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Last week, the Eastern U.S. experienced what the Western U.S. has been dealing with for years — dangerous air quality due to wildfires. People in New York City, Philadelphia, and Washington D.C. posted apocalyptic pictures of polluted air on social media.
Weather apps sent air quality alerts and warned people to stay indoors last week. Schools canceled outdoor activities, baseball games were postponed, and airports issued ground-stop orders.
Eventually, the skies started to clear and the air quality alerts ended. But for those who need to know the air quality due to respiratory or other health conditions, looking at the sky may not be sufficient.
Instead, there are quick and easy ways to measure the air quality with tech you already have. No need to download a new app or register on a website. You can easily check the air quality in your area with tech you’re already using.
About Air Quality Levels
The Air Quality Index (AQI) measures the quality of the air using a scale of 0-500. According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, “AQI values below 100 are generally thought of as satisfactory. When AQI values are above 100, air quality is considered to be unhealthy-at first for certain sensitive groups of people, then for everyone as AQI values get higher.”
The EPA AQI levels are:
- Good: 0 to 50 Green
- Moderate: 51 to 100 Yellow
- Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups: 101 to 150 Orange
- Unhealthy: 151 to 200 Red
- Very Unhealthy: 201 to 300 Purple
- Hazardous: 301 and higher Maroon
The EPA explains these levels on its Air Quality page:
- “Good” AQI is 0 – 50. Air quality is considered satisfactory, and air pollution poses little or no risk.
- “Moderate” AQI is 51 – 100. Air quality is acceptable; however, for some pollutants there may be a moderate health concern for a very small number of people. For example, people who are unusually sensitive to ozone may experience respiratory symptoms.
- “Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups” AQI is 101 – 150. Although general public is not likely to be affected at this AQI range, people with lung disease, older adults and children are at a greater risk from exposure to ozone, whereas persons with heart and lung disease, older adults and children are at greater risk from the presence of particles in the air.
- “Unhealthy” AQI is 151 – 200. Everyone may begin to experience some adverse health effects, and members of the sensitive groups may experience more serious effects.
- “Very Unhealthy” AQI is 201 – 300. This would trigger a health alert signifying that everyone may experience more serious health effects.
- “Hazardous” AQI greater than 300. This would trigger health warnings of emergency conditions. The entire population is more likely to be affected.
How to Check Air Quality
If you want to check air quality, you may or may not be able to see the air quality with your eyes. If the skies are bright orange from the smoke, you probably know that it’s not a good idea to go outside for a run. But if the skies are hazy, how can you know whether it’s an air quality issue or just some fog rolling in?
The good news is that you don’t have to search for an air quality website or wait for news updates. You can easily check air quality with these tech tools:
Apple Maps
Apple Maps has a simple way to check air quality where you are: just open the app. The Maps app (which is the name of the Apple Maps app) comes pre-loaded on iPhones so if you have an iPhone, you have Maps already (unless you deleted the app from your iPhone).
Open the app to see the map of where you are currently. In the bottom right corner of the map, you’ll see the AQI reading for your area along with a dot color-coded for the air quality level (green, yellow, etc.).
That’s it. All you have to do is open the Maps app and look at it to see the air quality level. You can also search to see the air quality in other areas.
Note that the AQI information isn’t available in all countries or regions covered by Apple Maps. If you don’t see the AQI reading in Apple Maps, go to Settings => Maps and make sure Air Quality Index is turned on.
Google Maps
Last year, Google Maps added Air Quality as a layer to its maps app. By tapping the layers icon. in the upper right corner of the screen, you can enable the Air Quality layer.
Don’t miss => The Google Maps App Now Shows Air Quality
With the Air Quality layer turned on, you can see a layer of air quality on Google Maps, along with numerical air quality readings in the area.
The Air Quality layer is available for the Google Maps app for Android and iPhone, as well as on the Google Maps website.
Air Quality Widget for iPhone Lock Screen
If you need to know the AQI instantly, you can set a widget on your iPhone lock screen so you see the reading every time you turn on your phone.
This Wonder of Tech article explains how to add widgets to your iPhone lock screen => How to Add Widgets to Your iPhone Lock Screen.
To add the current AQI reading to your iPhone lock screen, choose the Weather widget, then swipe to the last option to choose Air Quality. Tap it to add the Air Quality widget to your lock screen.
Air Quality as an Apple Watch Complication
You can also check AQI at a glance by adding it as a complication to your Apple Watch. (Complications are like widgets for your Apple Watch face.) By adding Air Quality as a complication, you can see the AQI level every time you look at your Watch.
Want to learn how to add a complication to your Apple Watch? Check out => How to Choose and Set Up the Best Apple Watch Face for You
To add the AQI reading for your current area as a complication for your Apple Watch, go to the list of complications, scroll down to Weather, and choose AQI.
Your Thoughts
Have you been affected by poor air quality in your area? Did you know you can easily check the air quality with tech you already have? Do you find it helpful to know the air quality before heading outside?
Share your thoughts in the Comments section below!
*New York City Wildfire Smoke Image (edited) courtesy of Anthony Quintano via Flickr and Creative Commons
Wow that was so helpful
Thanks!!!!
Hi Rene, I’m so glad this article was helpful to you. Thanks for letting us know!