South Dakota · County air quality · 2025
Hughes County, South Dakota
Median AQI 18 (Good). 93.0% of monitored days rated Good, direct from EPA Air Quality System stations.
- 18
- Median AQI
- 93.0%
- Good-air days
- 0
- Unhealthy days
- 87%
- Cleaner than US counties
Hughes County's 2025 annual median AQI is 18 (Good), with 93.0% Good days
According to the U.S. EPA Air Quality System, Hughes County, South Dakota posted a 2025 median AQI of 18 (Good) across 358 monitored days, with 93.0% 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
- Hughes County's 93.0% Good-day share places it cleaner than 87% of US counties in 2025.
- Closest median-AQI peer
- Dawson County (90.3% Good, median AQI 18) is the closest nationwide median-AQI peer to Hughes County.
- 2020–2025 trend
- Hughes County's floor-qualifying Good-day share is stable from 2020 to 2025 (93.5% → 93.0%).
- Median AQI
- Median AQI: 18
According to the 2025 EPA AQS county release on PlainAirData, Hughes County, South Dakota ranks #29 of 951 by median AQI (18) and #124 by good-day share (93.0%). 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
- Hughes County's peak single-day AQI rose from 69 to 112 between the 2024 and 2025 EPA annual releases, a change of +43 points.
- Hughes County's median AQI rose from 8 to 18 between the 2024 and 2025 EPA annual releases, a change of +10 points.
Data updated August 2026
- Good · 333 d · 93.0%
- Moderate · 24 d · 6.7%
- USG · 1 d · 0.3%
How did Hughes County's air break down in 2025?
Across 358 monitored days, 333 fell in the Good band (AQI 0–50) and 0 reached Unhealthy or worse. The worst single day peaked at AQI 112 (USG).
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 Hughes County sits nationally
COUNT-derived placement among 951 US counties with at least 100 monitored days in 2025. Hughes County's Good-day share is 93.0% - cleaner than 87% of that comparison set.
Hughes County Good-day share vs. every US county
Share of monitored days in the Good band (AQI 0–50) - EPA AQS annual release
93.0% Cleaner than 87% higher than 87% 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 Hughes County.
- PM2.5 · 358 days · 100.0%
2024 daily-monitor rhythm in Hughes County
Month-by-month median AQI from EPA day-level county monitors (363 reported days in 2024). Jul posted the highest typical readings (median AQI 23, peak 64); Jun was cleanest at median 0. Summer months (Jun–Aug) averaged median AQI 13 vs 7 in Dec–Feb.
Five-year seasonal record
EPA day-level county files · 2020–20241,788 daily readings show a recurring local pattern: Aug has the highest matched-month median AQI (22), while Nov is lowest (8). 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
Hughes County's air quality is rated Excellent based on 93.0% good air days. No unhealthy air days were recorded in 2025.
Air quality was acceptable on 93.0% of monitored days in 2025, with a median AQI of 18. Unusually sensitive people can check real-time conditions at AirNow.gov during high-pollution events.
The dominant pollutant is PM2.5, driving AQI on 358 of 358 monitored days.
5-Year Air Quality Trend
Air quality is stable in Hughes County. Highest Good-day share: 2022 (97.2%, 352 of 362 monitored days).
| Year | Good | Moderate | USG | Unhealthy | Median AQI | Max AQI |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | 332 | 23 | 0 | 0 | 19 | 79 |
| 2021 | 325 | 22 | 1 | 0 | 12 | 268 |
| 2022 | 352 | 10 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 63 |
| 2023 | 321 | 30 | 3 | 4 | 14 | 223 |
| 2024 | 340 | 23 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 69 |
| 2025 | 333 | 24 | 1 | 0 | 18 | 112 |
How does Hughes County compare?
How Hughes 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 Hughes 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.