World City rankings

Air Quality Index by City (World)

Lahore has the highest AQI (173), followed by Jakarta (168) and Johannesburg (132). Bishkek has the lowest (29).

Environment48 cities · 1 metricUpdated Oct 28, 2026Original page
2 sources
AQIBetter directionWhether a higher or a lower value is better. A green arrow means higher is better, a red arrow means lower is better, and no arrow means neither.More in the glossary →
48 of 1,103 cities
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AQI

Darker green is better (higher is better). Click a place to highlight it.

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All 48 ranked

Best first.

Distribution Median and middle halfThe median is the middle value: half of places are above it, half below. The middle half is the range holding the central 50% of places.More in the glossary →

Each dot is one city; the lines mark the median and the middle half.

Median
61
Middle half 42.75 – 87.25
Average
70.17
48 cities
Highest
173
Lahore
Lowest
29
Bishkek

Data

Click a column to sort, a row to highlight that place on the charts.

What correlates with AQI?

Pearson r against 16 other city metrics sharing at least 29 cities. Ranks are read by standing: a better rank counts as higher, whether rank 1 is the best place on a list or the worst. Correlation is not causation.

Higher together

Places that have a higher AQI tend to score higher on these (or rank better)

  1. Population Growth Rate
    r = +0.39 · moderate · n = 48
    Plot
  2. Population Density (pop. per mi²)Population Density by City
    r = +0.35 · moderate · n = 46
    Plot
  3. Population Density (Pop. per km²)Population Density by City
    r = +0.35 · moderate · n = 46
    Plot
  4. Urban Area DensityLargest City in the World by Area
    r = +0.35 · moderate · n = 47
    Plot
  5. City Growth 2000-2030Fastest Growing Cities in the World
    r = +0.35 · moderate · n = 30
    Plot
  6. Population Density RankPopulation Density by CityA rank: rank 1 is the best
    r = +0.33 · moderate · n = 46
    Plot

Opposite directions

Places that have a higher AQI tend to score lower on these (or rank worse)

  1. Smart City RankSmart CitiesA rank: rank 1 is the best
    r = −0.27 · weak · n = 29
    Plot

Quick answers

Which world city has the highest AQI?
Lahore has the highest AQI, at 173, followed by Jakarta (168) and Johannesburg (132).
Which world city has the lowest AQI?
Bishkek has the lowest AQI, at 29.
What is the median AQI across world cities?
The median is 61 across the 48 world cities with data.
Where does this air quality index by city (world) data come from?
Rankodex compiles it from World Population Review and the primary sources it cites: IQAir World Air Quality Report; IQAir World Most Polluted Cities. Last updated 2026-10-28.

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