West Palm Beach Best & Worst AQI Days: Air Quality Guide
The worst air quality day on record for West Palm Beach (Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FL area) was January 1, 2024, when the daily AQI reached 197 (Unhealthy), set by fine particulate matter (PM2.5). Across 2,556 monitored days in 2019–2025, 6 of the 10 worst days were Unhealthy (AQI 151+) or worse; 9 of the 10 were driven by fine particulate matter (PM2.5) and 1 by ground-level ozone, and 3 of them fell in 2023. The cleanest day was September 1, 2019 at AQI 1 (Good); the 10 best days span 3 different years.
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When were West Palm Beach's worst and best air quality days?
Worst: January 1, 2024, AQI 197 (Unhealthy, PM2.5). Best: September 1, 2019, AQI 1 (Good). Based on 2,556 EPA-monitored days in the Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FL area, 2019–2025.
- ✓6 of the 10 worst days were Unhealthy (AQI 151+) or worse; the 10th-worst was AQI 135 (Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups).
- ✓Fine particulate matter (PM2.5) drove 9 of the 10 worst days.
- ✓2023 accounts for 3 of the 10 worst days.
Frequently asked questions
What was the worst air quality day in West Palm Beach?▾
January 1, 2024: the Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FL area's daily AQI hit 197 (Unhealthy), driven by fine particulate matter (PM2.5). That is the highest of 2,556 monitored days in 2019–2025.
What was the best air quality day in West Palm Beach?▾
September 1, 2019, with a daily AQI of 1 (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 West Palm Beach's worst air quality day in 2025?▾
March 20, 2025, AQI 113 (Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups), set by fine particulate matter (PM2.5).
Which pollutant causes West Palm Beach's worst air days?▾
Fine particulate matter (PM2.5) set the AQI on 9 of the 10 worst days; ground-level ozone on 1. The tables above list the defining pollutant for every day.
West Palm Beach's 10 worst air quality days, 2019–2025
Highest daily AQI recorded for the Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, 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) | 197 | Unhealthy | PM2.5 — fine particulate matter (PM2.5) |
| 2 | (2024 page) | 190 | Unhealthy | PM2.5 — fine particulate matter (PM2.5) |
| 3 | (2023 page) | 170 | Unhealthy | PM2.5 — fine particulate matter (PM2.5) |
| 4 | (2024 page) | 162 | Unhealthy | PM2.5 — fine particulate matter (PM2.5) |
| 5 | (2023 page) | 156 | Unhealthy | PM2.5 — fine particulate matter (PM2.5) |
| 6 | (2023 page) | 154 | Unhealthy | O3 — ground-level ozone |
| 7 | (2019 page) | 146 | Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups | PM2.5 — fine particulate matter (PM2.5) |
| 8 | (2020 page) | 142 | Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups | PM2.5 — fine particulate matter (PM2.5), in wildfire smoke season |
| 9 | (2022 page) | 136 | Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups | PM2.5 — fine particulate matter (PM2.5) |
| 10 | (2021 page) | 135 | Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups | PM2.5 — fine particulate matter (PM2.5) |
Worst day of each year in West Palm Beach
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 | 146 | Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups | PM2.5 — fine particulate matter (PM2.5) | |
| 2020 | 142 | Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups | PM2.5 — fine particulate matter (PM2.5), in wildfire smoke season | |
| 2021 | 135 | Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups | PM2.5 — fine particulate matter (PM2.5) | |
| 2022 | 136 | Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups | PM2.5 — fine particulate matter (PM2.5) | |
| 2023 | 170 | Unhealthy | PM2.5 — fine particulate matter (PM2.5) | |
| 2024 | 197 | Unhealthy | PM2.5 — fine particulate matter (PM2.5) | |
| 2025 | 113 | Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups | PM2.5 — fine particulate matter (PM2.5) |
West Palm Beach's 10 best air quality days, 2019–2025
Lowest daily AQI recorded for the Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FL area. Ties are listed most recent first.
| # | Date | AQI | Category | Defining pollutant |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | (2019 page) | 1 | Good | CO — carbon monoxide |
| 2 | (2019 page) | 19 | Good | O3 — ground-level ozone |
| 3 | (2019 page) | 25 | Good | O3 — ground-level ozone |
| 4 | (2019 page) | 25 | Good | O3 — ground-level ozone, in peak ozone season |
| 5 | (2024 page) | 26 | Good | PM2.5 — fine particulate matter (PM2.5) |
| 6 | (2024 page) | 26 | Good | O3 — ground-level ozone, in peak ozone season |
| 7 | (2019 page) | 26 | Good | PM2.5 — fine particulate matter (PM2.5) |
| 8 | (2019 page) | 26 | Good | O3 — ground-level ozone, in peak ozone season |
| 9 | (2025 page) | 28 | Good | NO2 — nitrogen dioxide |
| 10 | (2024 page) | 28 | Good | O3 — ground-level ozone |
Right now in West Palm Beach
The latest EPA AirNow observation puts West Palm Beach's AQI at 28 (PM2.5). The days above are historical records, not today's reading.
View current West Palm Beach air quality →Source: EPA Air Quality System (AQS) pre-generated Daily AQI by CBSA files — daily AQI by CBSA (Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, 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.