Air Quality Rankings for Nevada (2026)
Nevada has 9 cities tracked by EPA air-quality monitors, with a state-wide 5-year median AQI of 39 — 2 points cleaner than the national average of AQI 41. Nye, Nevada ranks #1 with the cleanest air (AQI 20, Grade B), while Clark, Nevada sits at the bottom (AQI 62, Grade D).
How Nevada Compares
Nevada has 9 cities tracked by EPA air-quality monitors, with a state-wide 5-year median AQI of 39 — 2 points cleaner than the national average of AQI 41. Nye, Nevada ranks #1 with the cleanest air (AQI 20, Grade B), while Clark, Nevada sits at the bottom (AQI 62, Grade D). The rankings below are computed from the EPA Air Quality System (AQS), which aggregates daily AQI readings from federally certified monitors into annual averages. Cities are sorted by 5-year median AQI (lowest = cleanest = #1). The 5-year window smooths out year-to-year volatility from weather and wildfire events.
Air quality across Nevada has held roughly steady over the past decade — 4 cities improving, 4 worsening, and 1 stable. That stability makes the state-average ranking a reliable signal of what residents can expect over time.
The dominant pollutant across 6 of 9 Nevada cities is Ground-Level Ozone. Ground-level ozone forms when sunlight reacts with vehicle and industrial emissions. It is worst on hot, sunny, stagnant summer days and is the leading air quality concern across much of the Sun Belt and California. Other Nevada cities report Coarse Particulate Matter (PM10) (2), Fine Particulate Matter (PM2.5) (1) as their dominant concern.
The fastest-improving city in Nevada is Douglas, Nevada, with median AQI falling by 1.8 points per year. Steady improvement at that pace usually reflects fleet turnover (older diesels retiring), upwind power-plant retirements, or tighter regional emissions controls.
The city with the steepest decline is Elko, Nevada, where median AQI is rising by 1.0 points per year. Rapid deterioration in a single city usually points to either wildfire-smoke exposure (in the West) or a new local emissions source — a power plant, port, or freight corridor coming online.
Full Nevada Ranking
| # | City | 5yr Avg AQI | Current AQI | Worst Pollutant | Trend | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Nye, Nevada | 20 | 19 | PM10 | Worsening | B |
| 2 | Douglas, Nevada | 22 | 28 | PM2.5 | Improving | A |
| 3 | Elko, Nevada | 31 | 31 | PM10 | Worsening | C |
| 4 | Lyon, Nevada | 39 | 41 | Ozone | Improving | B |
| 5 | Churchill, Nevada | 41 | 43 | Ozone | Improving | B |
| 6 | Carson City, Nevada | 44 | 47 | Ozone | Stable | C |
| 7 | White Pine, Nevada | 44 | 44 | Ozone | Stable | C |
| 8 | Washoe, Nevada | 50 | 50 | Ozone | Stable | C |
| 9 | Clark, Nevada | 62 | 61 | Ozone | Stable | D |
Air quality data for Nevada is sourced from the EPA Air Quality System (AQS), which monitors outdoor air quality at thousands of stations nationwide.
Frequently Asked Questions
Nye, Nevada has the best air quality in Nevada with a 5-year average AQI of 20 and a Grade B (71/100). Its dominant pollutant is Coarse Particulate Matter (PM10) and the long-run trend is worsening.
Clark, Nevada has the worst air quality in Nevada with a 5-year average AQI of 62 and a Grade D (43/100). Its dominant pollutant is Ground-Level Ozone.
Nevada has 9 cities with EPA air quality monitoring data, covering 2014-2023 of daily AQI measurements aggregated into annual averages.
Nevada's state-wide 5-year median AQI is 39, 2 points cleaner than the national average of AQI 41. Air quality across Nevada has held roughly steady over the past decade — 4 cities improving, 4 worsening, and 1 stable. That stability makes the state-average ranking a reliable signal of what residents can expect over time.
Ground-Level Ozone is the dominant pollutant in 6 of 9 monitored Nevada cities. Ground-level ozone forms when sunlight reacts with vehicle and industrial emissions. It is worst on hot, sunny, stagnant summer days and is the leading air quality concern across much of the Sun Belt and California.
Nevada cities log an average of 8 days per year at "Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups" or worse, based on EPA monitor data over the last five years. Across all 9 Nevada cities tracked, that totals 371 unhealthy days over the period.
Cities ranked by 5-year average AQI (lower is better). Grades factor in average AQI, trend direction, unhealthy days, and dominant pollutant.
The this entity category groups every U.S. air quality and pollution monitoring entity sharing this attribute. The list above is the data; the paragraphs below explain what the grouping means against the broader the EPA Air Quality System (AQS) distribution and how to read the relative rankings within the category.
For readers using this category as a starting point, the per-entity detail pages linked from the table above carry the underlying the EPA Air Quality System (AQS) data in full. The category-level view is the filter; the per-entity pages are the actual answer.
Source: EPA Outdoor Air Quality Data, 2026.