Las Cruces, New Mexico Air Quality
Las Cruces air quality today — the AQI, the main pollutant, and whether it’s safe to exercise outside right now
Las Cruces, NM · Air quality right now
The air quality index in Las Cruces, NM is 26 (Good) right now — safe for outdoor activity.
Is it safe to be outside in Las Cruces today?
AQI 26 Yes — air quality is Good
Air is clean — great for outdoor activity.Main pollutant: OzoneObserved 1:00 AM MDT
Pollutants right now
- PM2.55.8 µg/m³fine particles — smoke, exhaust, soot
- PM108.7 µg/m³coarse particles — dust, pollen, ash
- Ozone35 µg/m³Main pollutantsmog — builds on hot, sunny days
- NO₂19 µg/m³nitrogen dioxide — traffic, combustion
ExerciseOK to run — no air-quality limits on outdoor exercise.
How to read Las Cruces’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 Las Cruces
Across the EPA’s county records from 2020 to 2025, Las Cruces’s cleanest year was 2023 (median AQI 52) and its most polluted was 2024 (median AQI 62); the typical (median) day has trended more polluted since 2020.
| Year | Median AQI | Unhealthy+ | Main pollutant | USG | Moderate | Good |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | 54 | 6 | Ozone | 15 | 201 | 144 |
| 2021 | 56 | 11 | Ozone | 20 | 208 | 126 |
| 2022 | 53 | 5 | Ozone | 24 | 179 | 157 |
| 2023 | 52 | 3 | Ozone | 11 | 189 | 162 |
| 2024 | 62 | 13 | Ozone | 19 | 237 | 97 |
| 2025 | 61 | 21 | Ozone | 27 | 217 | 100 |
“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 Las Cruces?
- In the EPA's 2020–2025 county records, 2025 had the most days above AQI 100: 48 days (27 Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups, 21 Unhealthy or worse). The highest median AQI came in 2024 (62; 2025's was 61).
- How many unhealthy air days does Las Cruces have?
- Across 2020–2025, 8% of the days reported for Las Cruces's county had an AQI above 100 (175 of 2192), about 29 days a year. 2025 had 48 days.
- What's the main air pollutant in Las Cruces?
- Ozone: it drove Las Cruces's county AQI on the most days in every year of the EPA's 2020–2025 records.