Which country has the cleanest air in the world?

The countries with the cleanest air in the world have been ranked in a new report. We take a look at the results

The Pacific Island nation of French Polynesia has the world’s cleanest air, according to the latest World Air Quality Report from IQAir. The report ranks 134 countries and territories by the level of fine particulate matter present in the air.

Air pollution continues to pose one of the biggest threats to human health, causing the death of up to seven million people every year. Billions more suffer the effects of poor air quality which can lead to asthma and lung disease. In fact, the World Health Organisation (WHO) estimates that 92% of the global population breathes toxic air.

French Polynesia, an overseas collectivity of France, has the cleanest air in the world, followed by the island nations of Mauritius, Iceland, Grenada and Bermuda.

Of 134 countries and regions surveyed in the report, just 10 countries or territories – French Polynesia, Mauritius, Iceland, Grenada, Bermuda, New Zealand, Australia, Puerto Rico, Estonia and Finland – are meeting a World Health Organization (WHO) guideline limit for tiny airborne particles expelled by cars, trucks and industrial processes. Only seven of those 10 are sovereign nations: Australia, Estonia, Finland, Grenada, Iceland, Mauritius and New Zealand.

At the other end of the spectrum, Bangladesh has the worst air quality followed by Pakistan, India, Tajikistan and Burkina Faso respectively.

Air Quality Index

The report analyses results from over 30,000 monitoring stations across the globe, making it the world’s largest centralised platform for measuring air quality.

It also draws on data collected from thousands of clean air initiatives administered by governments, non-profit organisations, citizens, communities and private companies.

The report focuses on PM2.5 concentrations (μg/m³) as this pollutant is widely regarded as most harmful to human health. PM2.5 is defined as ambient airborne particles measuring up to 2.5 microns in size. A micron (or micrometre) is one-millionth of a metre or one-thousandth of a millimetre.

Its microscopic size allows the particles to enter the bloodstream via the respiratory system and travel through the body, causing a range of health problems including asthma, lung cancer and heart disease.

Air pollution is also associated with low birth weight, increased acute respiratory infections and stroke.

The WHO’s Air Quality Guideline value for PM2.5 exposure – which has been proven to be free of health impacts – is 10µg/m³ or 10 micrograms of air pollutant per cubic meter of air.

There are only 10 countries or territories, out of the 134 assessed, which pass these guidelines.

most polluted cities

The report also produces a ranking for thousands of the world’s cities. New Delhi famously hit the headlines in 2020 when the city witnessed drastically improved air quality when restrictions were introduced due to the pandemic.

However, the city soon returned to “normal” when pollution hit “emergency” levels in November 2020 and the city became enveloped in thick toxic smog.

Bangladesh, China, India, and Pakistan share 48 of the 50 most polluted cities worldwide with nine of the 10 most polluted in India alone. Begusarai in India is the world’s most polluted city while New Delhi is the world’s most polluted capital.

COUNTRY RANKING: Cleanest air in the world

The World Air Quality Report ranks 134 countries and territories from the most polluted to the least. States that have been omitted lacked sufficient ground-based PM2.5 monitoring stations.

Rank	Country/territory	PM2.5 concentration
1	Bangladesh	79.9
2	Pakistan	73.7
3	India	54.4
4	Tajikistan	49.0
5	Burkina Faso	46.6
6	Iraq	43.8
7	UAE	43.0
8	Nepal	42.4
9	Egypt	42.4
10	DR Congo	40.8
11	Kuwait	39.9
12	Bahrain	39.2
13	Qatar	37.6
14	Indonesia	37.1
15	Rwanda	36.8
16	Zimbabwe	33.3
17	Ghana	33.2
18	Kyrgyzstan	33.1
19	China	32.5
20	Libya	30.4
21	Laos	29.6
22	Vietnam	29.6
23	Uzbekistan	28.6
24	Gambia	28.5
25	Myanmar	28.2
26	Senegal	28.2
27	Bosnia Herzegovina	27.5
28	Uganda	27.3
29	Ethiopia	27.0
30	Saudi Arabia	26.5
31	Armenia	26.4
32	North Macedonia	25.2
33	Zambia	24.1
34	Cameroon	24.0
35	Nigeria	23.9
36	Thailand	23.3
37	Cambodia	22.8
38	Malaysia	22.5
39	Mongolia	22.5
40	Kazakhstan	22.2
41	Montenegro	21.3
42	Madagascar	20.6
43	Serbia	20.5
44	Turkey	20.3
45	Taiwan	20.2
46	Mexico	20.1
47	South Africa	19.9
48	El Salvador	19.5
49	Sri Lanka	19.3
50	South Korea	19.2
51	Peru	18.8
52	Azerbaijan	18.8
53	Chile	18.8
54	Guatemala	18.7
55	Palestine	18.6
56	Israel	17.8
57	Greece	17.4
58	Guyana	17.1
59	Gabon	16.9
60	Albania	16.7
61	Ivory Coast	16.6
62	Georgia	16.4
63	Togo	16.3
64	Macao SAR	16.2
65	Moldova	15.7
66	Nicaragua	15.7
67	Romania	15.7
68	Hong Kong SAR	15.6
69	Maldives	15.3
70	Honduras	15.1
71	Italy	15.0
72	Slovenia	14.9
73	Cyprus	14.3
74	Poland	14.1
75	Colombia	14.1
76	Guinea	13.9
77	Croatia	13.8
78	Algeria	13.8
79	Philippines	13.5
80	Singapore	13.4
81	Bulgaria	13.2
82	Slovakia	13.1
83	Brazil	12.6
84	Bolivia	12.6
85	Kosovo	12.1
86	Malta	12.0
87	Hungary	12.0
88	Uruguay	11.7
89	Czech Republic	11.5
90	Kenya	10.6
91	Suriname	10.6
92	Lithuania	10.4
93	Canada	10.3
94	Russia	10.0
95	Spain	9.9
96	Japan	9.6
97	Panama	9.6
98	Austria	9.6
99	France	9.5
100	Belgium	9.4
101	Argentina	9.2
102	USA	9.1
103	Germany	9.0
104	Switzerland	8.9
105	Luxembourg	8.9
106	Netherlands	8.7
107	Ukraine	8.6
108	Belize	8.3
109	Latvia	8.0
110	Andorra	7.9
111	Angola	7.8
112	UK	7.7
113	Denmark	7.7
114	Anguilla	7.4
115	Ecuador	7.4
116	Liechtenstein	7.2
117	Jamaica	7.1
118	Portugal	6.8
119	Ireland	6.3
120	Norway	6.3
121	Costa Rica	6.1
122	Trinidad & Tobago	5.8
123	Bahamas	5.2
124	Sweden	5.1
125	Finland	4.9
126	Estonia	4.7
127	Puerto Rico	4.5
128	Australia	4.5
129	New Zealand	4.3
130	Bermuda	4.1
131	Grenada	4.1
132	Iceland	4.0
133	Mauritius	3.5
134	French Polynesia	3.2

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Lead image: Blue Planet Studio/Shutterstock