Average annual exposure to PM2.5 air pollution in Nepal
Nepal: Average annual exposure to PM2.5 air pollution was 53.2 micrograms per cubic meter in 2023. ▲ Rising
Average annual exposure to PM2.5 air pollution in Nepal, 1990–2023
Source: Global Burden of Disease Study 2023, Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation (IHME), via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in micrograms per cubic meter.
Analysis
Nepal recorded 53.2 micrograms per cubic meter for average annual exposure to pm2.5 air pollution in 2023.
That represents a change of up 5.1% on the previous year and up 6.6% over ten years.
Over the whole period, average annual exposure to pm2.5 air pollution in Nepal peaked at 59.53 micrograms per cubic meter in 2018 and was at its lowest, 39.8 micrograms per cubic meter, in 1995.
That places Nepal 12th out of 200 countries with data for 2023, putting it in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 34 years of available data.
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 41.46 micrograms per cubic meter | 39.8 micrograms per cubic meter | 42.56 micrograms per cubic meter | 10 |
| 2000s | 47.36 micrograms per cubic meter | 42.24 micrograms per cubic meter | 58.94 micrograms per cubic meter | 10 |
| 2010s | 52.91 micrograms per cubic meter | 49.89 micrograms per cubic meter | 59.53 micrograms per cubic meter | 10 |
| 2020s | 52.95 micrograms per cubic meter | 50.63 micrograms per cubic meter | 56.84 micrograms per cubic meter | 4 |
Countries ranked near Nepal
- 9 Bahrain 56.57 micrograms per cubic meter compare
- 10 Cameroon 55.6 micrograms per cubic meter compare
- 11 India 54.05 micrograms per cubic meter compare
- 13 Iraq 49.47 micrograms per cubic meter compare
- 14 Oman 46.86 micrograms per cubic meter compare
- 15 Yemen 46.84 micrograms per cubic meter compare
More environment data for Nepal
- Total greenhouse gas emissions excluding LULUCF 41.47 Mt CO2e (2024)
- Total greenhouse gas emissions excluding LULUCF per capita 1.4 t CO2e/capita (2024)
- Methane (CH4) emissions from Agriculture 15.2 Mt CO2e (2024)
- Methane (CH4) emissions from Building (Energy) 3.21 Mt CO2e (2024)
- Methane (CH4) emissions from Fugitive Emissions (Energy) 0.0608 Mt CO2e (2024)
- Methane (CH4) emissions from Industrial Combustion (Energy) 0.0611 Mt CO2e (2024)
- Methane (CH4) emissions (total) excluding LULUCF 20.59 Mt CO2e (2024)
- Methane (CH4) emissions from Power Industry (Energy) 0 Mt CO2e (2024)
- Methane (CH4) emissions from Transport (Energy) 0.0256 Mt CO2e (2024)
- Methane (CH4) emissions from Waste 2.05 Mt CO2e (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is average annual exposure to pm2.5 air pollution in Nepal?
- Average annual exposure to pm2.5 air pollution in Nepal was 53.2 micrograms per cubic meter in 2023, according to Global Burden of Disease Study 2023, Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation (IHME), via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest average annual exposure to pm2.5 air pollution recorded in Nepal?
- The highest recorded value was 59.53 micrograms per cubic meter in 2018.
- What is the lowest average annual exposure to pm2.5 air pollution recorded in Nepal?
- The lowest recorded value was 39.8 micrograms per cubic meter in 1995.
- How does Nepal rank for average annual exposure to pm2.5 air pollution?
- Nepal ranks 12th out of 200 countries with data for 2023.
- Is average annual exposure to pm2.5 air pollution rising or falling in Nepal?
- Over the last ten years it is up 6.6%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Nepal data come from?
- The figures come from Global Burden of Disease Study 2023, Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation (IHME), via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Average annual exposure to PM2.5 air pollution. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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CSV · JSON — 34 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
The average level of exposure of the population to suspended particles less than 2.5 microns in diameter, which are capable of penetrating deep into the respiratory tract and damaging health. This is measured in micrograms per cubic meter.