Bad Air Days in Hidalgo County, Texas: 5 a Year

5 bad air days a year

More bad air days than three quarters of monitored counties. Ranked 249 of 996 monitored counties, where 1 is worst.

What makes them bad: mostly particles: smoke and dust (93% particle days).

When the bad days come in Hidalgo

Most bad days here fall in May and April and June. Averaged over 2016 to 2025.

Is a purifier worth it here?

Particles (wildfire smoke, dust) cause enough bad days here to matter. A HEPA purifier sized to your bedroom removes them; run it with windows shut on bad days.

The worst days on file

In 2000 to 2009 this county averaged 4 bad days a year; in 2016 to 2025, 5. Not much has changed. The worst recent year was 2024, with 24 bad days on 366 monitored days.

Date	AQI	Main pollutant
2020-06-27	157	PM2.5
2024-06-05	157	PM2.5
2024-05-27	153	PM2.5
2020-06-26	152	PM2.5
2024-05-26	152	PM2.5

Most days, not the worst ones

Across 3,641 monitored days from 2016 to 2025, the air in Hidalgo County rated Good on 53% of them, less often than the 72% typical of monitored counties, and Moderate on 46%. The median day sat at AQI 49; one day in ten went above 71.

The pollutant setting the AQI on an ordinary day here:

fine particles (PM2.5)79%2,877 days
ozone20%746 days

Every recent year on file

Year	Days monitored	Good	Moderate	Over 100	Over 150	Median AQI	Highest AQI
2025*	365	162	199	4	0	52	140
2024	366	150	192	24	5	54	157
2023	357	206	151	0	0	44	95
2022	365	197	165	3	0	49	136
2021	363	169	192	2	0	52	108
2020	366	222	139	5	2	44	157
2019	365	184	179	2	0	50	106
2018	363	173	186	4	0	51	115
2017	365	218	147	0	0	47	96
2016	366	232	133	1	0	43	114
2015	365	189	175	1	0	49	107
2014	365	203	162	0	0	47	89
2013	365	224	140	1	0	45	106
2012	366	169	197	0	0	51	84
2011	365	173	191	1	0	52	101
2010	362	186	176	0	0	50	91

*2025 may be a partial year in EPA's file.

Nearby counties on file

How this is counted

A bad air day is a day the county's daily AQI from EPA AirData went above 100, the level where EPA tells children, older adults and people with asthma or heart disease to cut back outdoors. Monitors do not run every day, so yearly counts are scaled to 365 days. This is the record, not today's air: for that, check AirNow. More on the method in how the county numbers are made, on the AQI 100 line in what counts as a bad air day.