Most Polluted Cities in the World
Most Polluted Cities in the World: For the fourth year in a row, Delhi has been named the most polluted city globally. The World Air Quality Report, part of the State of Global Air (SoGA) initiative, identifies cities with the highest exposure to poor air quality. SoGA’s published report is accessible to the public, allowing practitioners, citizens, journalists, policymakers, and scientists to see which cities are affected by pollution. This information aims to guide efforts in mitigating the harmful effects of pollution.
List of Most Polluted Cities in the World
The report predicts that by 2050, 68 percent of the global population will be living in cities, breathing urban air. Urbanization is happening quickly in lower and middle-income countries, leading to health problems because of the rapid increase in emissions.
The report gathered data from a survey on air pollution and its health impacts, covering 7,000 cities between 2010 and 2019.
What is causing this pollution?
Cities are getting more crowded due to job opportunities and improved lifestyles, but this urban growth is causing poor air quality. The polluted air is harmful to people’s health, causing diseases like heart problems, lung issues, type 2 diabetes, and respiratory infections. These illnesses can lead to premature death. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), healthy air should have an outdoor fine particle pollution concentration of 5 micrograms per cubic meter, but many major cities around the world don’t meet these guidelines.
List of Top 20 Most Polluted Cities in the World
Cities have two main types of air pollutants. One is PM 2.5, which is fine particulate matter in the air, and the other is nitrogen dioxide (NO2), a gaseous pollutant released mainly from traffic-related sources.
| Rank | City | Country |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Delhi | India |
| 2 | Kolkata | India |
| 3 | Kano | Nigeria |
| 4 | Lima | Peru |
| 5 | Dhaka | Bangladesh |
| 6 | Jakarta | Indonesia |
| 7 | Lagos | Nigeria |
| 8 | Karachi | Pakistan |
| 9 | Beijing | China |
| 10 | Accra | Ghana |
| 11 | Chengdu | China |
| 12 | Singapore | Singapore |
| 13 | Abidjan | Côte d’Ivoire |
| 14 | Mumbai | India |
| 15 | Bamako | Mali |
| 16 | Shanghai | China |
| 17 | Dushanbe | Tajikistan |
| 18 | Tashkent | Uzbekistan |
| 19 | Kinshasa | Democratic Republic of the Congo |
| 20 | Cairo | Egypt |
Live List of Top 50 Most Polluted Cities in the World
Below is the list of top 50 live most polluted cities in the world with their AQI:
| Rank | Major City, Country/Region | AQI |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kolkata, India | 320 |
| 2 | Dhaka, Bangladesh | 261 |
| 3 | Delhi, India | 224 |
| 4 | Shenyang, China | 220 |
| 5 | Accra, Ghana | 193 |
| 6 | Lahore, Pakistan | 192 |
| 7 | Kabul, Afghanistan | 179 |
| 8 | Kuwait City, Kuwait | 179 |
| 9 | Skopje, North Macedonia | 171 |
| 10 | Wuhan, China | 170 |
| 11 | Baghdad, Iraq | 169 |
| 12 | Shanghai, China | 168 |
| 13 | Dubai, United Arab Emirates | 168 |
| 14 | Doha, Qatar | 158 |
| 15 | Chengdu, China | 158 |
| 16 | Karachi, Pakistan | 156 |
| 17 | Mumbai, India | 156 |
| 18 | Chongqing, China | 152 |
| 19 | Kathmandu, Nepal | 146 |
| 20 | Jakarta, Indonesia | 143 |
| 21 | Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia | 140 |
| 22 | Busan, South Korea | 135 |
| 23 | Hangzhou, China | 127 |
| 24 | Sarajevo, Bosnia Herzegovina | 127 |
| 25 | Hanoi, Vietnam | 125 |
| 26 | Belgrade, Serbia | 118 |
| 27 | Seoul, South Korea | 117 |
| 28 | Algiers, Algeria | 106 |
| 29 | Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia | 102 |
| 30 | Krasnoyarsk, Russia | 99 |
| 31 | Beijing, China | 99 |
| 32 | Astana, Kazakhstan | 92 |
| 33 | Lyon, France | 89 |
| 34 | Montreal, Canada | 84 |
| 35 | Kaohsiung, Taiwan | 82 |
| 36 | Detroit, USA | 81 |
| 37 | Yangon, Myanmar | 80 |
| 38 | Chicago, USA | 80 |
| 39 | Incheon, South Korea | 80 |
| 40 | Chiang Mai, Thailand | 80 |
| 41 | Bangkok, Thailand | 80 |
| 42 | Kampala, Uganda | 78 |
| 43 | New York City, USA | 73 |
| 44 | Toronto, Canada | 71 |
| 45 | Shenzhen, China | 71 |
| 46 | Taipei, Taiwan | 70 |
| 47 | Washington, D.C., USA | 69 |
| 48 | Guangzhou, China | 68 |
| 49 | Hong Kong, Hong Kong SAR | 63 |
| 50 | Riyadh, Saudi Arabia | 61 |
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Most Polluted Cities in the World FAQs
Who are the 10 most polluted cities?
These cities, like Jhunjhunu in Rajasthan with an AQI of 397, Hanumangarh in Rajasthan with an AQI of 392, Delhi with an AQI of 386, Bathinda in Punjab with an AQI of 379, Begusarai in Bihar with an AQI of 378, Bhiwadi in Rajasthan with an AQI of 374, and Narnaul in Haryana with an AQI of 371, experienced high levels of air pollution.
Which is the 0 polluted city in the world?
Zurich, Switzerland, with an air pollution level of 0.51µg/m3, is the least polluted city in the world for 2021. This recognition is attributed to the city's strict policies, which focus on reducing vehicle emissions, promoting cleaner transportation, and maintaining low levels of air pollution.
What is the rank of Delhi pollution in India?
Delhi is the third most polluted city in India among the top 10.
Why Dubai air quality is bad?
In Dubai, the main things causing dirty air are cars, factories, building work, and big dust storms. Breathing in this dirty air a lot can make people sick, giving them trouble breathing, heart problems, and other health troubles.
