Air Quality score
Health-oriented air-quality conditions with context from WHO, EEA, and EPA benchmarks.
Air Quality in Sydney82/100
Air Quality
Air Quality in Sydney
Sydney has strong baseline air quality with episodic wildfire-smoke and bushfire events as the main exposure pressure. Air Quality in Sydney scores 82/100, placing it in the strong group of the indexed set.
- Last updated
- 2026-05-16
- Data year
- 2025
- Module score
- 82/100
Clean-air score
82/100
Strong baseline air quality with episodic smoke pressure.
Primary pollutant watch
PM2.5 (smoke)
Wildfire and bushfire smoke are the main PM2.5 drivers.
Policy context
Strong
Clean-air monitoring and bushfire alerts support resident health.
Sydney air quality data table
This HTML table mirrors the visible score cards so important comparison data is never trapped in a browser-only chart.
| Metric | Value | Context |
|---|---|---|
| Clean-air score | 82/100 | Bushfire-smoke events drive most exposure spikes. |
| Primary pollutant watch | PM2.5 (smoke) | Indoor-air strategies matter on smoke days. |
| Policy context | Strong | Smoke-event preparedness is integrated into public health. |
Air Quality city comparison
A crawlable comparison across a selection of same-country and top-scoring cities. The complete set is reachable via the rankings, the cities index, and each city profile.
| City | Score | Summary |
|---|---|---|
| Sydney (this page) | 82/100 | Sydney has strong baseline air quality with episodic wildfire-smoke and bushfire events as the main exposure pressure. |
| Perth | 86/100 | Perth performs well against health-oriented air-quality benchmarks, with bushfire smoke the seasonal concern. |
| Melbourne | 84/100 | Melbourne has strong baseline air quality with episodic bushfire smoke the main seasonal concern. |
| Brisbane | 84/100 | Brisbane has strong baseline air quality, supported by coastal context, with episodic bushfire smoke the main seasonal concern. |
| Canberra | 84/100 | Canberra's air-quality profile is a directional indicator framed against WHO and regional benchmarks; verified city-level measurements appear in the dedicated air-quality dataset section once integrated. |
| Hobart | 84/100 | Hobart's air-quality profile is a directional indicator framed against WHO and regional benchmarks; verified city-level measurements appear in the dedicated air-quality dataset section once integrated. |
| Adelaide | 80/100 | Adelaide's air-quality profile is a directional indicator framed against WHO and regional benchmarks; verified city-level measurements appear in the dedicated air-quality dataset section once integrated. |
| Gold Coast | 80/100 | Gold Coast's air-quality profile is a directional indicator framed against WHO and regional benchmarks; verified city-level measurements appear in the dedicated air-quality dataset section once integrated. |
| Newcastle | 80/100 | Newcastle's air-quality profile is a directional indicator framed against WHO and regional benchmarks; verified city-level measurements appear in the dedicated air-quality dataset section once integrated. |
| Cairns | 80/100 | Cairns's air-quality profile is a directional indicator framed against WHO and regional benchmarks; verified city-level measurements appear in the dedicated air-quality dataset section once integrated. |
| Sunshine Coast | 80/100 | Sunshine Coast's air-quality profile is a directional indicator framed against WHO and regional benchmarks; verified city-level measurements appear in the dedicated air-quality dataset section once integrated. |
| Alice Springs | 78/100 | Alice Springs's air-quality profile is a directional indicator framed against WHO and regional benchmarks; verified city-level measurements appear in the dedicated air-quality dataset section once integrated. |
| Darwin | 78/100 | Darwin's air-quality profile is a directional indicator framed against WHO and regional benchmarks; verified city-level measurements appear in the dedicated air-quality dataset section once integrated. |
| Wollongong | 78/100 | Wollongong's air-quality profile is a directional indicator framed against WHO and regional benchmarks; verified city-level measurements appear in the dedicated air-quality dataset section once integrated. |
| Geelong | 78/100 | Geelong's air-quality profile is a directional indicator framed against WHO and regional benchmarks; verified city-level measurements appear in the dedicated air-quality dataset section once integrated. |
| Mount Gambier | 76/100 | Mount Gambier's air-quality profile is a directional indicator framed against WHO and regional benchmarks; verified city-level measurements appear in the dedicated air-quality dataset section once integrated. |
| Orange | 74/100 | Orange's air-quality profile is a directional indicator framed against WHO and regional benchmarks; verified city-level measurements appear in the dedicated air-quality dataset section once integrated. |
| Central Coast | 74/100 | Central Coast's air-quality profile is a directional indicator framed against WHO and regional benchmarks; verified city-level measurements appear in the dedicated air-quality dataset section once integrated. |
| Tamworth | 67/100 | Tamworth's air-quality profile is a directional indicator framed against WHO and regional benchmarks; verified city-level measurements appear in the dedicated air-quality dataset section once integrated. |
| Dubbo | 67/100 | Dubbo's air-quality profile is a directional indicator framed against WHO and regional benchmarks; verified city-level measurements appear in the dedicated air-quality dataset section once integrated. |
| Frankston | 67/100 | Frankston's air-quality profile is a directional indicator framed against WHO and regional benchmarks; verified city-level measurements appear in the dedicated air-quality dataset section once integrated. |
| Bundaberg | 66/100 | Bundaberg's air-quality profile is a directional indicator framed against WHO and regional benchmarks; verified city-level measurements appear in the dedicated air-quality dataset section once integrated. |
| Kalgoorlie | 60/100 | Kalgoorlie's air-quality profile is a directional indicator framed against WHO and regional benchmarks; verified city-level measurements appear in the dedicated air-quality dataset section once integrated. |
| Hervey Bay | 60/100 | Hervey Bay's air-quality profile is a directional indicator framed against WHO and regional benchmarks; verified city-level measurements appear in the dedicated air-quality dataset section once integrated. |
| Gladstone | 58/100 | Gladstone's air-quality profile is a directional indicator framed against WHO and regional benchmarks; verified city-level measurements appear in the dedicated air-quality dataset section once integrated. |
| Ipswich | 58/100 | Ipswich's air-quality profile is a directional indicator framed against WHO and regional benchmarks; verified city-level measurements appear in the dedicated air-quality dataset section once integrated. |
| Bathurst | 58/100 | Bathurst's air-quality profile is a directional indicator framed against WHO and regional benchmarks; verified city-level measurements appear in the dedicated air-quality dataset section once integrated. |
| Townsville | 50/100 | Townsville's air-quality profile is a directional indicator framed against WHO and regional benchmarks; verified city-level measurements appear in the dedicated air-quality dataset section once integrated. |
| Toowoomba | 50/100 | Toowoomba's air-quality profile is a directional indicator framed against WHO and regional benchmarks; verified city-level measurements appear in the dedicated air-quality dataset section once integrated. |
| Ballarat | 50/100 | Ballarat's air-quality profile is a directional indicator framed against WHO and regional benchmarks; verified city-level measurements appear in the dedicated air-quality dataset section once integrated. |
| Bendigo | 50/100 | Bendigo's air-quality profile is a directional indicator framed against WHO and regional benchmarks; verified city-level measurements appear in the dedicated air-quality dataset section once integrated. |
Interpretation
Air-quality scoring weighs baseline pollutant exposure with bushfire-smoke pressure. Sydney's baseline is excellent; smoke events drive most exposure spikes. Across the indexed cities the air quality average is 64/100, so Sydney is 18 points above the median. Data year 2025; last updated 2026-05-16. Drawn from 1 institutional reference.
Read this module with the main open the sydney city profile and the read the scoring methodology page so single-topic pages do not hide tradeoffs across dimensions.
Structured indicators on this page are directional and intended for orientation. Verified datasets are being integrated; official sources should be used for critical decisions.
Sources
One institutional reference informs this view. Structured indicators on this page are directional and intended for orientation; verified datasets are being integrated and official sources should be used for critical decisions.
- World Health Organization: WHO Global Air Quality Guidelines
Used to normalize air-quality indicators toward health-protective benchmarks.
Continue exploring
These links connect module pages back to city, ranking, and sibling topic paths with crawlable href values.
Sydney city profile
Return to the complete Sydney profile with all module scores and source context.
Cost of Living in Sydney
Affordability, essential costs, and day-to-day financial pressure for residents.
Energy in Sydney
Clean-energy readiness, grid resilience, and solar or efficiency opportunity signals.
Safety in Sydney
Personal safety, institutional trust, and resilience signals informed by international safety and crime data.
Internet Speed in Sydney
Broadband and mobile connectivity quality, latency, and digital-readiness signals for residents and remote workers.
Climate Risk in Sydney
Climate exposure, hazard frequency, and adaptation context for floods, heat, storms, and wildfires.
Overall Intelligence
A balanced ranking of cities across affordability, air quality, clean-energy readiness, and resilience.
Quality of Life
Cities that combine strong services, mobility, safety, clean air, and resilience into a healthy day-to-day profile.