Air quality in Clark County, NV

Includes Las Vegas, Henderson, North Las Vegas and Paradise · EPA monitor readings, 2021 to 2025 · 2.3 million people

Frequent bad daysMostly ozone
Bad-air days a year
30
days with an AQI over 100

About 1 day in 12. That's down from about 63 a year in the early 2000s. Clark County has the most bad-air days of the 9 Nevada counties with monitors.

2days unhealthy for everyoneAQI over 150, a year
62AQI on a typical dayModerate: fine for most people
Jun to Augworst monthsOzone on hot afternoons
480worst day since 2016Sep 8, 2022, dust
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 62 (Moderate)Worst day 480 (Hazardous)
Good0 to 50Moderate51 to 100Sensitive groups101 to 150Unhealthy151 to 200Very unhealthy201 to 300Hazardous301 to 500

When bad air happens in Clark County

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

Jan0.8
Feb0.5
Mar0.3
Apr0.5
May3.2
Jun6.4
Jul8.5
Aug5.2
Sep1.3
Oct0.4
Nov0
Dec1.5
0510JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecOZONE SEASONWINTER0510JFMAMJJASONDOZONEWINTER
Fine particles (smoke, soot)Dust (coarse particles)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 Clark County, from 10 years of daily readings
MonthOzoneFine particlesDustAll
January00.800.8
February00.20.30.5
March00.10.20.3
April0.400.10.5
May2.900.33.2
June6.300.16.4
July7.60.40.58.5
August4.80.405.2
September0.70.20.41.3
October000.40.4
November0000
December01.40.11.5

The worst day since 2016 was September 8, 2022: AQI 480, from dust and coarse particles.

What causes it

The pollutant that pushed the AQI over 100 on each of the 286 bad-air days since 2016.

79%ozone
79%Ozone: smog that forms in sunlight on hot days
12%Fine particles: smoke and soot
8%Dust: coarse particles blown up by wind

Most bad days here are ozone days: smog that builds on hot, sunny afternoons.

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.

January: 0.1 smoky days a yearJFMApril: 0.0 smoky days a yearApril: 0.8 ozone days a yearAMay: 5.2 ozone days a yearMJune: 0.1 smoky days a yearJune: 9.3 ozone days a yearJJuly: 0.1 smoky days a yearJuly: 6.9 ozone days a yearJAugust: 0.2 smoky days a yearAugust: 4.9 ozone days a yearASeptember: 0.1 smoky days a yearSeptember: 0.4 ozone days a yearSOctober: 0.0 smoky days a yearONDecember: 0.0 smoky days a yearDbad daysby month
See the numbers by month
CDC estimated bad-air days a year in each month in Clark County, 2001 to 2022
MonthFine particlesOzone
January0.10
February00
March00
April00.8
May05.2
June0.19.3
July0.16.9
August0.24.9
September0.10.4
October00
November00
December00

What helps in Clark County

Most bad days here are ozone, which builds on hot afternoons. Timing helps most; filters don't remove ozone.

Move workouts to the morning

Ozone peaks on hot, sunny afternoons. Mornings are usually cleaner.

Ozone guide →

Check tomorrow's forecast

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

AirNow →

Keep one room clean on smoky days

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

Choosing a purifier →

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

Parents: what schools do at each AQI level, and how to plan for smoke and ozone days.

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 2024, with 40 bad-air days.

020406080100200077200520102015202020252602040608010020007720102020202526
Unhealthy for sensitive groups (101 to 150)Unhealthy or worse (over 150)
See the numbers by year
Bad-air days each year in Clark County
YearBad-air daysOver 150
2000562
2001774
20026810
20036811
2004473
2005649
2006636
2007496
2008330
2009220
2010330
2011492
2012536
2013384
2014162
2015231
2016261
2017291
2018491
201950
2020253
2021343
2022266
2023261
2024401
2025260

Clark County and its neighbors

Bad-air days a year, 2021 to 2025. Nevada counties with monitors averaged about 25 bad-air days a year, weighted by population.

San Bernardino County130
Clark County30
Inyo County28
Nye County5
Mohave County<1

Questions people ask about air in Clark County

How often is the air bad in Clark County?

From 2021 to 2025, monitors in Clark County recorded about 30 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 2024, with 40 bad-air days.

What causes bad air in Clark County?

Most bad days here are ozone days: smog that builds on hot, sunny afternoons. Bad days cluster in June, July and August.

Where can I see today's air quality in Clark 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 Clark County is about 62, which is moderate, fine for most people. Check it most in June, July and August, 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 365 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 Clark County about 1 high-particle day and about 13 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.