Smoke: keep one room clean
Shut the windows and run an air purifier sized for the room.
Wildfire smoke guide →Air quality in Alabama, county by county
14 Alabama counties have enough EPA monitor data to count bad-air days. Weighted by population, they averaged about 2 days a year from 2021 to 2025 when the air was unhealthy for sensitive groups or worse.
CDC's model, which estimates every county from monitors and satellites, gives the average Alabama county, weighted by population, almost no smoky days (fine particles over 35.4 µg/m³, mostly wildfire smoke) and almost no high-ozone days a year at its worst spot (2018 to 2022). See every county on the map.
Every Alabama county with monitors
Most bad-air days first. 12 have a full report. Compare with the worst and the cleanest counties in the US.
| County | Bad-air days a year | |
|---|---|---|
| Jefferson CountyBirminghamOzone and particles | 7.0 | |
| Madison CountyHuntsvilleOzone | 1.0 | |
| Morgan CountyDecaturWinter particles | 0.6 | |
| Russell CountyPhenix CitySummer smoke | 0.6 | |
| DeKalb CountyFort PayneRarely bad | 0.4 | |
| Shelby CountyAlabasterRarely badparticles not measured | 0.4 | |
| Tuscaloosa CountyTuscaloosaRarely bad | 0.4 | |
| Clay CountyRarely badozone not measured | 0.3 | |
| Mobile CountyMobileRarely bad | 0.2 | |
| Montgomery CountyRarely bad | 0.2 | |
| Baldwin CountyDaphneRarely bad | 0.0 | |
| Elmore CountyMillbrookRarely badparticles not measured | 0.0 | |
| Etowah CountyGadsdenRarely bad | 0.0 | |
| Sumter CountyRarely bad | 0.0 | |
| No Alabama county with a monitor matches “”. Counties without a monitor aren't listed; a neighbor's numbers are a fair guide, or find it on the map. | ||
Counties without a monitor aren't listed. Air doesn't stop at the county line, so a neighbor's numbers are a fair guide.
What helps on a bad-air day
Check AirNow for today's reading and tomorrow's forecast, then match the step to the pollutant.
Upgrade the furnace filter
MERV 13 catches far more smoke than thin fiberglass filters.
Furnace filters →Questions people ask about air quality in Alabama
Which county in Alabama has the worst air?
Among Alabama counties with EPA monitors, Jefferson County had the most bad-air days from 2021 to 2025: about 7 bad-air days a year with an AQI over 100. That's about 1 day in 52.
How often is the air bad in Alabama?
Weighted by population, Alabama counties with monitors averaged about 2 bad-air days a year from 2021 to 2025 with an AQI over 100, when children, older adults and people with asthma should cut back outdoors.
Which county in Alabama has the cleanest air?
4 of the 14 counties with enough monitor data had no bad-air days at all from 2021 to 2025, including Baldwin County, Etowah County and Elmore County. Counties without monitors aren't ranked.
Where can I check today's air quality in Alabama?
AirNow, run by the EPA and its partners, shows current readings and forecasts by ZIP code, and its fire and smoke map adds smoke plumes and low-cost sensors.
Sources: EPA AirData county AQI summaries, 2021 to 2025; CDC Environmental Public Health Tracking Network modeled PM2.5 and ozone, 2018 to 2022. Updated November 8, 2026.