Winston-Salem, North Carolina Air Quality
Winston-Salem air quality today — the AQI, the main pollutant, and whether it’s safe to exercise outside right now
Winston-Salem, NC · Air quality right now
The air quality index in Winston-Salem, NC is 48 (Good) right now — safe for outdoor activity.
Is it safe to be outside in Winston-Salem today?
AQI 48 Yes — air quality is Good
Air is clean — great for outdoor activity.Main pollutant: PM2.5Observed 4:00 AM EDT
Pollutants right now
- PM2.59.5 µg/m³Main pollutantfine particles — smoke, exhaust, soot
- PM109.9 µg/m³coarse particles — dust, pollen, ash
- Ozone38 µg/m³smog — builds on hot, sunny days
- NO₂9.8 µg/m³nitrogen dioxide — traffic, combustion
ExerciseOK to run — no air-quality limits on outdoor exercise.
How to read Winston-Salem’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 Winston-Salem
Across the EPA’s county records from 2020 to 2025, Winston-Salem’s cleanest year was 2020 (median AQI 45) and its most polluted was 2023 (median AQI 52); the typical (median) day has held roughly steady since 2020.
| Year | Median AQI | Unhealthy+ | Main pollutant | USG | Moderate | Good |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | 45 | 0 | PM2.5 | 0 | 133 | 233 |
| 2021 | 48 | 0 | PM2.5 | 3 | 161 | 201 |
| 2022 | 48 | 0 | PM2.5 | 1 | 155 | 209 |
| 2023 | 52 | 1 | PM2.5 | 6 | 193 | 165 |
| 2024 | 47 | 0 | PM2.5 | 4 | 152 | 210 |
| 2025 | 45 | 0 | PM2.5 | 0 | 133 | 232 |
“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 Winston-Salem?
- In the EPA's 2020–2025 county records, 2023 had the most days above AQI 100: 7 days (6 Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups, 1 Unhealthy or worse). It also had the highest median AQI, 52.
- How many unhealthy air days does Winston-Salem have?
- Across 2020–2025, under 1% of the days reported for Winston-Salem's county had an AQI above 100 (15 of 2192), about 3 days a year. 2025 had 0 days.
- What's the main air pollutant in Winston-Salem?
- PM2.5: it drove Winston-Salem's county AQI on the most days in every year of the EPA's 2020–2025 records.