If your health is a major concern for you (which should be the case), you should be concerned about air quality of the place you live in or the places you visit.
Proper knowledge about the air quality can help you take countermeasures to curb the ill-effects of pollution to a great extent.
While it is really not possible for you to carry sophisticated gadgets with you, you can always rely on your smartphone.
There are an assortment of mobile applications available that will allow you to measure the air quality of any place you visit.
Here we list our pick on 10 best air quality measurement apps for Android and iOS devices.
1. Air Quality | Air Visual (Android | iOS)
Air Quality | Air Visual – as the name suggests – is designed to give you visual indications of the quality of air. No matter where you stay or wherever you travel, this app can be a vital addition to your digital armory against air pollution.
Key features of the app:
- Tracks air quality fluctuations over a week and bases all measurements on air quality index.
- Displays air pollution levels in various colors to enhance visual guide.
- Provides a world map showing air quality in different cities in the world.
- Provides a ranking of cities based on air pollution.
- Provides health recommendations like wearing a mask, keeping windows closed and others.
- Capable of sending notifications for changes in air quality index of a selected city.
- Provides a comparative study of your city’s air pollution against other cities in world.
2. Air Quality Index BreezoMeter (Android | iOS)
If you intend to keep a real-time tab on the areas with worst air quality, this is the go-to app. It works in a unique way. You can pin your location on a map and submit information like smog, smoke, smell and other emissions in the area along with comments (if you want to).
The app then gathers all information from all users and shows them on a map as a cluster. This will allow you to quickly identify the smokiest areas.
Key features of the app:
- Gives street-level information based on user-data.
- Gives city-level information using data pulled from meteorological stations.
- Allows data-sharing with friends through social media, email and messenger apps.
3. Blueair Friend (Android | iOS)
In case you want to customize your outdoor activities depending on the air quality outside, this is the app you need. When you open the app, the bottom of the app displays a timeline and the top of the screen display an assortment of data for a specific chosen time period. The data shown above includes things like temperature, air quality, particle concentration in air and more.
The app comes with preset activities that you can perform outdoor and the best time of the year to perform such activities. You can choose your own activity depending on the data you see.
Key features of the app:
- Tracks air quality.
- Gives activity recommendations depending on air quality.
- Provides notification of air quality for a location of your choice.
- Gives data on individual air pollutants.
- Provides weather forecast.
- Provides data like outdoor temperature, wind pressure and speed.
4. Sh**t I Smoke (Android | iOS)
The app is designed to provide the air quality index (real-time) of the area where you live in. You can always use this app to determine the right time to plan your outdoor activities. The data provided by the app is very accurate.
Key features of the app:
- Uses data from meteorological stations to do its analysis.
- Gives recommendations for perfect times to plan outdoor activities.
- Gives weather forecast for a few days in advance.
- Allows sharing information via social media, email and messenger apps.
5. Air Quality by Plume Labs: Your Daily Air Report (Android | iOS)
Just like every other app, this app also provides the air quality index of the area you live in.
It also uses the data from meteorological stations to make the calculations.
Key features of the app:
- The main feature is the ability to forecast air pollution level for the coming week.
- Gives advice on perfect timings for outdoor activities.
- Gives health advice.
- Gives weather forecast for 7 days in advance.
6. Airveda – Monitor Air Quality (Android | iOS)
The app analyzes air pollution of any given area in real-time using meteorological departments’ data. Based on the information, you can quickly cancel your outdoor activities in case the air quality outside is very poor.
Key features of the app:
- Provides real-time analysis of air quality.
- Provides recommendations based on air quality index.
- Sends notification of the latest condition.
7. Air Matters (Android | iOS)
This app too works pretty much the same way as rest of the apps mentioned above.
With the ability to do real-time analysis, the app comes with some nifty features.
Key features of the app:
- Capable of tracking air pollution anywhere in world.
- Gives recommendations and tips to maintain good health depending on air quality.
- Shows air quality of previous 3 days as well.
- Gives forecast of the possible air pollution level.
8. AirLief (Android | iOS)
This app too works in the same way. It pulls data from various sources and analyzes them to provide the air quality index on your phone screen.
Key features of the app:
- Gives real-time information about air quality by analyzing data from 80+ and 10000+ cities.
- Provides personalized information about air pollution for sensitive groups, that is, people with neurological, cardiovascular and respiratory issues.
- Gives traffic info on main roads through Google Maps but with added air quality sensors on the map.
- Alerts for high air pollution.
- Live monitoring of 6 key pollutants.
- Actionable and personalized health recommendations.
9. Air Quality Index – Real Time (Android)
As the name of the app suggests, it provides real-time analysis of air quality by analyzing data it gathers from meteorological stations.
Key features of the app:
- Offers a map to show air pollution levels in various parts of the area where you live.
- Sends notifications about air quality at your preferred time intervals.
- Comes with a separate tab providing special information and tips on air pollution and how it impacts health.
10. Air Quality Meter – PM10 & AQI (Android)
Using a patented algorithm, this app determines the air pollution level in any given location. Complete with a real-time updated interactive map, the app is capable of providing health solutions tailored to your requirements.
Key features of the app:
- Analyzes dozens of data from different sources using its unique algorithm.
- Displays the air quality index by taking account into things that actually affect human health. Those things include carbon monoxide levels, suspended particles, nitrogen dioxide and more.
- Provides 6 different levels of pollution shown by colors. Green being healthiest and burgundy (innermost color) reflects serious dangers.