Air quality in Perry County, KY

Q: How often is the air bad in Perry County?

From 2021 to 2025, monitors in Perry County recorded about 2 bad-air days a year with an AQI above 100, which is unhealthy for sensitive groups or worse. The worst year in that stretch was 2023, with 4 bad-air days.

Q: What causes bad air in Perry County?

The rare bad days here are mostly fine-particle days, spread through the year, with the most in March, June and November.

Q: Where can I see today's air quality in Perry County?

AirNow, run by the EPA and its partners, shows the current AQI and tomorrow's forecast for your ZIP code. Its fire and smoke map adds smoke plumes. On a typical day the AQI in Perry County is about 42, which is good, fine for everyone. Check it most in March, June and November, when bad days here cluster.

EPA monitor readings, 2021 to 2025 · 28,000 people

A few bad days a yearMostly fine particles

For today's air and tomorrow's forecast, check AirNow by ZIP code.

Bad-air days a year

days with an AQI over 100

9 bad-air days in 5 years of readings, 2021 to 2025. That's down from about 8 a year in the early 2000s. Perry County is tied with 1 other Kentucky county for the 7th most bad-air days of the 25 with monitors.

<1day unhealthy for everyoneAQI over 150, a year

42AQI on a typical dayGood: fine for everyone

Mar, Jun and Novworst monthsFine particles, spread through the year

172worst day since 2016Mar 12, 2025, fine particles

How to read the AQIThe EPA's air score runs from 0 to 500. Higher is worse. Over 100 counts as a bad-air day.

Typical day 42 (Good)Worst day 172 (Unhealthy)

Good0 to 50Moderate51 to 100Sensitive groups101 to 150Unhealthy151 to 200Very unhealthy201 to 300Hazardous301 to 500

When bad air happens in Perry County

Average bad-air days in each month, from 10 years of daily readings since 2016. Most fall in March, June and November.

Jan0

Feb0.1

Mar0.2

Apr0

May0

Jun0.3

Jul0.1

Aug0

Sep0

Oct0

Nov0.4

Dec0

Fine particles (smoke, soot)Ozone (smog)Bars stack in that order, from the bottom.

See the numbers by month

Average bad-air days a year in each month in Perry County, from 10 years of daily readings
Month	Fine particles	All
January	0	0
February	0.1	0.1
March	0.2	0.2
April	0	0
May	0	0
June	0.3	0.3
July	0.1	0.1
August	0	0
September	0	0
October	0	0
November	0.4	0.4
December	0	0

The worst day since 2016 was March 12, 2025: AQI 172, from fine particles.

What causes it

The pollutant that pushed the AQI over 100 on each of the 11 bad-air days since 2016.

100%Fine particles: smoke and soot

The rare bad days here are mostly fine-particle days, spread through the year, with the most in March, June and November.

CDC estimates by month, 2001 to 2022

The CDC's model counts bad-air days at the county's worst spot, from monitors and satellites. Particles (brown) fill the inside of the ring and ozone (blue) the outside.

See it on the map Compare with Harlan County Smoke or smog?

See the numbers by month

CDC estimated bad-air days a year in each month in Perry County, 2001 to 2022
Month	Fine particles	Ozone
January	0	0
February	0	0
March	0	0.1
April	0	0.5
May	0	0.5
June	0.1	1.1
July	0	0.1
August	0.1	0.7
September	0	0.5
October	0	0
November	0.2	0
December	0	0

What helps in Perry County

Most bad days here are fine particles in the colder months. Filtering the air at home helps most.

Keep one room clean on smoky days

Shut the windows and run an air purifier sized for the room.

Choosing a purifier →

Upgrade the furnace filter

Use MERV 13 if your system can take it, and run the fan on smoky days.

Furnace filters →

Check tomorrow's forecast

AirNow posts an air quality forecast by ZIP code, usually the day before.

AirNow →

For today's reading and tomorrow's forecast, check AirNow by ZIP code. Its fire and smoke map adds smoke plumes.

Purifiers with a verified smoke rating

For a clean room on smoky days. Each has a smoke CADR tested by AHAM's independent program and is certified by California as a mechanical cleaner, so it makes no ozone.

Bedroom or small room

Levoit Vital 100S-P

143 smoke CADR

Everyday: up to 222 sq ft
Heavy smoke: up to 143 sq ft
Filters: about $40 a year

The cheapest unit we found with a verified smoke rating. Enough for a bedroom clean room.

$119.99 at Levoit

Best value for smoke

Levoit Vital 200S-P

250 smoke CADR

Everyday: up to 388 sq ft
Heavy smoke: up to 250 sq ft
Filters: about $50 a year

The most verified smoke cleaning per dollar of any qualifying model: 75% more than the 100S-P for $50 more.

$169.99 at Levoit

Living room or open floor

Levoit Core 600S-P

391 smoke CADR

Everyday: up to 606 sq ft
Heavy smoke: up to 391 sq ft
Filters: $60 to $120 a year

For a big room or a small apartment. Buy the LAP-C601S-WUS version, which CARB lists as mechanical.

$299.99 at Levoit

Why all 3 are Levoit: of the models we checked that pass both tests, these give the most verified smoke cleaning per dollar at each room size. Medify's MA-25 and MA-40 also pass but cost more for the same cleaning.

Ratings from the AHAM Verifide directory and CARB's certified list. Prices from Levoit's site, checked November 7, 2026; they change. We don't earn anything from these links. How to pick a purifier

Every year since 2000

Bad-air days each year. The striped part is days unhealthy for everyone, over AQI 150. The worst recent year was 2023, with 4 bad-air days.

Unhealthy for sensitive groups (101 to 150)Unhealthy or worse (over 150)

See the numbers by year

Bad-air days each year in Perry County
Year	Bad-air days	Over 150
2000	9	1
2001	10	2
2002	17	2
2003	5	0
2004	1	0
2005	10	0
2006	5	0
2007	15	1
2008	6	0
2009	0	0
2010	4	0
2011	0	0
2012	3	0
2013	0	0
2014	0	0
2015	0	0
2016	2	1
2017	0	0
2018	0	0
2019	0	0
2020	0	0
2021	0	0
2022	3	2
2023	4	0
2024	1	0
2025	1	1

Perry County and its neighbors

Bad-air days a year, 2021 to 2025. Kentucky counties with monitors averaged about 4 bad-air days a year, weighted by population.

Perry County2

Nearest counties with a full report: Pike County, KY (under 1 bad-air day a year), Bell County, KY (1 bad-air day a year), Pulaski County, KY (under 1 bad-air day a year).

Questions people ask about air in Perry County

How often is the air bad in Perry County?

From 2021 to 2025, monitors in Perry County recorded about 2 bad-air days a year with an AQI above 100, which is unhealthy for sensitive groups or worse. The worst year in that stretch was 2023, with 4 bad-air days.

What causes bad air in Perry County?

The rare bad days here are mostly fine-particle days, spread through the year, with the most in March, June and November.

Where can I see today's air quality in Perry County?

AirNow, run by the EPA and its partners, shows the current AQI and tomorrow's forecast for your ZIP code. Its fire and smoke map adds smoke plumes. On a typical day the AQI in Perry County is about 42, which is good, fine for everyone. Check it most in March, June and November, when bad days here cluster.

About these numbers

Day counts come from the EPA's county air quality summaries, which take the worst reading across a county's monitors each day. Monitors here reported on about 359 days a year from 2021 to 2025. A county is large, and your street can be cleaner or worse. CDC's model, which estimates every county from monitors and satellites, gives the worst spot in Perry County almost no high-particle days and almost no high-ozone days a year from 2018 to 2022.

Sources: EPA AirData county AQI summaries (2000 to 2025) and daily county AQI (2016 to 2025); CDC Environmental Public Health Tracking Network modeled PM2.5 and ozone (2001 to 2022). Updated November 8, 2026.