Air Quality score
Health-oriented air-quality conditions with context from WHO, EEA, and EPA benchmarks.
Air Quality in Wellington88/100
Air Quality
Air Quality in Wellington
Wellington performs well on air-quality benchmarks, with coastal winds supporting dispersion. Air Quality in Wellington scores 88/100, placing it in the strong group of the indexed set.
- Last updated
- 2026-05-16
- Data year
- 2025
- Module score
- 88/100
Clean-air score
88/100
Healthy directional performance against pollutant benchmarks.
Primary pollutant watch
Winter PM2.5
Wintertime particulates remain a seasonal benchmark.
Monitoring confidence
High
Public monitoring supports transparent comparison.
Wellington air quality data table
This HTML table mirrors the visible score cards so important comparison data is never trapped in a browser-only chart.
| Metric | Value | Context |
|---|---|---|
| Clean-air score | 88/100 | Coastal winds support results. |
| Primary pollutant watch | Winter PM2.5 | Wood-burning shapes seasonal exposure. |
| Monitoring confidence | High | New Zealand monitoring is well-instrumented. |
Air Quality city comparison
A crawlable comparison across a selection of same-country and top-scoring cities. The complete set is reachable via the rankings, the cities index, and each city profile.
| City | Score | Summary |
|---|---|---|
| Wellington (this page) | 88/100 | Wellington performs well on air-quality benchmarks, with coastal winds supporting dispersion. |
| Auckland | 86/100 | Auckland has strong baseline air quality, supported by coastal context and comparatively low pollutant exposure. |
| Invercargill | 82/100 | Invercargill's air-quality profile is a directional indicator framed against WHO and regional benchmarks; verified city-level measurements appear in the dedicated air-quality dataset section once integrated. |
| Dunedin | 82/100 | Dunedin's air-quality profile is a directional indicator framed against WHO and regional benchmarks; verified city-level measurements appear in the dedicated air-quality dataset section once integrated. |
| Tauranga | 82/100 | Tauranga's air-quality profile is a directional indicator framed against WHO and regional benchmarks; verified city-level measurements appear in the dedicated air-quality dataset section once integrated. |
| Queenstown | 82/100 | Queenstown's air-quality profile is a directional indicator framed against WHO and regional benchmarks; verified city-level measurements appear in the dedicated air-quality dataset section once integrated. |
| Lower Hutt | 80/100 | Lower Hutt's air-quality profile is a directional indicator framed against WHO and regional benchmarks; verified city-level measurements appear in the dedicated air-quality dataset section once integrated. |
| Christchurch | 80/100 | Christchurch's air-quality profile is a directional indicator framed against WHO and regional benchmarks; verified city-level measurements appear in the dedicated air-quality dataset section once integrated. |
| Napier | 80/100 | Napier's air-quality profile is a directional indicator framed against WHO and regional benchmarks; verified city-level measurements appear in the dedicated air-quality dataset section once integrated. |
| Blenheim | 74/100 | Blenheim's air-quality profile is a directional indicator framed against WHO and regional benchmarks; verified city-level measurements appear in the dedicated air-quality dataset section once integrated. |
| Gisborne | 72/100 | Gisborne's air-quality profile is a directional indicator framed against WHO and regional benchmarks; verified city-level measurements appear in the dedicated air-quality dataset section once integrated. |
| Hastings | 67/100 | Hastings's air-quality profile is a directional indicator framed against WHO and regional benchmarks; verified city-level measurements appear in the dedicated air-quality dataset section once integrated. |
| Upper Hutt | 66/100 | Upper Hutt's air-quality profile is a directional indicator framed against WHO and regional benchmarks; verified city-level measurements appear in the dedicated air-quality dataset section once integrated. |
| Whanganui | 65/100 | Whanganui's air-quality profile is a directional indicator framed against WHO and regional benchmarks; verified city-level measurements appear in the dedicated air-quality dataset section once integrated. |
| Paraparaumu | 60/100 | Paraparaumu's air-quality profile is a directional indicator framed against WHO and regional benchmarks; verified city-level measurements appear in the dedicated air-quality dataset section once integrated. |
| Hibiscus Coast | 59/100 | Hibiscus Coast's air-quality profile is a directional indicator framed against WHO and regional benchmarks; verified city-level measurements appear in the dedicated air-quality dataset section once integrated. |
| Porirua | 58/100 | Porirua's air-quality profile is a directional indicator framed against WHO and regional benchmarks; verified city-level measurements appear in the dedicated air-quality dataset section once integrated. |
| Palmerston North | 50/100 | Palmerston North's air-quality profile is a directional indicator framed against WHO and regional benchmarks; verified city-level measurements appear in the dedicated air-quality dataset section once integrated. |
| Nelson | 50/100 | Nelson's air-quality profile is a directional indicator framed against WHO and regional benchmarks; verified city-level measurements appear in the dedicated air-quality dataset section once integrated. |
| Rotorua | 50/100 | Rotorua's air-quality profile is a directional indicator framed against WHO and regional benchmarks; verified city-level measurements appear in the dedicated air-quality dataset section once integrated. |
| New Plymouth | 50/100 | New Plymouth's air-quality profile is a directional indicator framed against WHO and regional benchmarks; verified city-level measurements appear in the dedicated air-quality dataset section once integrated. |
| Whangārei | 50/100 | Whangārei's air-quality profile is a directional indicator framed against WHO and regional benchmarks; verified city-level measurements appear in the dedicated air-quality dataset section once integrated. |
| Hamilton | 50/100 | Hamilton's air-quality profile is a directional indicator framed against WHO and regional benchmarks; verified city-level measurements appear in the dedicated air-quality dataset section once integrated. |
| Reykjavik | 90/100 | Reykjavik's air-quality profile is a directional indicator framed against WHO and regional benchmarks; verified city-level measurements appear in the dedicated air-quality dataset section once integrated. |
| Copenhagen | 88/100 | Copenhagen performs well on clean-air context, helped by compact mobility, regional monitoring, and strong European air-quality governance. |
| Zurich | 88/100 | Zurich performs strongly on clean air, supported by compact transit-led mobility and rigorous European monitoring. |
| Helsinki | 88/100 | Helsinki performs well against health-oriented air-quality benchmarks with steady European monitoring. |
| Oslo | 87/100 | Oslo performs well against health-oriented air-quality benchmarks, with strong European monitoring context. |
| Ponta Delgada | 86/100 | Ponta Delgada's air-quality profile is a directional indicator framed against WHO and regional benchmarks; verified city-level measurements appear in the dedicated air-quality dataset section once integrated. |
| Espoo | 86/100 | Espoo's air-quality profile is a directional indicator framed against WHO and regional benchmarks; verified city-level measurements appear in the dedicated air-quality dataset section once integrated. |
| Vancouver | 86/100 | Vancouver has strong baseline air quality, helped by coastal context, with episodic wildfire smoke the main seasonal concern. |
Interpretation
Scoring prioritizes health against WHO guidance. Across the indexed cities the air quality average is 64/100, so Wellington is 24 points above the median. Data year 2025; last updated 2026-05-16. Drawn from 1 institutional reference.
Read this module with the main open the wellington city profile and the read the scoring methodology page so single-topic pages do not hide tradeoffs across dimensions.
Structured indicators on this page are directional and intended for orientation. Verified datasets are being integrated; official sources should be used for critical decisions.
Sources
One institutional reference informs this view. Structured indicators on this page are directional and intended for orientation; verified datasets are being integrated and official sources should be used for critical decisions.
- World Health Organization: WHO Global Air Quality Guidelines
Used to normalize air-quality indicators toward health-protective benchmarks.
Continue exploring
These links connect module pages back to city, ranking, and sibling topic paths with crawlable href values.
Wellington city profile
Return to the complete Wellington profile with all module scores and source context.
Cost of Living in Wellington
Affordability, essential costs, and day-to-day financial pressure for residents.
Energy in Wellington
Clean-energy readiness, grid resilience, and solar or efficiency opportunity signals.
Safety in Wellington
Personal safety, institutional trust, and resilience signals informed by international safety and crime data.
Internet Speed in Wellington
Broadband and mobile connectivity quality, latency, and digital-readiness signals for residents and remote workers.
Climate Risk in Wellington
Climate exposure, hazard frequency, and adaptation context for floods, heat, storms, and wildfires.
Overall Intelligence
A balanced ranking of cities across affordability, air quality, clean-energy readiness, and resilience.
Quality of Life
Cities that combine strong services, mobility, safety, clean air, and resilience into a healthy day-to-day profile.