov 5. No day averaged above 100, the level where the air turns unhealthy for sensitive groups.
How much forest has the area around Surprise lost since 2001?
There was very little forest around Surprise in 2000, about 12 acres (5 hectares), and about 9 acres (4 hectares) of it has been lost since. Only fairly dense woodland counts as forest in these maps, so scattered street and garden trees don't show up here.
What is the tree count in Surprise?
Surprise has an estimated 5,969 trees across the 4.9 sq mi (12.57 km²) measured — 1.9% tree cover, 28 percentage points short of the 30% tree-cover target set for this area.
How many more trees does Surprise need?
Surprise needs roughly 88,279 more trees to close a 28-point shortfall against its 30% tree-cover target — about 1,942 t of extra CO₂ absorbed per year once grown.
How are Surprise's air quality and tree cover measured?
Air quality is measured by ground monitoring stations near Surprise Original Townsite, 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 Surprise Original Townsite; the tree count is an estimate derived from that cover.
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