Providence County, Rhode Island air quality history
Daily Air Quality Index summaries from EPA monitors in Providence, Rhode Island, 1980–2025.
73%
Good days in 2025
39
Median daily AQI, 2025
1
Days above 100 in 2025
365
Days with an AQI in 2025 (of 365)
In 2025, EPA reported a daily Air Quality Index (AQI) for Providence, Rhode Island on 365 days. 268 of those days (73%) were in the Good range, and the median daily AQI was 39. That median is about the same as the typical monitored county in Rhode Island (median 37 across 3 counties), and about the same as the typical monitored U.S. county (40). The main pollutant was fine particles (PM2.5) on 296 days. Across the years with fuller monitoring, the share of Good days rose: an average of 44% in 1980–1982 versus 71% in 2023–2025.
How the days broke down each year
Each bar is one year. The colored segments show the share of monitored days that fell in each AQI category.
Good
Moderate
Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups
Unhealthy
Very Unhealthy
Hazardous
Typical and high-end AQI over time
The median is the middle day of the year. The 90th percentile is the level that only the highest 10% of days exceeded.
Median daily AQI
90th-percentile daily AQI
Main pollutant by day, 2025
On each monitored day, the AQI reflects whichever measured pollutant had the highest index. This counts how many days each pollutant set the AQI. A pollutant that was not measured here cannot appear.
Pollutant
Days as main pollutant
Share of monitored days
Fine particles (PM2.5)
296
81%
Ozone
60
16%
Nitrogen dioxide (NO₂)
8
2%
Coarse particles (PM10)
1
<1%
Year-by-year data
Annual AQI summary by year
Year
Days with AQI
Good
Moderate
Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups
Unhealthy
Very Unhealthy
Hazardous
Median AQI
90th pct.
Max AQI
Main pollutant
2025
365
268
96
0
1
0
0
39
59
196
PM2.5
2024
366
293
73
0
0
0
0
38
55
72
PM2.5
2023
365
217
144
4
0
0
0
46
63
125
PM2.5
2022
365
263
101
1
0
0
0
43
59
108
PM2.5
2021
365
219
142
4
0
0
0
45
62
136
PM2.5
2020
366
226
138
2
0
0
0
45
59
112
PM2.5
2019
365
222
143
0
0
0
0
46
61
90
PM2.5
2018
365
212
145
8
0
0
0
47
64
147
PM2.5
2017
365
225
136
4
0
0
0
45
61
150
PM2.5
2016
366
190
172
4
0
0
0
49
64
140
PM2.5
2015
365
173
187
3
2
0
0
52
70
177
PM2.5
2014
365
202
161
2
0
0
0
47
62
121
PM2.5
2013
365
173
186
6
0
0
0
52
67
150
PM2.5
2012
366
193
160
12
1
0
0
49
73
166
PM2.5
2011
365
190
170
5
0
0
0
48
72
126
PM2.5
2010
365
228
129
6
2
0
0
43
69
151
PM2.5
2009
365
233
130
2
0
0
0
44
69
119
PM2.5
2008
366
191
167
6
2
0
0
49
71
156
PM2.5
2007
365
197
145
19
4
0
0
47
84
177
PM2.5
2006
365
184
173
7
1
0
0
50
77
174
PM2.5
2005
365
164
188
10
3
0
0
52
77
174
PM2.5
2004
366
174
182
8
2
0
0
52
76
172
PM2.5
2003
365
126
226
10
3
0
0
54
82
197
PM2.5
2002
365
162
173
20
9
1
0
53
91
216
PM2.5
2001
365
121
216
20
5
3
0
55
92
203
PM2.5
2000
366
158
196
10
1
1
0
53
77
207
PM2.5
1999
365
172
177
14
2
0
0
52
79
177
PM2.5
1998
365
295
60
9
1
0
0
40
58
166
NO2
1997
365
307
47
7
4
0
0
40
58
179
NO2
1996
366
298
60
6
2
0
0
42
60
182
NO2
1995
365
304
42
12
5
2
0
39
67
215
NO2
1994
365
276
66
19
3
1
0
41
71
209
NO2
1993
365
303
52
9
1
0
0
38
58
172
NO2
1992
366
310
46
7
3
0
0
37
61
174
NO2
1991
365
288
67
8
2
0
0
40
61
179
NO2
1990
365
291
64
7
3
0
0
40
63
195
NO2
1989
365
286
66
11
2
0
0
42
64
159
NO2
1988
366
263
80
12
8
3
0
43
85
232
NO2
1987
365
265
85
5
8
2
0
42
69
214
NO2
1986
365
257
95
8
4
1
0
43
70
212
NO2
1985
365
221
119
16
6
3
0
47
80
212
NO2
1984
366
198
140
16
9
3
0
49
92
248
CO
1983
365
178
153
19
13
2
0
52
99
238
CO
1982
365
177
168
14
5
1
0
51
84
208
CO
1981
365
181
167
11
6
0
0
51
86
195
CO
1980
366
128
201
19
14
4
0
58
101
230
CO
What this data can and can’t tell you
It is a county-level summary. EPA reports one AQI per day for the county, based on the monitors operating there. Air at a particular street, school or home can differ, especially near roads, industry or wildfire smoke.
It is not a health assessment. The AQI is EPA’s scale for communicating daily air quality. A county’s history can’t tell you what the health risk is for any particular person. For daily conditions and health guidance, see AirNow.
Rules change over time. EPA has revised AQI breakpoints, most recently for fine particles in 2024, so some year-to-year change can reflect the scale rather than the air.
Counties in Rhode Island with a similar median AQI in 2025
