Irvine, California Air Quality
Irvine air quality today — the AQI, the main pollutant, and whether it’s safe to exercise outside right now
Irvine, CA · Air quality right now
The air quality index in Irvine, CA is 46 (Good) right now — safe for outdoor activity.
Is it safe to be outside in Irvine today?
AQI 46 Yes — air quality is Good
Air is clean — great for outdoor activity.Main pollutant: PM2.5Observed 8:00 AM PDT
Pollutants right now
- PM2.511 µg/m³Main pollutantfine particles — smoke, exhaust, soot
- PM1015 µg/m³coarse particles — dust, pollen, ash
- Ozone42 µg/m³smog — builds on hot, sunny days
- NO₂22 µg/m³nitrogen dioxide — traffic, combustion
ExerciseOK to run — no air-quality limits on outdoor exercise.
How to read Irvine’s air quality
Guides: The AQI Scale, Explained · Air Quality Alerts, Decoded · How to Read a Wildfire Smoke Map · Why Wildfire Smoke Travels 1,000 Miles.
Air quality over time in Irvine
Across the EPA’s county records from 2020 to 2025, Irvine’s cleanest year was 2023 (median AQI 52) and its most polluted was 2020 (median AQI 56); the typical (median) day has held roughly steady since 2020.
| Year | Median AQI | Unhealthy+ | Main pollutant | USG | Moderate | Good |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | 56 | 13 | PM2.5 | 28 | 207 | 118 |
| 2021 | 55 | 0 | PM2.5 | 18 | 238 | 109 |
| 2022 | 53 | 2 | PM2.5 | 5 | 215 | 143 |
| 2023 | 52 | 1 | PM2.5 | 9 | 195 | 160 |
| 2024 | 54 | 3 | PM2.5 | 13 | 231 | 119 |
| 2025 | 53 | 2 | PM2.5 | 11 | 214 | 138 |
“USG” is Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups (AQI 101–150); “Unhealthy+” combines the Unhealthy, Very Unhealthy, and Hazardous days. In 2024 the EPA tightened the annual fine-particle (PM2.5) standard to 9 µg/m³ from the previous 12 µg/m³, so counties near the old limit read worse against the new one. Source: EPA AQS annual summaries, 2020–2025.
Frequently asked
- What was the worst year for air quality in Irvine?
- In the EPA's 2020–2025 county records, 2020 had the most days above AQI 100: 41 days (28 Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups, 13 Unhealthy or worse). It also had the highest median AQI, 56.
- How many unhealthy air days does Irvine have?
- Across 2020–2025, 5% of the days reported for Irvine's county had an AQI above 100 (105 of 2192), about 18 days a year. 2025 had 13 days.
- What's the main air pollutant in Irvine?
- PM2.5: it drove Irvine's county AQI on the most days in every year of the EPA's 2020–2025 records.