List of 20 most polluted cities in the world (2024)

Here is the list of the 20 most polluted cities in the world as per the SoGA report.

List of 20 most polluted cities in the world (1)

List of worlds most polluted cities

In a row, for the fourth consecutive year, Delhi topped as the most polluted city in the world. The world air quality report, as per the state of global air (SoGA) initiative, has declared which cities have the most exposure to bad air quality. The report published by SoGA provides information regarding polluted cities across the world.

They are available in the public domain to be viewed by practitioners, citizens, journalists, policymakers and scientists to take further steps to change the adverse effects of pollution.

The report also suggests that by 2050, 68 percent of the world’s population will be residing in cities and breathing urban air. Urbanisation grows faster in lower and middle-income countries, which results in adverse health conditions due to the rapid increase in emissions.

Urban cities have the maximum population due to growing job opportunities and better lifestyles. With the growing urbanization, urban cities are hubs for bad air quality. The polluted air affects the health of people. It risks life by creating diseases like heart problems, lung disease, type 2 diabetes, and respiratory-related infections. The impact of such diseases results in the early death of citizens.

As per the Air Quality Guidelines released by the World Health Organisation (WHO), healthy air quality should have an outdoor fine particle pollution concentration of 5 microgram per meter cube. But the guidelines defined by WHO don’t match the air quality of the major booming cities of the world.

As per the report, the data is taken from a survey of air pollution exposures and their health impacts. The data was collected from 7,000 cities within a time span of 2010 to 2019.

There are two categories of air pollutants found in the cities. One is the ambient fine particulate known as PM 2.5 and the other is the nitrogen dioxide (NO2). The latter one is a gaseous pollutant that gets released into the air through traffic-related air pollution.

LIST OF 20 MOST POLLUTED CITIES IN THE WORLD:

RANKCITY, COUNTRY
1Delhi, India
2Kolkata, India
3Kano, Nigeria
4Lima, Peru
5Dhaka, Bangladesh
6Jakarta, Indonesia
7Lagos, Nigeria
8Karachi, Pakistan
9Beijing, China
10Accra, Ghana
11Chengdu, China
12Singapore, Singapore
13Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire
14Mumbai, India
15Bamako, Mali
16Shanghai, China
17Dushanbe, Tajikistan
18Tashkent, Uzbekistan
19Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of the Congo
20Cairo, Egypt

Published By:

Roshni

Published On:

Aug 19, 2022

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List of 20 most polluted cities in the world (2024)

FAQs

List of 20 most polluted cities in the world? ›

Bakersfield is the most polluted city in the U.S. by year-round air quality, according to the ALA. It is the third city in California's Central Valley to make the list, joining the Fresno and Visalia areas. Bakersfield also ranks first for high-pollution days and third for most polluted cities by ozone exposure.

Who are the 20 most polluted cities in the world? ›

World's Air Pollution Hot Spots
RankCity2022 average PM2.5 concentration (μg/m³)
1🇵🇰 Lahore, Pakistan97.4
2🇨🇳 Hotan, China94.3
3🇮🇳 Bhiwadi, India92.7
4🇮🇳 Delhi, India92.6
6 more rows
Jan 4, 2024

Which is the No 1 most polluted city? ›

401-500(+)
Rank100 Most Polluted CitiesAQI
1Chalandri, Greece965
2Valdivia, Chile396
3Talcahuano, Chile388
4Uliastay, Mongolia366
46 more rows

What is the dirtiest city in the world? ›

Lahore, Pakistan

What city has the worst air quality in the United States? ›

Bakersfield is the most polluted city in the U.S. by year-round air quality, according to the ALA. It is the third city in California's Central Valley to make the list, joining the Fresno and Visalia areas. Bakersfield also ranks first for high-pollution days and third for most polluted cities by ozone exposure.

Where does Chicago rank in air quality? ›

Chicago ranked second among major U.S. cities with the worst air pollution in 2023, its average annual concentration of dangerous fine particulate matter almost three times global guidelines, according to a recent report.

Which is the cleanest city in the world? ›

1. Copenhagen, Denmark: The Cleanest Place in the World.

Which country has no pollution? ›

Which seven countries meet safe air quality levels? The seven countries that met the safe guideline of five micrograms per cubic metre of air (µg/m3) or less were Australia, Estonia, Finland, Grenada, Iceland, Mauritius and New Zealand. Puerto Rico, Bermuda and French Polynesia also fell within safe levels.

What is the most polluted place in the US? ›

How polluted is USA?
2022 USA cleanest cityArch Cape , Oregon 1
2022 USA most polluted cityOakridge , Oregon 96
Jan 12, 2024

What is the cleanest place in Earth? ›

Copenhagen, Denmark

According to The Economist, Copenhagen, the capital of Denmark is the cleanest city in the world.

What is the most unsanitary country in the world? ›

List (2018−2022)
RankCountry/Region2022
1Chad89.7
2Iraq80.1
3Pakistan70.9
4Bahrain66.6
56 more rows

What state is the hardest to breathe in? ›

U.S. Cities Where It's Hardest To Breathe
Weighted RankStateCity
1ArizonaPhoenix
2CaliforniaGlendale
3CaliforniaSan Bernardino
4CaliforniaFontana
21 more rows
Jan 30, 2024

What state has the cleanest air in us? ›

The state of Hawaii boasts the cleanest average air in the entire U.S., at an AQI of 21.2. Even Hawaii's biggest city, Honolulu, ranks on the cleanest cities for lists for ozone, short-term particle pollution, and year-round particle pollution.

What city has the healthiest air quality? ›

Cleanest air in the world in 2022. The cleanest air in the world is in Zurich. The pollution status is determined on the basis of average levels of PM2. 5 measured over a period of 12 months.

What is the most polluted state in the US? ›

1. California

California is the most polluted state in the US. Six of the most polluted cities are located in California, with Fresno-Madera and Bakersfield being the two areas with the highest levels of particulate pollution. The worst ozone levels can be found in Los Angeles.

Who has the worst air quality in the world today? ›

List (2018−2022)
RankCountry/Region2022
1Chad89.7
2Iraq80.1
3Pakistan70.9
4Bahrain66.6
56 more rows

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