Is the Air Quality Good in Ocean, New Jersey?
Mostly — air quality in Ocean, New Jersey is fair, not pristine. The city earns a Grade of C (fair) on a 5-year median AQI of 40 (Good), with 18 unhealthy-air days over five years (about 4 per year). Healthy adults are fine most of the time, but sensitive groups should watch the daily forecast.
Who Can Safely Breathe the Air in Ocean, New Jersey?
Healthy adults can continue normal outdoor activity in most weather, but should pay attention to AQI alerts during the worst pollution windows. People with asthma, heart disease, or pregnancy should reduce prolonged or intense outdoor exertion on flagged days, and consider running an indoor HEPA air cleaner during peak 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.
Across the past five years, this area has logged just 18 days where AQI rose into the "Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups" range or worse — about 4 days per year, or roughly one every other month. That is a low count by national standards.
Ocean, New Jersey Air Quality Snapshot
| Air Quality Grade | C64/100 |
| 5-Year Median AQI | 40 (Good) |
| Most Recent Median AQI (2023) | 42 (Good) |
| Dominant Pollutant | Fine Particulate Matter (PM2.5) |
| 10-Year Trend | Stable (-0.10 AQI/yr) |
| Unhealthy Days (last 5 yr) | 18 |
| National Rank (cleanest = #1) | #513 of 1,020 (50th cleanest percentile) |
| New Jersey Rank | #6 of 16 |
What Does the C Grade Mean?
Ocean, New Jersey earns a C — air quality is fair, but not great. With a 5-year median AQI of 40, the city sees a meaningful number of "Moderate" days each year, when the EPA flags air as a concern for unusually sensitive people.
Ocean, New Jersey's 5-year median AQI of 40 is right around the national average of 41 across the 1,020 monitored U.S. cities tracked here. Within New Jersey, Ocean, New Jersey's air quality is roughly typical for the state, where the average city posts a 5-year median AQI of 42.
For context within New Jersey: Hudson, New Jersey currently holds the state's cleanest grade (B, AQI 44), while Essex, New Jersey sits at the bottom (C, AQI 45).
What's in Ocean, New Jersey's Air?
The dominant pollutant in Ocean, New Jersey 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) | 200 | 55% |
| Ground-Level Ozone | 165 | 45% |
Is the Air Getting Better or Worse?
Air quality in Ocean, New Jersey has held roughly steady over the past decade, with year-to-year shifts in median AQI of less than half a point. That stability makes the city's long-run grade a reliable signal of what residents can expect day-to-day.
In 2014, Ocean, New Jersey posted a median AQI of 42. By 2023 that figure was 42 — a flat reading of 0 AQI points across 10 years of EPA records.
Year-by-Year AQI in Ocean, New Jersey
| Year | Median AQI | Good Days | Unhealthy Days | Dominant Pollutant |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2014 | 42 | 245 | 4 | PM2.5 |
| 2015 | 43 | 238 | 10 | Ozone |
| 2016 | 40 | 260 | 6 | PM2.5 |
| 2017 | 40 | 284 | 4 | Ozone |
| 2018 | 39 | 264 | 8 | PM2.5 |
| 2019 | 40 | 266 | 2 | Ozone |
| 2020 | 38 | 290 | 0 | PM2.5 |
| 2021 | 42 | 253 | 4 | PM2.5 |
| 2022 | 40 | 287 | 3 | Ozone |
| 2023 | 42 | 261 | 9 | PM2.5 |
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 Ocean, New Jersey
Ocean, New Jersey has an Air Quality Grade of C (fair) with a 5-year median AQI of 40. The dominant pollutant is Fine Particulate Matter (PM2.5), and air quality has been stable 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.