AQI Lahore today: 142 at 3pm, city ranked world's most polluted at 167 on Friday

AQI Lahore today (Friday 2 October 2026, 3pm PKT): 142, "unhealthy for sensitive groups" on IQAir's live monitor. Earlier on Friday Lahore topped IQAir's ranking of the world's most polluted major cities with an AQI of 167 ("unhealthy"), ahead of Dhaka (164) and Cairo (158), Dawn reported. Karachi was 34th at 69.

This page is updated as the smog season goes on, with the newest reading at the top.

Lahore air quality right now

The live number moves through the day. It is usually worst late at night and early in the morning, when cooler air traps smoke and dust close to the ground, and eases in the afternoon. Check the IQAir Lahore page for the reading this hour.

What the AQI numbers mean

How to protect yourself in Lahore

IQAir's advice at today's levels:

1. Cut outdoor exercise, especially morning walks and evening cricket when levels peak.
2. Keep windows closed when the AQI is above 150.
3. Wear a mask outdoors if you are in a sensitive group; an N95 or KN95 filters fine particles, a cloth mask does not.
4. Run an air purifier indoors if you have one, in the room where you sleep.

Why it gets worse from October

The smog season runs roughly from October to February. Industrial emissions, vehicle exhaust and the burning of rice stubble across Punjab combine with cooler, still air that traps pollution near the ground. Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz said this week that smog levels had fallen over three years: "I won't say there is zero smog, but there is less smog," Dawn reported.

For the temperature and forecast, see Lahore weather today.