Santa Barbara, California Air Quality
Santa Barbara air quality today — the AQI, the main pollutant, and whether it’s safe to exercise outside right now
Santa Barbara, CA · Air quality right now
The air quality index in Santa Barbara, CA is 49 (Good) right now — safe for outdoor activity.
Is it safe to be outside in Santa Barbara today?
AQI 49 Yes — air quality is Good
Air is clean — great for outdoor activity.Main pollutant: PM2.5Observed 6:00 AM PDT
Pollutants right now
- PM2.57.6 µg/m³Main pollutantfine particles — smoke, exhaust, soot
- PM1011 µg/m³coarse particles — dust, pollen, ash
- Ozone48 µg/m³smog — builds on hot, sunny days
- NO₂6.6 µg/m³nitrogen dioxide — traffic, combustion
ExerciseOK to run — no air-quality limits on outdoor exercise.
How to read Santa Barbara’s air quality
Guides: The AQI Scale, Explained · Air Quality Alerts, Decoded · How to Read a Wildfire Smoke Map · Why Wildfire Smoke Travels 1,000 Miles.
Air quality over time in Santa Barbara
Across the EPA’s county records from 2020 to 2025, Santa Barbara’s cleanest year was 2021 (median AQI 44) and its most polluted was 2025 (median AQI 52); the typical (median) day has trended more polluted since 2020.
| Year | Median AQI | Unhealthy+ | Main pollutant | USG | Moderate | Good |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | 48 | 4 | PM2.5 | 9 | 154 | 199 |
| 2021 | 44 | 0 | PM2.5 | 1 | 124 | 240 |
| 2022 | 48 | 0 | PM2.5 | 0 | 167 | 198 |
| 2023 | 45 | 0 | PM2.5 | 0 | 133 | 232 |
| 2024 | 49 | 0 | PM2.5 | 2 | 171 | 193 |
| 2025 | 52 | 0 | PM2.5 | 0 | 201 | 164 |
“USG” is Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups (AQI 101–150); “Unhealthy+” combines the Unhealthy, Very Unhealthy, and Hazardous days. In 2024 the EPA tightened the annual fine-particle (PM2.5) standard to 9 µg/m³ from the previous 12 µg/m³, so counties near the old limit read worse against the new one. Source: EPA AQS annual summaries, 2020–2025.
Frequently asked
- What was the worst year for air quality in Santa Barbara?
- In the EPA's 2020–2025 county records, 2020 had the most days above AQI 100: 13 days (9 Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups, 4 Unhealthy or worse). The highest median AQI came in 2025 (52; 2020's was 48).
- How many unhealthy air days does Santa Barbara have?
- Across 2020–2025, under 1% of the days reported for Santa Barbara's county had an AQI above 100 (16 of 2192), about 3 days a year. 2025 had 0 days.
- What's the main air pollutant in Santa Barbara?
- PM2.5: it drove Santa Barbara's county AQI on the most days in every year of the EPA's 2020–2025 records.