The World’s Best and Worst Cities for Air Pollution

If you live in a small, city apartment, you want your time outdoors to be refreshing. Unfortunately, that isn't the case in many urban areas. In cities around the world, excess pollution negatively impacts the quality of air—and quality of life—for the people living there. To see the best and worst cities and towns for clean air around the world, check out the maps below.

HouseFresh put together these graphics using IQAir’s World Air Quality Report for 2020. They found that Hotan, China, was the most polluted city on Earth last year thanks to weather events like sandstorms from the local Taklimakan Desert. Behind it is Ghaziabad, India, in second place and Manikganj, Bangladesh, in third. Both cities are known for having high rates of vehicle traffic.

On the other side of the spectrum, Judbury, Australia, was named the place with the cleanest air in 2020. The rural Tasmanian town is home to a population of just 392, which definitely helps keep pollution low. Kailua Kona, Hawaii and Muonio, Finland also boast impressive air quality.

If you're still looking for eco-friendly places to visit after checking out the two maps below, you can find the greenest states in America here.