Metro area air quality · 2025
Santa Maria-Santa Barbara, CA
Median AQI 52 (Moderate). 44.9% of monitored days rated Good across this metro's EPA monitoring network.
- 52
- Median AQI
- 44.9%
- Good-air days
- 0
- Unhealthy days
- 10%
- Cleaner than US metros
Santa Maria-Santa Barbara, CA posted a 2025 median AQI of 52 (Moderate) with 44.9% Good days
According to the U.S. EPA Air Quality System, the Santa Maria-Santa Barbara, CA CBSA recorded a median AQI of 52 across 365 monitored days in 2025, with 44.9% 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 Santa Maria-Santa Barbara, CA CBSA's 44.9% Good-day share places it cleaner than 10% of US metros in 2025.
- Closest median-AQI peer
- Augusta-Richmond County, GA-SC (46.0% Good, median AQI 52) is the closest nationwide median-AQI peer to Santa Maria-Santa Barbara, CA.
- 2020–2025 Good-day shift
- Santa Maria-Santa Barbara, CA's Good-day share moved -10.8 points from 2020 to 2025 (median AQI +4).
- Median AQI
- Median AQI: 52
Aggregated from EPA Air Quality System (2025), 365 monitored days. EPA AQS →
The verdict
Santa Maria-Santa Barbara, CA lands in the lower Good-day tercile (44.9% Good), a thinner clean-air share than most CBSA peers here. On the EPA scale the metro runs moderate, among the more polluted US metros, with a median AQI of 52 and 44.9% of 365 monitored days in the Good band.
- 52
- median AQI · Moderate
- 44.9%
- days rated Good
- 10%
- cleaner than US metros
- 87
- 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
- Santa Maria-Santa Barbara, CA metro's Good-day share fell from 53.0% to 44.9% between the 2024 and 2025 EPA annual releases, a change of -8.1 percentage points.
- Santa Maria-Santa Barbara, CA metro's peak single-day AQI fell from 146 to 87 between the 2024 and 2025 EPA annual releases, a change of -59 points.
- Santa Maria-Santa Barbara, CA metro's median AQI rose from 49 to 52 between the 2024 and 2025 EPA annual releases, a change of +3 points.
Santa Maria-Santa Barbara, CA lands in the lower Good-day tercile (44.9% Good), a thinner clean-air share than most CBSA peers here. Signature read: 44.9% 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 52 over 365 measured days in 2025 (Moderate / Poor). The monitored-day split lands at 164 Good (45%), 201 Moderate (55%), and 0 Unhealthy-for-Sensitive-Groups (0%). The 90th-percentile AQI finished at 61; the highest single-day reading hit 87 (Moderate).
Across 2020–2025, Good-day share shifted -10.8 points and median AQI moved +4 (worsening). No Unhealthy-tier days appear in this annual dataset. Metros with comparable AQI profiles include Augusta-Richmond County, GA-SC (46.0% good, AQI 52); Beaumont-Port Arthur, TX (41.4% good, AQI 52); Birmingham-Hoover, AL (43.0% good, AQI 52).
Air Quality Summary
Median AQI
52
Moderate
Good Days
44.9%
164 of 365 days
Max AQI
87
Moderate
Health Grade
Poor
90th pct: 61
AQI Day Breakdown (2025)
Distribution of 365 monitored days across EPA AQI categories.
Good
164
45%
Moderate
201
55%
USG
0
0%
Unhealthy
0
0%
Very Unhealthy
0
0%
Hazardous
0
0%
Health Impact Assessment
The Santa Maria-Santa Barbara, CA metro area's air quality is rated Poor based on 44.9% 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 Santa Maria-Santa Barbara, CA metro compare?
How Santa Maria-Santa Barbara, CA compares
5-Year Air Quality Trend
Air quality is worsening in the Santa Maria-Santa Barbara, CA metro. Highest Good-day share: 2021 (65.9%, 240 of 364 monitored days).
| Year | Good | Moderate | Unhealthy | Median AQI | Max AQI |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | 199 | 154 | 4 | 48 | 174 |
| 2021 | 240 | 124 | 0 | 44 | 101 |
| 2022 | 198 | 167 | 0 | 48 | 93 |
| 2023 | 232 | 133 | 0 | 45 | 95 |
| 2024 | 193 | 171 | 0 | 49 | 146 |
| 2025 | 164 | 201 | 0 | 52 | 87 |
Metros with a similar median AQI
CBSA peers nationwide whose annual median AQI sits near Santa Maria-Santa Barbara, CA (52).
Augusta-Richmond County, GA-SC
Median AQI 52 · 46.0% Good-day share
Beaumont-Port Arthur, TX
Median AQI 52 · 41.4% Good-day share
Birmingham-Hoover, AL
Median AQI 52 · 43.0% Good-day share
Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, NC-SC
Median AQI 52 · 46.0% Good-day share
El Dorado, AR
Median AQI 52 · 41.8% Good-day share
Grand Rapids-Wyoming, MI
Median AQI 52 · 41.9% Good-day share
Metros with similar unhealthy-day exposure
A second relationship type: metros whose unhealthy-or-worse day count is closest to Santa Maria-Santa Barbara, CA'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 Santa Maria-Santa Barbara, CA have? ▼
What is the air quality in the Santa Maria-Santa Barbara, CA metro area? ▼
Is air quality in Santa Maria-Santa Barbara, CA getting better or worse? ▼
What does AQI 52 mean for health? ▼
How does Santa Maria-Santa Barbara, CA compare to other metro areas? ▼
What is the 90th percentile AQI for Santa Maria-Santa Barbara, CA? ▼
Data Sources
Primary Source: U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Air Quality System (AQS), Annual AQI by CBSA dataset for Santa Maria-Santa Barbara, CA, 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, Santa Maria-Santa Barbara, CA · 2020–2025