Bad Air Days in Montgomery County, Alabama: under 1 a Year
under 1 bad air day a year
Fewer bad air days than most monitored US counties. Ranked 698 of 996 monitored counties, where 1 is worst.
What makes them bad: mostly particles: smoke and dust (67% particle days).
When the bad days come in Montgomery
- J
- F
- M
- A
- M
- J
- J
- A
- S
- O
- N
- D
Most bad days here fall in June. Averaged over 2016 to 2025.
What actually helps here
- Bad air days are rare here. A standard furnace filter is enough; no purifier needed for outdoor air.
- On the odd bad day, check AirNow and keep windows shut.
The record for Montgomery
In 2000 to 2009 this county averaged 13 bad days a year; in 2016 to 2025, under 1. The air has improved. The worst recent year was 2017, with 3 bad days on 346 monitored days.
| Date | AQI | Main pollutant |
|---|---|---|
| 2017-06-22 | 246 | PM2.5 |
| 2016-05-24 | 176 | PM2.5 |
| 2017-03-31 | 128 | PM2.5 |
| 2019-06-04 | 122 | Ozone |
| 2020-06-27 | 116 | PM2.5 |
The air on a normal day
Across 3,524 monitored days from 2016 to 2025, the air in Montgomery County rated Good on 48% of them, less often than the 72% typical of monitored counties, and Moderate on 52%. The median day sat at AQI 50; one day in ten went above 64.
The pollutant setting the AQI on an ordinary day here:
- fine particles (PM2.5)79%2,779 days
- ozone21%743 days
Montgomery County by year
| Year | Days monitored | Good | Moderate | Over 100 | Over 150 | Median AQI | Highest AQI |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025* | 359 | 229 | 130 | 0 | 0 | 44 | 90 |
| 2024 | 358 | 247 | 110 | 1 | 0 | 42 | 102 |
| 2023 | 331 | 138 | 193 | 0 | 0 | 52 | 93 |
| 2022 | 363 | 269 | 94 | 0 | 0 | 41 | 96 |
| 2021 | 354 | 222 | 132 | 0 | 0 | 44 | 93 |
| 2020 | 361 | 70 | 289 | 2 | 0 | 58 | 116 |
| 2019 | 365 | 84 | 280 | 1 | 0 | 57 | 122 |
| 2018 | 324 | 81 | 243 | 0 | 0 | 57 | 93 |
| 2017 | 346 | 144 | 199 | 3 | 1 | 53 | 246 |
| 2016 | 363 | 193 | 168 | 2 | 1 | 48 | 176 |
| 2015 | 359 | 135 | 223 | 1 | 0 | 53 | 115 |
| 2014 | 284 | 208 | 76 | 0 | 0 | 43 | 87 |
| 2013 | 285 | 208 | 77 | 0 | 0 | 42 | 87 |
| 2012 | 280 | 179 | 100 | 1 | 0 | 46 | 102 |
| 2011 | 278 | 158 | 118 | 2 | 0 | 48 | 108 |
| 2010 | 364 | 106 | 252 | 6 | 0 | 56 | 129 |
*2025 may be a partial year in EPA's file.
Nearby counties on file
- Jefferson County7/yr
- Shelby County2/yr
- Etowah Countyunder 1/yr
- Mobile Countyunder 1/yr
- Madison Countyunder 1/yr
- Morgan Countyunder 1/yr
- Tuscaloosa Countyunder 1/yr
- Lawrence Countythin data
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.