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

Current observations and forecasts come from the US EPA AirNow network. Current AQI is an area-level NowCast; local smoke shifts can still change conditions quickly.

AirNow

Current reading

45

Good

San Francisco, CA • 2026-08-23 15:00 PST

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

2026-08-23

AQI 51

Moderate

2026-08-24

AQI 53

Moderate

2026-08-25

AQI -1

Good

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 Aug 23, 11:13 PM UTC

Using live AQI

AQI 45

Good

About 0.37 cigarettes per 24h at this reading.

Short outdoor activity is generally low risk when AQI stays in this range.

Proceed with normal outdoor activity.
Use the day to ventilate and prepare before worse conditions arrive.
Check tomorrow's forecast if wildfire smoke or inversion is developing.

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.