Air Quality in Las Vegas, Nevada — Live

Live readings from PurpleAir sensors across Las Vegas — with free alerts the moment the air turns.

Live Las Vegas AQI from nearby PurpleAir sensors loads when this page opens in a browser, along with a live sensor map covering Las Vegas and Henderson, North Las Vegas, Paradise, Spring Valley, Sunrise Manor, Enterprise.

The Las Vegas Valley sits in a basin of roughly 600 square miles with mountains on all four sides, and the air that collects in it has nowhere convenient to go. Federal regulators track the valley as its own unit — Hydrographic Area 212 — and its ozone problem has been getting worse on paper rather than better. The area was reclassified as a Serious nonattainment area for the 2015 ozone standard effective 21 January 2025, after missing the earlier deadlines, and it now has until 3 August 2027 to come into line. Particulates tell a different story: Clark County was designated an attainment area for PM10 on 6 October 2014 and has been operating under a maintenance plan since, with a second maintenance plan submitted in 2025.

Canairy watches the sensors around your home, your kids' school, and everywhere else you care about, and tells you in plain English when the air changes enough to matter.

Ozone is the summer problem, and it is not shrinking

Ozone is not something a tailpipe emits directly. It forms when exhaust and solvent vapours cook in sunlight, which is why the valley's worst readings land on hot afternoons rather than cold mornings. Clark County now issues a seasonal advisory that runs the whole ozone season, 1 April through 30 September, and 2026 was the fourth year in a row it has done so, with the county pointing to more frequent summer wildfires across the West as part of the reason.

The numbers behind that advisory are worth knowing. Ground-level ozone exceeded EPA health standards on 18 days in the most recent year, down from 25 the year before — better, but still a long way from a clean sheet. The EPA's description of what ozone does is blunt: it irritates the lungs and can cause coughing, sore throat, chest pain and shortness of breath, with people who have respiratory or heart conditions, young children and older adults most affected.

When the wind comes up, the desert comes with it

Clark County issues a dust advisory when sustained winds of 25 miles per hour with gusts of 40 mph or more are forecast, which in spring is not a rare event. The advice is specific to living in a desert city: limit outdoor activity while it is blowing, keep windows and doors closed, run the air conditioning to filter particles, drive slowly on unpaved roads, and keep off-road vehicles to approved areas outside the valley. The county also runs a dust complaint hotline — 702-385-DUST — for excessive blowing dust from construction sites and vacant lots, which is a fair signal of how much of the valley's dust is disturbed ground rather than untouched desert.

Airborne dust is particulate pollution like any other, and the county's own advisories note that it aggravates respiratory disease, with people who have heart or lung conditions, older adults and children advised to stay indoors when they can — particularly during physical activity. The PM10 maintenance plan is the long-term version of the same concern.

California's fires reach here too

Southwest winds carry smoke from Southern California straight into the valley. On 5 August 2025 the Gifford Fire, burning north of Santa Barbara, put heavy smoke over Las Vegas and Clark County urged children, older residents and people with respiratory or heart conditions to stay indoors through Thursday, limit outdoor exercise, keep windows and doors shut, and change dirty indoor air filters.

It happens on the big smoke years too. In late August 2021, when the Caldor Fire was burning through the Eldorado National Forest and the Dixie Fire was still going in Northern California, Clark County issued an air health advisory and urged people to stay indoors and close their windows. Forecasters also note the second-order effect: wildfire smoke drifting into Southern Nevada does not just add particulates, it contributes to ozone formation as well — so a smoke day and a high-ozone day often turn out to be the same day.

Las Vegas air quality FAQ

Why is there smoke in Las Vegas today?

Usually a fire in California, carried in on southwest winds. In August 2025 the Gifford Fire burning north of Santa Barbara put heavy smoke over the valley, and Clark County told children, older residents and people with respiratory or heart conditions to stay indoors for several days. In late August 2021 the Caldor and Dixie fires in Northern California did the same thing, and the county issued an air health advisory telling people to close their windows. Clark County now issues a seasonal wildfire smoke and ozone advisory covering 1 April through 30 September, and 2026 was the fourth consecutive year it has done so.

What is the air quality in Las Vegas right now?

This page shows the live AQI for Las Vegas, calculated from PurpleAir sensors across the valley and updated continuously. Because the valley is a basin ringed by mountains, conditions can differ noticeably between the Strip, the northwest, and the eastern edge under Frenchman Mountain — a sensor near your own street is more useful than a single figure for the whole metro.

Is Las Vegas in violation of federal air quality standards?

For ozone, yes. The Las Vegas Valley was reclassified as a Serious nonattainment area for the 2015 ozone standard effective 21 January 2025, with an attainment deadline of 3 August 2027. For particulates the picture is better: Clark County was designated an attainment area for PM10 on 6 October 2014 and has been under a maintenance plan since, with a second maintenance plan submitted in 2025. Carbon monoxide was also redesignated to attainment, effective 27 September 2010.

Why does the valley trap pollution?

It is a basin of about 600 square miles with mountains to the north, south, east and west, so there is no easy exit for air sitting in it. In winter an inversion can form over the valley — a lid of warmer air above cooler air near the ground — and whatever is being emitted underneath simply accumulates. In summer the geography works differently: strong sunshine and heat drive the chemistry that makes ozone, and the same enclosure keeps the ingredients in place long enough to react.

What AQI level is unhealthy?

Under the US EPA scale, AQI 0–50 is Good and 51–100 is Moderate. From 101 the air is Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups — kids, older adults, and people with asthma or heart conditions — and above 150 it's Unhealthy for everyone. Canairy translates these numbers into a plain-English verdict, like whether to close the windows or move a workout indoors.

Is Canairy free?

Yes. The Canairy app is free to download and includes live air quality for all your saved places, plain-English verdicts, and free push alerts when the air crosses your threshold. A paid plan adds extras like SMS text alerts.

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