Metro area air quality · 2025
Wilmington, NC
Median AQI 41 (Good). 77.0% of monitored days rated Good across this metro's EPA monitoring network.
- 41
- Median AQI
- 77.0%
- Good-air days
- 0
- Unhealthy days
- 61%
- Cleaner than US metros
Wilmington, NC posted a 2025 median AQI of 41 (Good) with 77.0% Good days
According to the U.S. EPA Air Quality System, the Wilmington, NC CBSA recorded a median AQI of 41 across 365 monitored days in 2025, with 77.0% 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 Wilmington, NC CBSA's 77.0% Good-day share places it cleaner than 61% of US metros in 2025.
- Closest median-AQI peer
- Adrian, MI (69.3% Good, median AQI 41) is the closest nationwide median-AQI peer to Wilmington, NC.
- 2020–2025 Good-day shift
- Wilmington, NC's Good-day share moved -14.5 points from 2020 to 2025 (median AQI +7).
- Median AQI
- Median AQI: 41
Aggregated from EPA Air Quality System (2025), 365 monitored days. EPA AQS →
The verdict
The Wilmington, NC metro runs good on the EPA scale, cleaner than the median US metro, a median AQI of 41 with 77.0% of 365 monitored days in the Good band.
- 41
- median AQI · Good
- 77.0%
- days rated Good
- 61%
- cleaner than US metros
- 121
- 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
- Wilmington, NC metro's Good-day share fell from 80.7% to 77.4% between the 2024 and 2025 EPA annual releases, a change of -3.3 percentage points.
- Wilmington, NC metro's peak single-day AQI rose from 97 to 121 between the 2024 and 2025 EPA annual releases, a change of +24 points.
Insights: Wilmington, NC metro. Aggregated EPA AQS monitors across this Core-Based Statistical Area logged a median Air Quality Index of 41 over 365 measured days in 2025, which corresponds to a Good band and a Good metro-wide health grade. The monitored-day split lands at 281 Good days (77%), 82 Moderate (22%), and 2 Unhealthy-for-Sensitive-Groups (1%). The 90th-percentile AQI finished at 55 while the highest single-day reading hit 121 (USG). Metro residents averaged roughly 23.1 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 -14.5 points and the median AQI moved +7 points, which classifies the multi-year trajectory as worsening. The metro recorded no Unhealthy-tier days in this annual dataset. Metros with comparable AQI profiles include Adrian, MI (69.3% good, AQI 41); Albany-Schenectady-Troy, NY (67.7% good, AQI 41); Ann Arbor, MI (69.3% good, AQI 41).
Air Quality Summary
Median AQI
41
Good
Good Days
77.0%
281 of 365 days
Max AQI
121
USG
Health Grade
Good
90th pct: 55
AQI Day Breakdown (2025)
Distribution of 365 monitored days across EPA AQI categories.
Good
281
77%
Moderate
82
22%
USG
2
1%
Unhealthy
0
0%
Very Unhealthy
0
0%
Hazardous
0
0%
Health Impact Assessment
The Wilmington, NC metro area's air quality is rated Good based on 77.0% 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 Wilmington, NC metro compare?
How Wilmington, NC compares
5-Year Air Quality Trend
Air quality is worsening in the Wilmington, NC metro. Highest Good-day share: 2020 (91.9%, 328 of 357 monitored days).
| Year | Good | Moderate | Unhealthy | Median AQI | Max AQI |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | 328 | 29 | 0 | 34 | 77 |
| 2021 | 286 | 74 | 0 | 40 | 93 |
| 2022 | 268 | 93 | 0 | 42 | 80 |
| 2023 | 237 | 124 | 0 | 44 | 142 |
| 2024 | 293 | 70 | 0 | 39 | 97 |
| 2025 | 281 | 82 | 0 | 41 | 121 |
Metros with a similar median AQI
CBSA peers nationwide whose annual median AQI sits near Wilmington, NC (41).
Adrian, MI
Median AQI 41 · 69.3% Good-day share
Albany-Schenectady-Troy, NY
Median AQI 41 · 67.7% Good-day share
Ann Arbor, MI
Median AQI 41 · 69.3% Good-day share
Bowling Green, KY
Median AQI 41 · 75.6% Good-day share
Brunswick, GA
Median AQI 41 · 74.3% Good-day share
Decatur, AL
Median AQI 41 · 78.4% Good-day share
Metros with similar unhealthy-day exposure
A second relationship type: metros whose unhealthy-or-worse day count is closest to Wilmington, NC'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
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
Alexandria, LA
0 unhealthy-or-worse days · median AQI 37
More Air Quality Data
Explore EPA air quality rankings and guides across U.S. metros and counties.
Cleanest Metro Areas
U.S. metros ranked by their share of Good air-quality days.
Worst Air Quality
Counties and metros with the most unhealthy air days.
All Metro Areas
Annual AQI by CBSA for every monitored U.S. metro area.
Best and Worst City Air
What drives urban air quality and how metro areas compare.
Air Quality Guides
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the air quality in the Wilmington, NC metro area? ▼
How many unhealthy air days does Wilmington, NC have? ▼
Is air quality in Wilmington, NC getting better or worse? ▼
What does AQI 41 mean for health? ▼
What is the 90th percentile AQI for Wilmington, NC? ▼
How does Wilmington, NC compare to other metro areas? ▼
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.
Read our methodology , how this data is sourced, computed, and verified.
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.