Air quality in September: cleanest & most polluted destinations

Where the air is cleanest — and worst — to travel in September, ranked by the monthly-mean US Air Quality Index (AQI) across 600+ destinations. Lower is better: 0–50 is good, 100+ starts to bite, 150+ is unhealthy. Tap any place for its full September weather and air-quality breakdown.

Worst air quality in September

  1. 1Kuwait City 🇰🇼 KuwaitVery unhealthy276
  2. 2Laayoune Western SaharaVery unhealthy219
  3. 3Damascus 🇸🇾 SyriaVery unhealthy218
  4. 4Dakhla Western SaharaUnhealthy185
  5. 5Jakarta 🇮🇩 IndonesiaUnhealthy165
  6. 6Manama 🇧🇭 BahrainUnhealthy160
  7. 7Riyadh 🇸🇦 Saudi ArabiaUnhealthy156
  8. 8Beijing 🇨🇳 ChinaUnhealthy155
  9. 9Hotan 🇨🇳 ChinaUnhealthy for sensitive groups149
  10. 10Chengdu 🇨🇳 ChinaUnhealthy for sensitive groups140
  11. 11Doha 🇶🇦 QatarUnhealthy for sensitive groups136
  12. 12Lahore 🇵🇰 PakistanUnhealthy for sensitive groups135
  13. 13Dubai 🇦🇪 United Arab EmiratesUnhealthy for sensitive groups135
  14. 14Bandung 🇮🇩 IndonesiaUnhealthy for sensitive groups134
  15. 15Baghdad 🇮🇶 IraqUnhealthy for sensitive groups133

Cleanest air in September

  1. 1Honiara 🇸🇧 Solomon IslandsGood17
  2. 2Kona 🇺🇸 United StatesGood17
  3. 3La Fortuna 🇨🇷 Costa RicaGood17
  4. 4Malabo 🇬🇶 Equatorial GuineaGood17
  5. 5Monteverde 🇨🇷 Costa RicaGood17
  6. 6Boquete 🇵🇦 PanamaGood18
  7. 7Pohnpei 🇫🇲 MicronesiaGood18
  8. 8Anchorage 🇺🇸 United StatesGood19
  9. 9Hawaii Volcanoes National Park 🇺🇸 United StatesGood19
  10. 10Hilo 🇺🇸 United StatesGood19
  11. 11Majuro 🇲🇭 Marshall IslandsGood19
  12. 12Kobuk Valley National Park 🇺🇸 United StatesGood20
  13. 13Nadi 🇫🇯 FijiGood20
  14. 14Palomino 🇨🇴 ColombiaGood21
  15. 15Raja Ampat 🇮🇩 IndonesiaGood21