City Guide

San Francisco AQI planning guide

In San Francisco, air quality decisions often depend on whether the issue is a routine urban reading or a regional smoke event that changes the whole day.

Start with AQI 92Read the AQI detail page

Planning AQI

92

Berkeley Earth 24-hour comparison

1.41

cigarette-equivalents per day

Category

Moderate

Live AQI and forecast

The live API was unavailable, rate-limited, or returned no usable data. The planning baseline is shown separately and is not a current reading.

Static fallback

Fallback planning baseline

92

Planning baseline: about 1.41 cigarettes per 24h

Peak concern season

Aug-Nov

Bay Area smoke events are usually the main reason a moderate day becomes a protection day.

Repeat-use trigger

Transit + school

BART, school pickup, and afternoon outdoor plans often need separate checks.

Indoor priority

Work + sleep

During smoke events, clean air for work-from-home hours and overnight sleep matters most.

Upcoming forecast

Fire season smoke can create fast afternoon changes even after a clean morning.

Source note: Regional readings are useful, but neighborhood differences and shifting marine air mean the number should be rechecked before long outdoor plans.

What to do now in San Francisco

This decision block uses the latest live value when available, otherwise the city planning baseline.

Updated Oct 8, 12:20 PM UTC

Using fallback planning baseline

AQI 92

Moderate

About 1.41 cigarettes per 24h at this reading.

Sensitive groups may notice irritation with longer outdoor exposure or exercise.

Shift hard workouts to cleaner hours or indoor spaces.
Limit unnecessary exposure for children and sensitive groups.
Keep a mask and indoor-air plan ready if readings continue rising.

Common planning patterns

Neighborhood conditions can feel uneven even when the regional number looks moderate.
Bay Area smoke events can worsen quickly with shifting winds.
A low-reading morning does not guarantee a clean afternoon during fire season.

City planning checklist

  • Recheck readings before long outdoor plans.
  • Use a cleaner indoor fallback for work, sleep, and child care during smoke events.
  • Save useful calculator presets for commute and all-day exposure.

Useful next pages for this city

These linked pages answer the kinds of follow-up questions people usually have after checking the reading.

Browse more city guides

Commute exposure planner

Use AQI to decide whether a daily commute is routine, cautionary, or worth changing.

Kids and school exposure guide

Plan school runs, recess, and after-school time when children are more sensitive than adults.

Wildfire smoke response plan

Use AQI to decide when normal air-quality habits are not enough and smoke response should begin.