Metro area air quality · 2025

Muscatine, IA

Median AQI 43 (Good). 66.0% of monitored days rated Good across this metro's EPA monitoring network.

43
Median AQI
66.0%
Good-air days
0
Unhealthy days
36%
Cleaner than US metros

Muscatine, IA posted a 2025 median AQI of 43 (Good) with 66.0% Good days

According to the U.S. EPA Air Quality System, the Muscatine, IA CBSA recorded a median AQI of 43 across 365 monitored days in 2025, with 66.0% 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 Muscatine, IA CBSA's 66.0% Good-day share places it cleaner than 36% of US metros in 2025.
Closest median-AQI peer
Ashtabula, OH (81.2% Good, median AQI 43) is the closest nationwide median-AQI peer to Muscatine, IA.
2020–2025 Good-day shift
Muscatine, IA's Good-day share moved -0.7 points from 2020 to 2025 (median AQI +3).
Median AQI
Median AQI: 43

Aggregated from EPA Air Quality System (2025), 365 monitored days. EPA AQS →

The verdict

Muscatine, IA's peak reading 141 is in the upper max-AQI tercile among CBSA metros here. On the EPA scale the metro runs good, more polluted than the median US metro, with a median AQI of 43 and 66.0% of 365 monitored days in the Good band.

43
median AQI · Good
66.0%
days rated Good
36%
cleaner than US metros
141
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
  • Muscatine, IA metro's Good-day share fell from 73.5% to 66.4% between the 2024 and 2025 EPA annual releases, a change of -7.1 percentage points.
  • Muscatine, IA metro's peak single-day AQI rose from 78 to 141 between the 2024 and 2025 EPA annual releases, a change of +63 points.
  • Muscatine, IA metro's median AQI rose from 38 to 43 between the 2024 and 2025 EPA annual releases, a change of +5 points.

Compared against 366 monitored days in 2024 and 363 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

Muscatine, IA's peak reading 141 is in the upper max-AQI tercile among CBSA metros here. Signature read: peak AQI 141 (high tercile vs CBSA corpus). Aggregated EPA AQS monitors across this Core-Based Statistical Area logged a median Air Quality Index of 43 over 365 measured days in 2025 (Good / Moderate). The monitored-day split lands at 241 Good (66%), 122 Moderate (33%), and 2 Unhealthy-for-Sensitive-Groups (1%). The 90th-percentile AQI finished at 59; the highest single-day reading hit 141 (USG).

Across 2020–2025, Good-day share shifted -0.7 points and median AQI moved +3 (stable). No Unhealthy-tier days appear in this annual dataset. Metros with comparable AQI profiles include Ashtabula, OH (81.2% good, AQI 43); Bloomington, IN (67.7% good, AQI 43); Champaign-Urbana, IL (65.8% good, AQI 43).

Health effects of air pollution →

Air Quality Summary

Median AQI

43

Good

Good Days

66.0%

241 of 365 days

Max AQI

141

USG

Health Grade

Moderate

90th pct: 59

AQI Day Breakdown (2025)

Distribution of 365 monitored days across EPA AQI categories.

Good

241

66%

Moderate

122

33%

USG

2

1%

Unhealthy

0

0%

Very Unhealthy

0

0%

Hazardous

0

0%

Health Impact Assessment

Moderate

The Muscatine, IA metro area's air quality is rated Moderate based on 66.0% 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 Muscatine, IA metro compare?

How Muscatine, IA compares

Good-day share worse than typical
Muscatine, IA 66.0%
Ashtabula, OH 81.2%
Typical US metro 70.6%
Median AQI worse than typical
Muscatine, IA 43
Ashtabula, OH 43
Typical US metro 41
Unhealthy days / yr better than typical
Muscatine, IA 0
Ashtabula, OH 0
Typical US metro 1

5-Year Air Quality Trend

Air quality is stable in the Muscatine, IA metro. Highest Good-day share: 2024 (73.5%, 269 of 366 monitored days).

Year Good Moderate Unhealthy Median AQI
2020 245 120 0 40
2021 211 154 0 45
2022 235 130 0 42
2023 188 173 2 49
2024 269 97 0 38
2025 241 122 0 43

Metros with a similar median AQI

CBSA peers nationwide whose annual median AQI sits near Muscatine, IA (43).

Metros with similar unhealthy-day exposure

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

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the 90th percentile AQI for Muscatine, IA?
The 90th percentile AQI for the Muscatine, IA metro area is 59, meaning 90% of monitored days had an AQI at or below this level. The maximum AQI recorded was 141 (USG).
How many unhealthy air days does Muscatine, IA have?
In 2025, the Muscatine, IA metro area recorded 0 unhealthy air days (0 Unhealthy, 0 Very Unhealthy, 0 Hazardous). The maximum AQI reached 141.
What is the air quality in the Muscatine, IA metro area?
The Muscatine, IA metro area has a median Air Quality Index (AQI) of 43, rated "Good." 66.0% of monitored days (241 out of 365) had good air quality in 2025.
Is air quality in Muscatine, IA getting better or worse?
Air quality in the Muscatine, IA metro is stable across floor-qualifying years (2020-2025); years with fewer than 100 monitored days are excluded from that direction. Highest qualifying Good-day share: 2024 at 73.5% (269 of 366 days). Lowest qualifying Good-day share: 2023 at 51.8% (188 of 363 days).
What does AQI 43 mean for health?
An AQI of 43 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 Muscatine, IA compare to other metro areas?
The Muscatine, IA metro has 66.0% good air days. Similar metros: Ashtabula, OH (81.2% good), Bloomington, IN (67.7% good), Champaign-Urbana, IL (65.8% good).

Data Sources

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