Fajardo, Puerto Rico Air Quality Today
AirHistory tracks long-run EPA monitoring rather than live readings, so for the live number check AirNow.gov below. As a baseline, Fajardo, Puerto Rico's most recent EPA year (2023) posted a median AQI of 30 (Good) against a 5-year median of 28 and an overall Grade of B. The dominant pollutant is Fine Particulate Matter (PM2.5), which tells you which days are most likely to spike.
Check Today's Live AQI in Fajardo, Puerto Rico
AirHistory is built on 10 years of EPA Air Quality System records, so it shows you what air quality in Fajardo, Puerto Rico typically looks like — not the live reading for this exact hour. For today's real-time AQI, check AirNow.gov (the EPA's official live index) or the AirNow Fire and Smoke Map during wildfire season.
That said, the history is the best predictor of a normal day. In 2023, Fajardo, Puerto Rico posted a median AQI of 30 (Good), with 88 "Good" days and 0 days that crossed into "Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups" or worse. The dominant pollutant, Fine Particulate Matter (PM2.5), is the one most likely to push today's number up — Fine particulate matter — particles less than 2.5 micrometers across — comes mostly from combustion: vehicle exhaust, wildfire smoke, residential wood burning, and industrial emissions. Because these particles are small enough to enter the bloodstream, PM2.5 is the pollutant most strongly linked to cardiovascular disease, respiratory illness, and premature death.
Fajardo, Puerto Rico Air Quality Snapshot
| Air Quality Grade | B65/100 |
| 5-Year Median AQI | 28 (Good) |
| Most Recent Median AQI (2023) | 30 (Good) |
| Dominant Pollutant | Fine Particulate Matter (PM2.5) |
| 10-Year Trend | Worsening (+0.72 AQI/yr) |
| Unhealthy Days (last 5 yr) | 0 |
| National Rank (cleanest = #1) | #111 of 1,020 (11th cleanest percentile) |
| Puerto Rico Rank | #7 of 11 |
What Does the B Grade Mean?
Fajardo, Puerto Rico earns a B — air quality is reliably in the safe range for most residents most of the time, with a 5-year median AQI of 28. Sensitive groups will see occasional caution days, but the typical resident will not need to change behavior based on air quality.
Fajardo, Puerto Rico's 5-year median AQI of 28 is 13 points below the national average of 41 — meaningfully cleaner than the typical U.S. metro tracked here. Within Puerto Rico, Fajardo, Puerto Rico runs more polluted than the state average of 23 — local sources or geography are concentrating pollution above the state's typical reading.
For context within Puerto Rico: Caguas, Puerto Rico currently holds the state's cleanest grade (A, AQI 10), while Catano, Puerto Rico sits at the bottom (D, AQI 42).
What's in Fajardo, Puerto Rico's Air?
The dominant pollutant in Fajardo, Puerto Rico is Fine Particulate Matter (PM2.5). Fine particulate matter — particles less than 2.5 micrometers across — comes mostly from combustion: vehicle exhaust, wildfire smoke, residential wood burning, and industrial emissions. Because these particles are small enough to enter the bloodstream, PM2.5 is the pollutant most strongly linked to cardiovascular disease, respiratory illness, and premature death.
Days by Dominant Pollutant (2023)
| Pollutant | Days as Dominant | Share of Year |
|---|---|---|
| Fine Particulate Matter (PM2.5) | 100 | 93% |
| Coarse Particulate Matter (PM10) | 8 | 7% |
Is the Air Getting Better or Worse?
Air quality in Fajardo, Puerto Rico has been getting worse over the past decade, with median AQI climbing by roughly 0.7 points per year. That bucks the national trend of broad improvement, and most often reflects either growing wildfire smoke exposure (particularly across the West) or rising local emissions from population and freight growth.
In 2014, Fajardo, Puerto Rico posted a median AQI of 19. By 2023 that figure was 30 — a rise of 11 AQI points dirtier across 10 years of EPA records.
Year-by-Year AQI in Fajardo, Puerto Rico
| Year | Median AQI | Good Days | Unhealthy Days | Dominant Pollutant |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2014 | 19 | 282 | 0 | PM10 |
| 2015 | 22 | 299 | 0 | PM10 |
| 2016 | 24 | 221 | 1 | PM10 |
| 2017 | 37 | 32 | 2 | PM2.5 |
| 2018 | 26 | 22 | 0 | PM2.5 |
| 2019 | 29 | 93 | 0 | PM2.5 |
| 2020 | 27 | 44 | 0 | PM2.5 |
| 2021 | 29 | 88 | 0 | PM2.5 |
| 2022 | 25 | 73 | 0 | PM2.5 |
| 2023 | 30 | 88 | 0 | PM2.5 |
Health Context for Fajardo, Puerto Rico
Across the past five years, this area has logged just 0 days where AQI rose into the "Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups" range or worse — about 0 days per year, or roughly one every other month. That is a low count by national standards.
For most healthy adults, current air quality in this area does not require any change in behavior. People with severe asthma, COPD, or recent cardiac events should still keep an eye on daily AQI alerts, especially during wildfire season. Because PM2.5 penetrates deep into the lungs and bloodstream, an N95 or KN95 mask provides meaningful protection on smoky or high-particulate days — surgical masks do not.
How This Grade Is Calculated
The AirHistory Air Quality Grade combines four signals: the 5-year median AQI (40% of the score), the 10-year trend direction (30%), the count of unhealthy days per year (20%), and the dominant pollutant type (10%). All four come directly from the EPA Air Quality System (AQS), which aggregates readings from federally certified monitors. Read the full methodology.
More about Fajardo, Puerto Rico
Fajardo, Puerto Rico has an Air Quality Grade of B (good) with a 5-year median AQI of 28. The dominant pollutant is Fine Particulate Matter (PM2.5), and air quality has been worsening over the past decade.
The data source behind this answer is the EPA Air Quality System (AQS). Every figure on the page traces back to that source; the methodology page describes the inputs and the refresh cadence in full detail.
For readers turning this answer into action: cross-reference against the underlying the EPA Air Quality System (AQS) record before acting on time-sensitive decisions. The site renders the data as it was published; subsequent revisions can shift the picture, and the live federal data is always the authoritative current reference.
Source: EPA Outdoor Air Quality Data, 2026.