Air quality in Malta: where to check and what to do

Short answer. Check the European Environment Agency's European Air Quality Index, which covers Malta hourly, with forecasts for the next 48 hours and a mobile app ¹. It has six levels, from Good to Extremely poor ¹. From "Moderate", people with heart or breathing problems should consider reducing intense outdoor activity if they have symptoms; at "Extremely poor", they should avoid outdoor physical activity ¹.

Where can I check air quality right now?

Use the European Air Quality Index, which is the reference for Malta ¹. Phaenyx found no national Maltese air quality index. It is updated hourly and has two layers ¹:

• a station layer of more than 3,500 stations, built from up-to-date data reported by EEA member countries (not formally verified by them), with gaps filled from the Copernicus (CAMS) forecast; you can filter it by country and by station type (traffic, industry, background);
• a modelled layer for every 1 × 1 km grid in Europe, based on the Copernicus (CAMS) forecast, which gives a value even where there is no station.

By default the map shows the situation three hours ago; you can look back 48 hours or forward 48 hours ¹. The EEA also offers an Air Quality mobile app ¹. The index describes short-term (hourly) air quality, not the yearly average ¹.

What do the index levels mean?

The index takes the worst of five pollutants: PM2.5, PM10, ozone, nitrogen dioxide and sulphur dioxide ¹. The Good and Fair bands are set on the WHO 2021 guidelines ¹.

"Sensitive people" means adults and children with respiratory problems and adults with heart conditions ¹. For everyone else, the EEA advises considering less intense outdoor activity from "Poor" if you have sore eyes, a cough or a sore throat, and reducing outdoor physical activity at "Extremely poor" ¹. See Air quality index explained.

How polluted is the air on average?

The population-weighted median of Maltese cities shows about 12 µg/m³ of PM2.5 (annual mean 2021-2023) ², more than twice the WHO guideline of 5 µg/m³ ⁴. Nitrogen dioxide is about 3.5 µg/m³ ³, below the WHO guideline of 10 µg/m³ ⁴. That NO2 figure is a regional background over roughly 80 km: a busy street will be higher.

What should I do on a bad air day, or with dust or smoke?

Follow the EEA level advice above on bad air days, and use the guides below for dust, ozone and smoke.

• Bad air days: follow the EEA level advice above, and see Pollution episodes, Sensitive people and polluted air and Children and polluted air.
• Dust: Phaenyx found no official Maltese advice specific to dust episodes. The European index counts PM10 and PM2.5 particles ¹. See Dust storms.
• Ozone: see Ozone days.
• Smoke: see Wildfire smoke, A clean-air room at home and Masks for smoke. Our Malta alerts page explains what is known about official warnings.

A household plan can note who at home is sensitive to polluted air and where to stay indoors.

Frequently asked questions

Does Malta have its own air quality index?

Not that Phaenyx found: use the European Air Quality Index, which covers Malta ¹.

Can I see tomorrow's air quality?

Yes. The European index shows forecasts for the next 48 hours ¹.

Is there an app?

The EEA offers an Air Quality mobile app ¹.

Is Malta's air cleaner than the WHO guideline?

Not for fine particles: about 12 µg/m³ of PM2.5 against a WHO guideline of 5 µg/m³ ²⁴.