World Most Polluted City List :- The recent report from the State of Global Air (SoGA) for the year 2025 highlights the status of air pollution around the globe and its adverse health effects. The aim of this report is to guide governments and organizations in their efforts to reduce urban air pollution and improve public health through targeted actions.
The World Health Organization (WHO) recommends that air quality be below 5 µg/m3, as levels above this threshold can lead to severe respiratory health issues, including heart disease, strokes, lung cancer, and other serious conditions. Major contributors to air pollution in some urban areas are fossil fuel combustion, industrial emissions, and transportation, alongside domestic practices like burning coal or wood for cooking. Below, we present the findings from the World Air Quality Report 2025.
World Most Polluted City List
The State of Global Air (SoGA) has gathered air quality index data from over 7,000 cities worldwide and compiled a list of the top 20 most polluted cities. As per the latest report, Delhi still retains the top rank as the most polluted city in the world, followed closely by Kolkata in second place, and Kano from Nigeria in third place. Mumbai also features on this list with a PM2.5 level of 45.1 (µg/m3). Below is the updated list of the most polluted cities.
| Rank | City Name | Country | PM2.5 (µg/m3) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Delhi | India | 110 |
| 2 | Kolkata | India | 84.0 |
| 3 | Kano | Nigeria | 83.6 |
| 4 | Lima | Peru | 73.2 |
| 5 | Dhaka | Bangladesh | 71.4 |
| 6 | Jakarta | Indonesia | 67.3 |
| 7 | Lagos | Nigeria | 66.9 |
| 8 | Karachi | Pakistan | 63.6 |
| 9 | Beijing | China | 55.0 |
| 10 | Accra | Ghana | 51.9 |
| 11 | Chengdu | China | 49.9 |
| 12 | Singapore | Singapore | 49.4 |
| 13 | Abidjan | Côte d’Ivoire | 47.4 |
| 14 | Mumbai | India | 45.1 |
| 15 | Bamako | Mali | 44.2 |
| 16 | Shanghai | China | 40.1 |
| 17 | Dushanbe | Tajikistan | 39.7 |
| 18 | Tashkent | Uzbekistan | 38.0 |
| 19 | Kinshasa | Democratic Republic of the Congo | 35.8 |
| 20 | Cairo | Egypt | 34.2 |
World Most Polluted City List PDF
You can download the PDF of the "State of Global Air (SoGA)" report on World Air Quality for the year 2025 from the official website www.stateofglobalair.org
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List Of Most Polluted City in India PDF
