Vancouver Air Quality in Summer
Across 2019–2025, Vancouver's summer (June–August) air quality had a median AQI of 39 (Good) over 644 monitored days in the Portland-Vancouver-Hillsboro, OR-WA area. 2.7% of summer days (17 of 644) reached Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups or worse, and ground-level ozone set the daily AQI on 76.7% of days. The cleanest summer on record here was 2019 (median AQI 37, 1 day above 100) and the worst was 2023 (median 43, 5 days above 100, peak AQI 153).
- Good: 78.4%
- Moderate: 18.9%
- Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups: 2.2%
- Unhealthy or worse: 0.5%
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How is the air in Vancouver in summer?
Good on a typical day: median AQI 39 across 2019–2025, with 2.7% of summer days above AQI 100. Ground-level ozone is the main driver.
- ✓78.4% of summer days were Good (AQI 0–50), 18.9% Moderate (51–100).
- ✓17 days of 644 reached AQI 101+; the summer peak was 161.
- ✓Cleanest month: June; worst month: August.
Frequently asked questions
What is the air quality like in Vancouver in summer?▾
Across 2019–2025, the median daily AQI in Vancouver in summer was 39 (Good). 78.4% of days were Good, 18.9% Moderate, and 2.7% reached Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups or worse, based on 644 monitored days in EPA's Air Quality System.
Is summer a good time for outdoor exercise in Vancouver?▾
A typical summer day in Vancouver sits in the Good range (median AQI 39), so running, cycling and children's outdoor play are fine for everyone on most days; about 1 day in 37 of summer days (2.7%) reached AQI 101+ in 2019–2025.
Which pollutant causes Vancouver's summer air quality problems?▾
Ground-level ozone set the daily AQI on 76.7% of summer days in Vancouver. The highest summer AQI recorded in 2019–2025 was 161 (Unhealthy), in 2023.
Vancouver summer air quality, year by year
Vancouver summer air quality by year (Portland-Vancouver-Hillsboro, OR-WA, EPA AQS daily AQI)
| Year | Days monitored | Median AQI | Days above 100 | Peak AQI | Main pollutant |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2019cleanest | 92 | 37 | 1 | 101 | O3 |
| 2020 | 92 | 36 | 2 | 122 | O3 |
| 2021 | 92 | 40 | 1 | 161 | O3 |
| 2022 | 92 | 37 | 2 | 133 | O3 |
| 2023worst | 92 | 43 | 5 | 153 | O3 |
| 2024 | 92 | 42 | 4 | 126 | O3 |
| 2025 | 92 | 40 | 2 | 119 | O3 |
What summer air means in Vancouver
A typical summer day in Vancouver sits in the Good range (median AQI 39), so running, cycling and children's outdoor play are fine for everyone on most days; about 1 day in 37 of summer days (2.7%) reached AQI 101+ in 2019–2025.
Summer's median AQI of 39 is in line with Vancouver's whole-year median of 41, so this period is neither a clean nor a dirty stretch for the area. Nationally, the median Summer AQI across every EPA metro area (308,645 metro-days, 2019–2025) is 46, so Vancouver runs below the national Summer norm; 2.7% of its Summer days topped AQI 100 versus 3.6% nationally (about the same).
Within the season, June is the cleanest month (median AQI 37, 0.0% of days above 100) and August the worst (median 42, 6.0% above 100).
Activity-specific thresholds: running, cycling, kids' sports.
Right now in Vancouver
The latest EPA AirNow observation puts Vancouver's AQI at 28 (PM2.5). The figures above are multi-year season statistics, not today's reading.
View current Vancouver air quality →Source: EPA Air Quality System (AQS) pre-generated Daily AQI by CBSA files — daily AQI by CBSA (Portland-Vancouver-Hillsboro, OR-WA), 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.