Metro area air quality · 2025

Mount Vernon, IL

Median AQI 42 (Good). 67.9% of monitored days rated Good across this metro's EPA monitoring network.

42
Median AQI
67.9%
Good-air days
0
Unhealthy days
40%
Cleaner than US metros

Mount Vernon, IL posted a 2025 median AQI of 42 (Good) with 67.9% Good days

According to the U.S. EPA Air Quality System, the Mount Vernon, IL CBSA recorded a median AQI of 42 across 361 monitored days in 2025, with 67.9% 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 Mount Vernon, IL CBSA's 67.9% Good-day share places it cleaner than 40% of US metros in 2025.
Closest median-AQI peer
Allentown-Bethlehem-Easton, PA-NJ (66.8% Good, median AQI 42) is the closest nationwide median-AQI peer to Mount Vernon, IL.
2020–2025 Good-day shift
Mount Vernon, IL's Good-day share moved +4.5 points from 2020 to 2025 (median AQI -4).
Median AQI
Median AQI: 42

Aggregated from EPA Air Quality System (2025), 361 monitored days. EPA AQS →

The verdict

The Mount Vernon, IL metro runs good on the EPA scale, more polluted than the median US metro, a median AQI of 42 with 67.9% of 361 monitored days in the Good band.

42
median AQI · Good
67.9%
days rated Good
40%
cleaner than US metros
98
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
  • Mount Vernon, IL metro's Good-day share rose from 64.7% to 67.9% between the 2024 and 2025 EPA annual releases, a change of +3.2 percentage points.
  • Mount Vernon, IL metro's peak single-day AQI fell from 112 to 98 between the 2024 and 2025 EPA annual releases, a change of -14 points.

Compared against 365 monitored days in 2024 and 361 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

Insights: Mount Vernon, IL metro. Aggregated EPA AQS monitors across this Core-Based Statistical Area logged a median Air Quality Index of 42 over 361 measured days in 2025, which corresponds to a Good band and a Moderate metro-wide health grade. The monitored-day split lands at 245 Good days (68%), 116 Moderate (32%), and 0 Unhealthy-for-Sensitive-Groups (0%). The 90th-percentile AQI finished at 61 while the highest single-day reading hit 98 (Moderate). Metro residents averaged roughly 20.4 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 +4.5 points and the median AQI moved -4 points, which classifies the multi-year trajectory as improving. The metro recorded no Unhealthy-tier days in this annual dataset. Metros with comparable AQI profiles include Allentown-Bethlehem-Easton, PA-NJ (66.8% good, AQI 42); Amarillo, TX (78.4% good, AQI 42); Carson City, NV (86.2% good, AQI 42).

Air Quality Summary

Median AQI

42

Good

Good Days

67.9%

245 of 361 days

Max AQI

98

Moderate

Health Grade

Moderate

90th pct: 61

AQI Day Breakdown (2025)

Distribution of 361 monitored days across EPA AQI categories.

Good

245

68%

Moderate

116

32%

USG

0

0%

Unhealthy

0

0%

Very Unhealthy

0

0%

Hazardous

0

0%

Health Impact Assessment

Moderate

The Mount Vernon, IL metro area's air quality is rated Moderate based on 67.9% 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 Mount Vernon, IL metro compare?

How Mount Vernon, IL compares

Good-day share worse than typical
Mount Vernon, IL 67.9%
Allentown-Bethlehem-Easton, PA-NJ 66.8%
Typical US metro 70.6%
Median AQI worse than typical
Mount Vernon, IL 42
Allentown-Bethlehem-Easton, PA-NJ 42
Typical US metro 41
Unhealthy days / yr better than typical
Mount Vernon, IL 0
Allentown-Bethlehem-Easton, PA-NJ 0
Typical US metro 1

5-Year Air Quality Trend

Air quality is improving in the Mount Vernon, IL metro. Highest Good-day share: 2025 (67.9%, 245 of 361 monitored days).

Year Good Moderate Unhealthy Median AQI
2020 223 129 0 46
2021 207 155 0 48
2022 227 138 0 45
2023 213 141 1 46
2024 236 129 0 44
2025 245 116 0 42

Metros with a similar median AQI

CBSA peers nationwide whose annual median AQI sits near Mount Vernon, IL (42).

Metros with similar unhealthy-day exposure

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

More Air Quality Data

Explore EPA air quality rankings and guides across U.S. metros and counties.

Air Quality Guides

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the air quality in the Mount Vernon, IL metro area?
The Mount Vernon, IL metro area has a median Air Quality Index (AQI) of 42, rated "Good." 67.9% of monitored days (245 out of 361) had good air quality in 2025.
How many unhealthy air days does Mount Vernon, IL have?
In 2025, the Mount Vernon, IL metro area recorded 0 unhealthy air days (0 Unhealthy, 0 Very Unhealthy, 0 Hazardous). The maximum AQI reached 98.
Is air quality in Mount Vernon, IL getting better or worse?
Air quality in the Mount Vernon, IL metro is improving across floor-qualifying years (2020-2025); years with fewer than 100 monitored days are excluded from that direction. Highest qualifying Good-day share: 2025 at 67.9% (245 of 361 days). Lowest qualifying Good-day share: 2021 at 57.2% (207 of 362 days).
What does AQI 42 mean for health?
An AQI of 42 is "Good", air quality is satisfactory and poses little or no health risk. This is the best category on the EPA's AQI scale.
What is the 90th percentile AQI for Mount Vernon, IL?
The 90th percentile AQI for the Mount Vernon, IL metro area is 61, meaning 90% of monitored days had an AQI at or below this level. The maximum AQI recorded was 98 (Moderate).
How does Mount Vernon, IL compare to other metro areas?
The Mount Vernon, IL metro has 67.9% good air days. Similar metros: Allentown-Bethlehem-Easton, PA-NJ (66.8% good), Amarillo, TX (78.4% good), Carson City, NV (86.2% good).

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.

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.