Metro area air quality · 2025

Ithaca, NY

Median AQI 35 (Good). 93.2% of monitored days rated Good across this metro's EPA monitoring network.

35
Median AQI
93.2%
Good-air days
0
Unhealthy days
91%
Cleaner than US metros

Ithaca, NY posted a 2025 median AQI of 35 (Good) with 93.2% Good days

According to the U.S. EPA Air Quality System, the Ithaca, NY CBSA recorded a median AQI of 35 across 355 monitored days in 2025, with 93.2% 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 Ithaca, NY CBSA's 93.2% Good-day share places it cleaner than 91% of US metros in 2025.
Closest median-AQI peer
Baraboo, WI (75.6% Good, median AQI 35) is the closest nationwide median-AQI peer to Ithaca, NY.
2020–2025 Good-day shift
Ithaca, NY's Good-day share moved -5.4 points from 2020 to 2025 (median AQI +1).
Median AQI
Median AQI: 35

Aggregated from EPA Air Quality System (2025), 355 monitored days. EPA AQS →

The verdict

Ithaca, NY sits in the upper Good-day tercile among EPA CBSA metros on this site (93.2% of 355 monitored days). On the EPA scale the metro runs good, among the cleanest 10% of US metros, with a median AQI of 35 and 93.2% of 355 monitored days in the Good band.

35
median AQI · Good
93.2%
days rated Good
91%
cleaner than US metros
74
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

2024 → 2025
  • Ithaca, NY metro's Good-day share fell from 97.1% to 93.2% between the 2024 and 2025 EPA annual releases, a change of -3.9 percentage points.

Compared against 350 monitored days in 2024 and 355 in 2025. These are arithmetic differences between two stored EPA annual summaries, not a cause claim or a live advisory.

National release changes Two-year CSV

Ithaca, NY sits in the upper Good-day tercile among EPA CBSA metros on this site (93.2% of 355 monitored days). Signature read: 93.2% Good-day share (high tercile vs CBSA corpus). Aggregated EPA AQS monitors across this Core-Based Statistical Area logged a median Air Quality Index of 35 over 355 measured days in 2025 (Good / Excellent). The monitored-day split lands at 331 Good (93%), 24 Moderate (7%), and 0 Unhealthy-for-Sensitive-Groups (0%). The 90th-percentile AQI finished at 47; the highest single-day reading hit 74 (Moderate).

Across 2020–2025, Good-day share shifted -5.4 points and median AQI moved +1 (worsening). No Unhealthy-tier days appear in this annual dataset. Metros with comparable AQI profiles include Baraboo, WI (75.6% good, AQI 35); Effingham, IL (95.5% good, AQI 35); Kinston, NC (97.5% good, AQI 35).

Best and worst city air quality →

Air Quality Summary

Median AQI

35

Good

Good Days

93.2%

331 of 355 days

Max AQI

74

Moderate

Health Grade

Excellent

90th pct: 47

AQI Day Breakdown (2025)

Distribution of 355 monitored days across EPA AQI categories.

Good

331

93%

Moderate

24

7%

USG

0

0%

Unhealthy

0

0%

Very Unhealthy

0

0%

Hazardous

0

0%

Health Impact Assessment

Excellent

The Ithaca, NY metro area's air quality is rated Excellent based on 93.2% 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 Ithaca, NY metro compare?

How Ithaca, NY compares

Good-day share better than typical
Ithaca, NY 93.2%
Baraboo, WI 75.6%
Typical US metro 70.6%
Median AQI better than typical
Ithaca, NY 35
Baraboo, WI 35
Typical US metro 41
Unhealthy days / yr better than typical
Ithaca, NY 0
Baraboo, WI 1
Typical US metro 1

5-Year Air Quality Trend

Air quality is worsening in the Ithaca, NY metro. Highest Good-day share: 2020 (98.6%, 359 of 364 monitored days).

Year Good Moderate Unhealthy Median AQI
2020 359 5 0 34
2021 334 25 0 35
2022 349 12 0 36
2023 332 25 0 35
2024 340 10 0 35
2025 331 24 0 35

Metros with a similar median AQI

CBSA peers nationwide whose annual median AQI sits near Ithaca, NY (35).

Baraboo, WI

Median AQI 35 · 75.6% Good-day share

35

Effingham, IL

Median AQI 35 · 95.5% Good-day share

35

Kinston, NC

Median AQI 35 · 97.5% Good-day share

35

Meridian, MS

Median AQI 35 · 94.6% Good-day share

35

Morehead City, NC

Median AQI 35 · 96.2% Good-day share

35

Salem, OR

Median AQI 35 · 80.0% Good-day share

35

Metros with similar unhealthy-day exposure

A second relationship type: metros whose unhealthy-or-worse day count is closest to Ithaca, NY's 0 (independent of median AQI).

Aberdeen, SD

0 unhealthy-or-worse days · median AQI 27

27

Aberdeen, WA

0 unhealthy-or-worse days · median AQI 22

22

Adrian, MI

0 unhealthy-or-worse days · median AQI 41

41

Akron, OH

0 unhealthy-or-worse days · median AQI 45

45

Albany, GA

0 unhealthy-or-worse days · median AQI 46

46

Albany, OR

0 unhealthy-or-worse days · median AQI 27

27

Frequently Asked Questions

How many unhealthy air days does Ithaca, NY have? ▼
In 2025, the Ithaca, NY metro area recorded 0 unhealthy air days (0 Unhealthy, 0 Very Unhealthy, 0 Hazardous). The maximum AQI reached 74.
What is the air quality in the Ithaca, NY metro area? ▼
The Ithaca, NY metro area has a median Air Quality Index (AQI) of 35, rated "Good." 93.2% of monitored days (331 out of 355) had good air quality in 2025.
Is air quality in Ithaca, NY getting better or worse? ▼
Air quality in the Ithaca, NY metro is worsening across floor-qualifying years (2020-2025); years with fewer than 100 monitored days are excluded from that direction. Highest qualifying Good-day share: 2020 at 98.6% (359 of 364 days). Lowest qualifying Good-day share: 2023 at 93.0% (332 of 357 days).
What does AQI 35 mean for health? ▼
An AQI of 35 is "Good", air quality is satisfactory and poses little or no health risk. This is the best category on the EPA's AQI scale.
How does Ithaca, NY compare to other metro areas? ▼
The Ithaca, NY metro has 93.2% good air days. Similar metros: Baraboo, WI (75.6% good), Effingham, IL (95.5% good), Kinston, NC (97.5% good).
What is the 90th percentile AQI for Ithaca, NY? ▼
The 90th percentile AQI for the Ithaca, NY metro area is 47, meaning 90% of monitored days had an AQI at or below this level. The maximum AQI recorded was 74 (Moderate).

Data Sources

Primary Source: U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Air Quality System (AQS), Annual AQI by CBSA dataset for Ithaca, NY, 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, Ithaca, NY · 2020–2025