Metro area air quality · 2025
Charleston-North Charleston, SC
Median AQI 47 (Good). 60.3% of monitored days rated Good across this metro's EPA monitoring network.
- 47
- Median AQI
- 60.3%
- Good-air days
- 0
- Unhealthy days
- 26%
- Cleaner than US metros
Charleston-North Charleston, SC posted a 2025 median AQI of 47 (Good) with 60.3% Good days
According to the U.S. EPA Air Quality System, the Charleston-North Charleston, SC CBSA recorded a median AQI of 47 across 365 monitored days in 2025, with 60.3% rated Good and 0 unhealthy or worse. This is an annual metro comparison, not a live advisory.
Data source EPA Air Quality System (AQS)
- Cleaner than US metros
- The Charleston-North Charleston, SC CBSA's 60.3% Good-day share places it cleaner than 26% of US metros in 2025.
- Closest median-AQI peer
- Columbia, SC (58.1% Good, median AQI 47) is the closest nationwide median-AQI peer to Charleston-North Charleston, SC.
- 2020–2025 Good-day shift
- Charleston-North Charleston, SC's Good-day share moved -11.9 points from 2020 to 2025 (median AQI +4).
- Median AQI
- Median AQI: 47
Aggregated from EPA Air Quality System (2025), 365 monitored days. EPA AQS →
The verdict
The Charleston-North Charleston, SC metro runs good on the EPA scale, more polluted than the median US metro, a median AQI of 47 with 60.3% of 365 monitored days in the Good band.
- 47
- median AQI · Good
- 60.3%
- days rated Good
- 26%
- cleaner than US metros
- 105
- worst single reading
No day crossed into the Unhealthy tier across the metro's monitors in 2025.
Annual release change
What changed in the 2025 EPA annual release
- Charleston-North Charleston, SC metro's Good-day share fell from 72.1% to 60.4% between the 2024 and 2025 EPA annual releases, a change of -11.7 percentage points.
- Charleston-North Charleston, SC metro's peak single-day AQI rose from 90 to 105 between the 2024 and 2025 EPA annual releases, a change of +15 points.
- Charleston-North Charleston, SC metro's median AQI rose from 44 to 47 between the 2024 and 2025 EPA annual releases, a change of +3 points.
Insights: Charleston-North Charleston, SC metro. Aggregated EPA AQS monitors across this Core-Based Statistical Area logged a median Air Quality Index of 47 over 365 measured days in 2025, which corresponds to a Good band and a Moderate metro-wide health grade. The monitored-day split lands at 220 Good days (60%), 144 Moderate (39%), and 1 Unhealthy-for-Sensitive-Groups (0%). The 90th-percentile AQI finished at 60 while the highest single-day reading hit 105 (USG). Metro residents averaged roughly 18.1 clean-air days per 30-day window across the reporting year.
Across the 2020–2025 trend window, the share of monitored days rated Good shifted by -11.9 points and the median AQI moved +4 points, which classifies the multi-year trajectory as worsening. The metro recorded no Unhealthy-tier days in this annual dataset. Metros with comparable AQI profiles include Columbia, SC (58.1% good, AQI 47); Corsicana, TX (59.2% good, AQI 47); Dayton, OH (57.0% good, AQI 47).
Air Quality Summary
Median AQI
47
Good
Good Days
60.3%
220 of 365 days
Max AQI
105
USG
Health Grade
Moderate
90th pct: 60
AQI Day Breakdown (2025)
Distribution of 365 monitored days across EPA AQI categories.
Good
220
60%
Moderate
144
39%
USG
1
0%
Unhealthy
0
0%
Very Unhealthy
0
0%
Hazardous
0
0%
Health Impact Assessment
The Charleston-North Charleston, SC metro area's air quality is rated Moderate based on 60.3% good air days. No unhealthy air days were recorded in 2025.
Air quality is generally acceptable. Unusually sensitive people should monitor real-time conditions at AirNow.gov during high-pollution events.
How does the Charleston-North Charleston, SC metro compare?
How Charleston-North Charleston, SC compares
5-Year Air Quality Trend
Air quality is worsening in the Charleston-North Charleston, SC metro. Highest Good-day share: 2020 (72.3%, 264 of 365 monitored days).
| Year | Good | Moderate | Unhealthy | Median AQI | Max AQI |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | 264 | 101 | 0 | 43 | 117 |
| 2021 | 196 | 169 | 0 | 49 | 93 |
| 2022 | 206 | 159 | 0 | 48 | 84 |
| 2023 | 211 | 152 | 0 | 47 | 105 |
| 2024 | 264 | 102 | 0 | 44 | 90 |
| 2025 | 220 | 144 | 0 | 47 | 105 |
Metros with a similar median AQI
CBSA peers nationwide whose annual median AQI sits near Charleston-North Charleston, SC (47).
Columbia, SC
Median AQI 47 · 58.1% Good-day share
Corsicana, TX
Median AQI 47 · 59.2% Good-day share
Dayton, OH
Median AQI 47 · 57.0% Good-day share
Evansville, IN-KY
Median AQI 47 · 57.5% Good-day share
Farmington, NM
Median AQI 47 · 68.0% Good-day share
Glenwood Springs, CO
Median AQI 47 · 66.8% Good-day share
Metros with similar unhealthy-day exposure
A second relationship type: metros whose unhealthy-or-worse day count is closest to Charleston-North Charleston, SC's 0 (independent of median AQI).
Aberdeen, SD
0 unhealthy-or-worse days · median AQI 27
Aberdeen, WA
0 unhealthy-or-worse days · median AQI 22
Adrian, MI
0 unhealthy-or-worse days · median AQI 41
Akron, OH
0 unhealthy-or-worse days · median AQI 45
Albany, GA
0 unhealthy-or-worse days · median AQI 46
Albany, OR
0 unhealthy-or-worse days · median AQI 27
More Air Quality Data
Explore EPA air quality rankings and guides across U.S. metros and counties.
Cleanest Metro Areas
U.S. metros ranked by their share of Good air-quality days.
Worst Air Quality
Counties and metros with the most unhealthy air days.
All Metro Areas
Annual AQI by CBSA for every monitored U.S. metro area.
Best and Worst City Air
What drives urban air quality and how metro areas compare.
Air Quality Guides
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the air quality in the Charleston-North Charleston, SC metro area? ▼
How many unhealthy air days does Charleston-North Charleston, SC have? ▼
Is air quality in Charleston-North Charleston, SC getting better or worse? ▼
What does AQI 47 mean for health? ▼
What is the 90th percentile AQI for Charleston-North Charleston, SC? ▼
How does Charleston-North Charleston, SC compare to other metro areas? ▼
Data Sources
Primary Source: U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Air Quality System (AQS), Annual AQI by CBSA dataset, 2020–2025. See our methodology for how AQI, median, and coverage figures are computed.
Read our methodology , how this data is sourced, computed, and verified.
Source: U.S. EPA Air Quality System (AQS) Annual AQI by CBSA summary files (metro-level) · 2020–2025
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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.