Metro area air quality · 2025
Harrisburg-Carlisle, PA
Median AQI 44 (Good). 61.4% of monitored days rated Good across this metro's EPA monitoring network.
- 44
- Median AQI
- 61.4%
- Good-air days
- 0
- Unhealthy days
- 27%
- Cleaner than US metros
Harrisburg-Carlisle, PA posted a 2025 median AQI of 44 (Good) with 61.4% Good days
According to the U.S. EPA Air Quality System, the Harrisburg-Carlisle, PA CBSA recorded a median AQI of 44 across 365 monitored days in 2025, with 61.4% 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 Harrisburg-Carlisle, PA CBSA's 61.4% Good-day share places it cleaner than 27% of US metros in 2025.
- Closest median-AQI peer
- Bartlesville, OK (68.0% Good, median AQI 44) is the closest nationwide median-AQI peer to Harrisburg-Carlisle, PA.
- 2020–2025 Good-day shift
- Harrisburg-Carlisle, PA's Good-day share moved +3.7 points from 2020 to 2025 (median AQI -4).
- Median AQI
- Median AQI: 44
Aggregated from EPA Air Quality System (2025), 365 monitored days. EPA AQS →
The verdict
Harrisburg-Carlisle, PA lands in the lower Good-day tercile (61.4% Good), a thinner clean-air share than most CBSA peers here. On the EPA scale the metro runs good, more polluted than the median US metro, with a median AQI of 44 and 61.4% of 365 monitored days in the Good band.
- 44
- median AQI · Good
- 61.4%
- days rated Good
- 27%
- cleaner than US metros
- 101
- 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
- Harrisburg-Carlisle, PA metro's Good-day share rose from 55.2% to 61.5% between the 2024 and 2025 EPA annual releases, a change of +6.3 percentage points.
- Harrisburg-Carlisle, PA metro's median AQI fell from 48 to 44 between the 2024 and 2025 EPA annual releases, a change of -4 points.
Harrisburg-Carlisle, PA lands in the lower Good-day tercile (61.4% Good), a thinner clean-air share than most CBSA peers here. Signature read: 61.4% Good-day share (low tercile vs CBSA corpus). Aggregated EPA AQS monitors across this Core-Based Statistical Area logged a median Air Quality Index of 44 over 365 measured days in 2025 (Good / Moderate). The monitored-day split lands at 224 Good (61%), 140 Moderate (38%), and 1 Unhealthy-for-Sensitive-Groups (0%). The 90th-percentile AQI finished at 66; the highest single-day reading hit 101 (USG).
Across 2020–2025, Good-day share shifted +3.7 points and median AQI moved -4 (improving). No Unhealthy-tier days appear in this annual dataset. Metros with comparable AQI profiles include Bartlesville, OK (68.0% good, AQI 44); Berlin, NH-VT (81.5% good, AQI 44); Bloomington, IL (66.0% good, AQI 44).
Air Quality Summary
Median AQI
44
Good
Good Days
61.4%
224 of 365 days
Max AQI
101
USG
Health Grade
Moderate
90th pct: 66
AQI Day Breakdown (2025)
Distribution of 365 monitored days across EPA AQI categories.
Good
224
61%
Moderate
140
38%
USG
1
0%
Unhealthy
0
0%
Very Unhealthy
0
0%
Hazardous
0
0%
Health Impact Assessment
The Harrisburg-Carlisle, PA metro area's air quality is rated Moderate based on 61.4% 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 Harrisburg-Carlisle, PA metro compare?
How Harrisburg-Carlisle, PA compares
5-Year Air Quality Trend
Air quality is improving in the Harrisburg-Carlisle, PA metro. Highest Good-day share: 2025 (61.5%, 224 of 364 monitored days).
| Year | Good | Moderate | Unhealthy | Median AQI | Max AQI |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | 210 | 153 | 0 | 48 | 137 |
| 2021 | 157 | 206 | 0 | 52 | 127 |
| 2022 | 185 | 177 | 0 | 50 | 127 |
| 2023 | 164 | 189 | 3 | 52 | 255 |
| 2024 | 201 | 163 | 0 | 48 | 105 |
| 2025 | 224 | 140 | 0 | 44 | 101 |
Metros with a similar median AQI
CBSA peers nationwide whose annual median AQI sits near Harrisburg-Carlisle, PA (44).
Bartlesville, OK
Median AQI 44 · 68.0% Good-day share
Berlin, NH-VT
Median AQI 44 · 81.5% Good-day share
Bloomington, IL
Median AQI 44 · 66.0% Good-day share
Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH
Median AQI 44 · 71.0% Good-day share
Bridgeport-Stamford-Norwalk, CT
Median AQI 44 · 64.7% Good-day share
Buffalo-Cheektowaga-Niagara Falls, NY
Median AQI 44 · 63.8% Good-day share
Metros with similar unhealthy-day exposure
A second relationship type: metros whose unhealthy-or-worse day count is closest to Harrisburg-Carlisle, PA'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
Frequently Asked Questions
How many unhealthy air days does Harrisburg-Carlisle, PA have? ▼
What is the air quality in the Harrisburg-Carlisle, PA metro area? ▼
Is air quality in Harrisburg-Carlisle, PA getting better or worse? ▼
What does AQI 44 mean for health? ▼
How does Harrisburg-Carlisle, PA compare to other metro areas? ▼
What is the 90th percentile AQI for Harrisburg-Carlisle, PA? ▼
Data Sources
Primary Source: U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Air Quality System (AQS), Annual AQI by CBSA dataset for Harrisburg-Carlisle, PA, 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, Harrisburg-Carlisle, PA · 2020–2025