South Dakota · County air quality · 2025
Custer County, South Dakota
Median AQI 45 (Good). 73.6% of monitored days rated Good, direct from EPA Air Quality System stations.
- 45
- Median AQI
- 73.6%
- Good-air days
- 0
- Unhealthy days
- 41%
- Cleaner than US counties
Custer County's 2025 annual median AQI is 45 (Good), with 73.6% Good days
According to the U.S. EPA Air Quality System, Custer County, South Dakota posted a 2025 median AQI of 45 (Good) across 360 monitored days, with 73.6% rated Good and 0 unhealthy or worse. This is an annual comparison, not today's advisory.
Data source EPA Air Quality System (AQS)
- Cleaner than US
- Custer County's 73.6% Good-day share places it cleaner than 41% of US counties in 2025.
- Closest median-AQI peer
- Baltimore County (64.7% Good, median AQI 45) is the closest nationwide median-AQI peer to Custer County.
- 2020–2025 trend
- Custer County's floor-qualifying Good-day share is worsening from 2020 to 2025 (88.3% → 73.6%).
- Median AQI
- Median AQI: 45
According to the 2025 EPA AQS county release on PlainAirData, Custer County, South Dakota ranks #750 of 951 by median AQI (45) and #562 by good-day share (73.6%). Ponce County, Puerto Rico is #1 of 951 by median AQI (3, 91.4% Good days) at good-day-share #159 ≠ largest of 7 at 100.0% Good days #1 by good-day share (100.0%, median AQI 9) at median-AQI #7.
Annual release change
What changed in the 2025 EPA annual release
- Custer County's peak single-day AQI fell from 126 to 87 between the 2024 and 2025 EPA annual releases, a change of -39 points.
- Custer County's Good-day share fell from 75.4% to 73.6% between the 2024 and 2025 EPA annual releases, a change of -1.8 percentage points.
Data updated August 2026
- Good · 265 d · 73.6%
- Moderate · 95 d · 26.4%
How did Custer County's air break down in 2025?
Across 360 monitored days, 265 fell in the Good band (AQI 0–50) and 0 reached Unhealthy or worse. The worst single day peaked at AQI 87 (Moderate).
EPA AQS →Share of monitored days at AQI 0-50 (Good band).
Share of monitored days above AQI 150 (Unhealthy or worse). Bar maxes at 10% (worst-county ceiling).
Where Custer County sits nationally
COUNT-derived placement among 951 US counties with at least 100 monitored days in 2025. Custer County's Good-day share is 73.6% - cleaner than 41% of that comparison set.
Custer County Good-day share vs. every US county
Share of monitored days in the Good band (AQI 0–50) - EPA AQS annual release
73.6% 41st percentile higher than 41% of 951 US counties
Each bar is a band; taller bars hold more US counties. The dashed line + filled bar mark this entry. Hover or tap any bar for its full count, share, and where it sits relative to this entry.
Source U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Air Quality System (AQS) · 2025
Pollutant Breakdown
Days where each pollutant was the primary driver of AQI readings in Custer County.
- Ozone · 229 days · 63.6%
- PM2.5 · 131 days · 36.4%
2024 daily-monitor rhythm in Custer County
Month-by-month median AQI from EPA day-level county monitors (366 reported days in 2024). Jul posted the highest typical readings (median AQI 65, peak 126); Nov was cleanest at median 38. Summer months (Jun–Aug) averaged median AQI 54 vs 39 in Dec–Feb.
Five-year seasonal record
EPA day-level county files · 2020–20241,823 daily readings show a recurring local pattern: Jul has the highest matched-month median AQI (54), while Oct is lowest (34). Each cell is that month’s median daily AQI, not a current-air forecast.
Lower AQI is better. The colors summarize EPA AQI bands; gaps mean the county had no day-level record for that month.
Health Impact Assessment
Custer County's air quality is rated Moderate based on 73.6% good air days. No unhealthy air days were recorded in 2025.
Air quality was acceptable on 73.6% of monitored days in 2025, with a median AQI of 45. Unusually sensitive people can check real-time conditions at AirNow.gov during high-pollution events.
The dominant pollutant is Ozone, driving AQI on 229 of 360 monitored days.
5-Year Air Quality Trend
Air quality is worsening in Custer County. Highest Good-day share: 2020 (88.3%, 323 of 366 monitored days).
| Year | Good | Moderate | USG | Unhealthy | Median AQI | Max AQI |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | 323 | 41 | 2 | 0 | 41 | 119 |
| 2021 | 302 | 59 | 2 | 0 | 39 | 209 |
| 2022 | 298 | 62 | 2 | 0 | 41 | 130 |
| 2023 | 308 | 48 | 4 | 5 | 43 | 167 |
| 2024 | 276 | 81 | 9 | 0 | 44 | 126 |
| 2025 | 265 | 95 | 0 | 0 | 45 | 87 |
How does Custer County compare?
How Custer County compares
Data Sources
Primary Source: U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Air Quality System (AQS), Annual AQI by County dataset, 2020–2025 (aqs.epa.gov). For current conditions (not shown here — this page is historical annual data), see EPA AirNow (airnow.gov). See our methodology for how AQI, median, and coverage figures are computed.
Informational only, not professional advice. Data from EPA AQS. See our disclaimer. Spotted a figure that looks wrong? Report a correction.
Source: U.S. EPA Air Quality System (AQS) Annual AQI by county summary files for Custer County, South Dakota · 2020–2025
Download this county's annual AQI row as CSV , with the same EPA fields and denominator shown on this page.
Every figure on PlainAirData is rendered directly from EPA AQS air-quality monitoring data, no number is typed in by an editor. This page draws directly on EPA AQS air-quality monitoring data, no figure is typed in by an editor. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error.