Cleanest Air in the World (PM2.5 Ranking)
Annual PM2.5 concentration by country — WHO data for 36 nations
6.0 µg/m³
Cleanest air in our 36-country set — 🇸🇪 Sweden (2019 PM2.5)
| # | Country | PM2.5 |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | 🇸🇪 Sweden | 6.0 µg/m³ |
| 2 | 🇳🇴 Norway | 6.3 µg/m³ |
| 3 | 🇨🇦 Canada | 6.4 µg/m³ |
| 4 | 🇪🇪 Estonia | 6.4 µg/m³ |
| 5 | 🇺🇸 United States | 7.2 µg/m³ |
| 6 | 🇵🇹 Portugal | 7.3 µg/m³ |
| 7 | 🇮🇪 Ireland | 8.2 µg/m³ |
| 8 | 🇳🇿 New Zealand | 8.6 µg/m³ |
| 9 | 🇦🇺 Australia | 8.9 µg/m³ |
| 10 | 🇨🇭 Switzerland | 9.0 µg/m³ |
| 11 | 🇪🇸 Spain | 9.3 µg/m³ |
| 12 | 🇬🇧 United Kingdom | 9.5 µg/m³ |
| 13 | 🇩🇰 Denmark | 9.7 µg/m³ |
| 14 | 🇫🇷 France | 10.5 µg/m³ |
| 15 | 🇩🇪 Germany | 10.7 µg/m³ |
| 16 | 🇳🇱 Netherlands | 10.7 µg/m³ |
| 17 | 🇯🇵 Japan | 10.8 µg/m³ |
| 18 | 🇧🇷 Brazil | 10.9 µg/m³ |
| 19 | 🇧🇪 Belgium | 11.3 µg/m³ |
| 20 | 🇦🇷 Argentina | 12.0 µg/m³ |
| 21 | 🇸🇬 Singapore | 13.3 µg/m³ |
| 22 | 🇨🇴 Colombia | 14.0 µg/m³ |
| 23 | 🇮🇹 Italy | 14.2 µg/m³ |
| 24 | 🇬🇷 Greece | 14.6 µg/m³ |
| 25 | 🇲🇽 Mexico | 17.8 µg/m³ |
| 26 | 🇵🇱 Poland | 18.8 µg/m³ |
| 27 | 🇮🇱 Israel | 19.5 µg/m³ |
| 28 | 🇿🇦 South Africa | 19.7 µg/m³ |
| 29 | 🇨🇱 Chile | 20.5 µg/m³ |
| 30 | 🇻🇳 Vietnam | 20.9 µg/m³ |
| 31 | 🇹🇷 Turkey | 23.3 µg/m³ |
| 32 | 🇰🇷 South Korea | 24.0 µg/m³ |
| 33 | 🇹🇭 Thailand | 24.6 µg/m³ |
| 34 | 🇦🇪 United Arab Emirates | 41.7 µg/m³ |
| 35 | 🇮🇳 India | 50.2 µg/m³ |
PM2.5 is fine particulate matter smaller than 2.5 microns — small enough to enter the bloodstream through the lungs. The WHO guideline for annual mean exposure is less than 5 µg/m³, revised downward in 2021 from the previous 10 µg/m³ threshold. Long-term exposure above 35 µg/m³ is associated with measurable health impacts (cardiovascular disease, stroke, lung cancer).
In our 36-country set, 🇸🇪 Sweden has the cleanest air at 6.0 µg/m³, while 🇮🇳 India sits at 50.2µg/m³. For relocation, this is a daily lifestyle factor — respiratory health, exercise tolerance, and kids' development all depend on it.
Note: this is a country-level average. Large cities can be significantly worse than the rural mean, and vice versa. Data source: WHO Ambient Air Quality Database, mirrored on Our World in Data.
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