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Countries with the Least Air Pollution

Which countries have the lowest level of human exposure to particulate matter?
For the year 2019
Source: Global Burden of Disease Study via the World Bank
Data for Liechtenstein is missing
Color-coded by continent
Quiz by
Quizmaster
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Last updated: August 8, 2025
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First submittedJanuary 4, 2017
Times taken32,931
Average score66.7%
Rating3.99
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μg/m³
Country
5.38
Finland
5.48
Iceland
6.01
Tuvalu
6.03
Nauru
6.07
Sweden
6.23
Canada
6.38
Norway
μg/m³
Country
6.84
Estonia
7.18
United States
7.42
New Zealand
7.75
Palau
7.87
St. Kitts and Nevis
7.89
Ireland
7.95
Brunei
μg/m³
Country
7.98
Portugal
8.46
Luxembourg
9.01
Andorra
9.28
Mauritius
9.33
Australia
9.35
Spain
9.43
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43 Comments
MyMindWentBlank
+18
Level 60
Jan 5, 2017
It's surprising that the U.S. is on here, given how bad our pollution is in the cities. I guess the amount of rural areas with less pollution offsets that?
tea1ess
+4
Level 47
Jan 5, 2017
I was pleasantly surprised as well.
Quizmaster
+13
Level ∞
Jan 5, 2017
Its based on the effect of pollution on the population. The U.S. is high on the list because we have excellent air quality, even in the urban areas.
howard38
+13
Level 62
Apr 22, 2017
It's mostly surprising because the press would have us believe that the US is the worst in everything.
sensfan123
+6
Level 21
Apr 22, 2017
Yes the USA is one of the top countries in many categories. Sadly the media and many top academics/left wingers seem to demonize it and its capitalist 'evils'.
Yossarian
+4
Level 62
Apr 22, 2017
I will say that the US is far, far cleaner than most countries I've visited...and France is absolutely filthy.
MarcellDAvis
+2
Level 80
Apr 26, 2023
In Germany, a common expression is "as filthy as a Frenchman". I guess it's a relic from the 19th century, but still, hilarious.
AllenY
+34
Level 68
Apr 27, 2017
It doesn't seem reasonable to extrapolate political understandings and their correctness or incorrectness based on the US' presence on this one quiz.
DavidfromBA
+5
Level 74
Aug 12, 2025
Thank you. Finally, some actual nuance and perspective.
WolfCam
+8
Level 67
Aug 7, 2018
Of the 500 cities with the most air pollution, the United States has zero of them.
Djilas
+8
Level 86
May 10, 2019
Well, the level of air pollution and general cleanliness in Europe varies A LOT. I didn't find US really special in that regard. What this quiz is about is also just one indicator of polution, if I got it right it's not even about all AIR pollution (gases...).

Another thing is that as a huge country it still has a big share of world pollution and a small policy change can have big influence, while nobody cares what exactly Luxembourg is doing about that.

DocEckleburg
+4
Level 68
Feb 20, 2025
You are correct, this is about pollution of particulates so does not consider any gasses at all, it is looking only at microscopic pieces of solid matter suspended in the air, the main cause of which would be open fires.

This also doesn't look at random samples but is instead looking at the effect on the human population so what we end up with is the countries where a smaller percentage of the population are exposed to the smoke of open fires.

In the west we tend not to burn wood or coal in our cities anymore and we make industry filter particulates out of their emissions so it is no surprise that western countries score highly on this.

Worth saying that inhaling particulates is very bad for you so this kind of study is interesting, but it is not an overall indicator of air pollution, just one aspect of it.

cbp
+14
Level 49
Jul 10, 2019
The American press critiques its own country so the American audience can improve it. At least that's how it's supposed to work.
IsleAuHaulte
+2
Level 92
May 10, 2019
You really don't see the heavy blankets of smog over U.S. cities like you used to. Los Angeles sometimes, but it used to be very common in a big city to look down from a tall building and see the others poking up through the haze with no hint of the ground to be seen.
Quizzer6794
+2
Level 66
Jan 15, 2017
US, 55%? I knew people think low of the country, but didn't know that low!
ctleng76
+6
Level 65
Jul 10, 2019
It's liberal environmentalist propaganda. Citizens here love to apologize for being successful, and love to hate themselves for destroying the planet, even though we as a nation do more to help the planet than most countries. The 55% doesn't surprise me one bit. I have visited countries like Brazil where pollution is a huge problem. The people who think we in the US have big problems have most likely not traveled to a developing country.
Djilas
+12
Level 86
Sep 26, 2020
Americans apologize for being successful???
manchesterutd10
+4
Level 59
Apr 22, 2017
surprised bhutan isnt here
Zefyrinus
+5
Level 74
Nov 6, 2017
It's on the quiz of countries with worst air pollution. Now that's surprising!
IceLemonTea
+2
Level 63
Jul 10, 2019
Actually Mongolia produces loads of its own pollution from coal and mineral mining. Ulaanbaatar is really polluted.
JFM01
+3
Level 56
Oct 12, 2025
Same here, Bhutan is the only carbon-negative country in the world.
Elan
+2
Level 66
Apr 25, 2017
Costa Rica with be on this quiz in a couple of years.
Quizmaster
+4
Level ∞
May 10, 2019
It's above average but not really close to making the list.
Zefyrinus
+1
Level 74
Nov 6, 2017
I'm surprised that Australia made this list, because the quiz on worst polluted countries includes a lot of desert countries as they count sand as particles people are exposed to.
Guam
+3
Level 59
May 10, 2019
Not many people live in the Outback. The big cities have great quality.
DaisyGeekyTGirl
+4
Level 50
Dec 2, 2018
I'm surprised of Australia and America's inclusion but the one I'm most surprised about is Brazil.
communisteggplant
+8
Level 74
May 13, 2019
I guess that Vatican incense smog is pretty rough
Zooty
+5
Level 69
May 16, 2019
Probably there aren't too many statistics with Finland and Brunei being the top 2.
100Greats
+1
Level 56
May 30, 2019
See my quiz from 2018: "Top-15 Countries with Clean Air". The data source was WHO.
dianalove
+5
Level 70
Jul 10, 2019
I'm surprised for Brunei.
Nathaniel
+17
Level 77
Jul 10, 2019
where is argentina with BUENOS AIRES?^^
Nathaniel
+4
Level 77
Jul 11, 2019
did no-one get the joke?
EytanMelech
+2
Level 66
Mar 18, 2020
Yes, we did.
priebe66
+1
Level 39
Jul 10, 2019
How is it so that some nations make this list, yet none of their immediate neighbors do?
JackintheBox
+1
Level 82
Jul 11, 2019
GOT ALL BUT BRUNEI, a country which borders the country from which I come (Malaysia).
JackintheBox
+2
Level 82
Jul 11, 2019
You see, ending a sentence with a preposition is something I cannot put up with.
JackintheBox
+3
Level 82
Jul 11, 2019
...something up with which I cannot put*.
MCdoesgeography
+4
Level 74
Jul 19, 2023
Luxembourg being on this list with it's fairly high population density and sitting right in the middle of Belgium's, Germany's and France's industrial belts is really surprising!
Neodymium
+2
Level 63
Sep 14, 2024
What abt Rwanda?
Aoto327
+1
Level 87
Apr 30, 2025
Got 100%.
JetPunker180
+1
Level 54
Oct 12, 2025
I feel bad for Bhutan. Should be definitely here.
RollingStones1
+1
Level 50
Oct 15, 2025
There is no way in hell the United States pollutes less than most countries. I live there and the place IS pollution
BlackJohn
+1
Level 79
Apr 15, 2026
Curious to understand how on earth Brunei ended up here... isn't it like a state basically built around an oil-producing family?
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