Orlando Best & Worst AQI Days: Air Quality Guide
The worst air quality day on record for Orlando (Orlando-Kissimmee-Sanford, FL area) was January 1, 2024, when the daily AQI reached 149 (Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups), set by fine particulate matter (PM2.5). Across 2,551 monitored days in 2019–2025, 0 of the 10 worst days were Unhealthy (AQI 151+) or worse; 8 of the 10 were driven by ground-level ozone and 2 by fine particulate matter (PM2.5), and 3 of them fell in 2019. The cleanest day was September 1, 2019 at AQI 16 (Good); the 10 best days span 5 different years.
Reduce Indoor Ozone in Orlando
Today's main pollutant in Orlando is ground-level ozone (AQI 37). Important: standard HEPA filters do NOT remove ozone — only a purifier with a substantial activated-carbon bed adsorbs it. The biggest wins are cutting indoor sources (gas appliances, certain "ionizer" purifiers) and ventilating when outdoor ozone is low (early morning). A high-carbon unit helps with the gases and VOCs that linger indoors.
Recommended: Levoit Core 300 — True HEPA + activated carbon · CADR ~141 CFM · rooms up to 219 sq ft
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When were Orlando's worst and best air quality days?
Worst: January 1, 2024, AQI 149 (Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups, PM2.5). Best: September 1, 2019, AQI 16 (Good). Based on 2,551 EPA-monitored days in the Orlando-Kissimmee-Sanford, FL area, 2019–2025.
- ✓0 of the 10 worst days were Unhealthy (AQI 151+) or worse; the 10th-worst was AQI 105 (Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups).
- ✓Ground-level ozone drove 8 of the 10 worst days.
- ✓2019 accounts for 3 of the 10 worst days.
Frequently asked questions
What was the worst air quality day in Orlando?▾
January 1, 2024: the Orlando-Kissimmee-Sanford, FL area's daily AQI hit 149 (Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups), driven by fine particulate matter (PM2.5). That is the highest of 2,551 monitored days in 2019–2025.
What was the best air quality day in Orlando?▾
September 1, 2019, with a daily AQI of 16 (Good). The daily AQI is the highest reading from any monitor in the area, so even the cleanest day reflects the area's worst monitor.
What was Orlando's worst air quality day in 2025?▾
April 17, 2025, AQI 112 (Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups), set by ground-level ozone.
Which pollutant causes Orlando's worst air days?▾
Ground-level ozone set the AQI on 8 of the 10 worst days; fine particulate matter (PM2.5) on 2. The tables above list the defining pollutant for every day.
Orlando's 10 worst air quality days, 2019–2025
Highest daily AQI recorded for the Orlando-Kissimmee-Sanford, FL area (EPA AQS). The daily AQI is the highest reading from any monitor in the area that day.
| # | Date | AQI | Category | Defining pollutant |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | (2024 page) | 149 | Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups | PM2.5 — fine particulate matter (PM2.5) |
| 2 | (2019 page) | 122 | Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups | O3 — ground-level ozone |
| 3 | (2023 page) | 115 | Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups | O3 — ground-level ozone, in peak ozone season |
| 4 | (2025 page) | 112 | Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups | O3 — ground-level ozone |
| 5 | (2019 page) | 112 | Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups | O3 — ground-level ozone |
| 6 | (2019 page) | 110 | Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups | O3 — ground-level ozone |
| 7 | (2024 page) | 108 | Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups | O3 — ground-level ozone |
| 8 | (2024 page) | 108 | Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups | O3 — ground-level ozone |
| 9 | (2023 page) | 106 | Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups | PM2.5 — fine particulate matter (PM2.5), in wildfire smoke season |
| 10 | (2025 page) | 105 | Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups | O3 — ground-level ozone |
Worst day of each year in Orlando
The single highest-AQI day in each year on record. Click a year for its full month-by-month statistics.
| Year | Worst day | AQI | Category | Defining pollutant |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2019 | 122 | Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups | O3 — ground-level ozone | |
| 2020 | 93 | Moderate | O3 — ground-level ozone | |
| 2021 | 97 | Moderate | O3 — ground-level ozone | |
| 2022 | 97 | Moderate | O3 — ground-level ozone | |
| 2023 | 115 | Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups | O3 — ground-level ozone, in peak ozone season | |
| 2024 | 149 | Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups | PM2.5 — fine particulate matter (PM2.5) | |
| 2025 | 112 | Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups | O3 — ground-level ozone |
Orlando's 10 best air quality days, 2019–2025
Lowest daily AQI recorded for the Orlando-Kissimmee-Sanford, FL area. Ties are listed most recent first.
| # | Date | AQI | Category | Defining pollutant |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | (2019 page) | 16 | Good | O3 — ground-level ozone |
| 2 | (2019 page) | 17 | Good | O3 — ground-level ozone, in peak ozone season |
| 3 | (2020 page) | 21 | Good | PM2.5 — fine particulate matter (PM2.5) |
| 4 | (2020 page) | 21 | Good | O3 — ground-level ozone, in peak ozone season |
| 5 | (2022 page) | 22 | Good | O3 — ground-level ozone, in peak ozone season |
| 6 | (2020 page) | 22 | Good | PM10 — coarse dust (PM10) |
| 7 | (2020 page) | 22 | Good | O3 — ground-level ozone, in peak ozone season |
| 8 | (2019 page) | 22 | Good | PM2.5 — fine particulate matter (PM2.5) |
| 9 | (2025 page) | 23 | Good | O3 — ground-level ozone, in peak ozone season |
| 10 | (2024 page) | 23 | Good | O3 — ground-level ozone |
Right now in Orlando
The latest EPA AirNow observation puts Orlando's AQI at 37 (O3). The days above are historical records, not today's reading.
View current Orlando air quality →Source: EPA Air Quality System (AQS) pre-generated Daily AQI by CBSA files — daily AQI by CBSA (Orlando-Kissimmee-Sanford, FL), 2019–2025. Daily AQI per CBSA is the highest AQI reported by any monitor in the area that day; the defining parameter is the pollutant that set it. Month and season statistics pool every such day in the period across all years listed. Retrieved 2026-09-09.