Outdoor air pollution exposure in Japan
Japan: Outdoor air pollution exposure was 10.5 in 2024. ▼ Falling
Outdoor air pollution exposure in Japan, 1998–2024
Source: Our World in Data.
Analysis
Japan recorded 10.5 for outdoor air pollution exposure in 2024.
That represents a change of down 6.2% on the previous year and down 19.8% over ten years.
Over the whole period, outdoor air pollution exposure in Japan peaked at 15.3 in 2000 and was at its lowest, 10.1, in 1999.
Japan ranks 161st of 241 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 27 years of available data.
Outdoor air pollution exposure in Japan, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1998 | 11.9 | — |
| 1999 | 10.1 | -15.1% |
| 2000 | 15.3 | +51.5% |
| 2001 | 13.9 | -9.2% |
| 2002 | 13.5 | -2.9% |
| 2003 | 14.5 | +7.4% |
| 2004 | 13.1 | -9.7% |
| 2005 | 14.1 | +7.6% |
| 2006 | 14.7 | +4.3% |
| 2007 | 13.5 | -8.2% |
| 2008 | 15 | +11.1% |
| 2009 | 13.5 | -10.0% |
| 2010 | 12.1 | -10.4% |
| 2011 | 12.5 | +3.3% |
| 2012 | 13.3 | +6.4% |
| 2013 | 12.7 | -4.5% |
| 2014 | 13.1 | +3.1% |
| 2015 | 13.3 | +1.5% |
| 2016 | 12.3 | -7.5% |
| 2017 | 12.1 | -1.6% |
| 2018 | 12.2 | +0.8% |
| 2019 | 12.1 | -0.8% |
| 2020 | 11.3 | -6.6% |
| 2021 | 11.2 | -0.9% |
| 2022 | 11.8 | +5.4% |
| 2023 | 11.2 | -5.1% |
| 2024 | 10.5 | -6.2% |
Japan compared with similar countries
- Japan's 10.5 is above the median for high income countries, which is 10.3, 1.0× the median. (85 countries reporting)
- Japan's 10.5 is above the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 8.9, 1.2× the median. (37 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Outdoor air pollution exposure in Japan changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.
| Year | Change | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | +51.5% | 10.1 | 15.3 |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 11 | 10.1 | 11.9 | 2 |
| 2000s | 14.11 | 13.1 | 15.3 | 10 |
| 2010s | 12.57 | 12.1 | 13.3 | 10 |
| 2020s | 11.2 | 10.5 | 11.8 | 5 |
Countries ranked near Japan
More environment data for Japan
- Grazing land use over the long-term, annual growth rate -1.34 % change on previous year (2025)
- Grazing land use over the long-term, per unit of GDP 0 hectares per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Grazing land use over the long-term, per capita 0.0024 hectares per person (2025)
- Historical exposure to drought — Land soil moisture anomaly -4.51 Percentage change (2025)
- Historical exposure to drought — Cropland soil moisture anomaly -4.8 Percentage change (2025)
- Standard Deviation, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Standard Deviation 0.358 °C (2025)
- Temperature change 1.86 °C (2025)
- Grazing land use over the long-term, per square kilometre 0.8198 hectares per square kilometre (2024)
- Sawnwood, coniferous — Production, annual growth rate 0.2449 % change on previous year (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is outdoor air pollution exposure in Japan?
- Outdoor air pollution exposure in Japan was 10.5 in 2024, according to Our World in Data.
- What is the highest outdoor air pollution exposure recorded in Japan?
- The highest recorded value was 15.3 in 2000.
- What is the lowest outdoor air pollution exposure recorded in Japan?
- The lowest recorded value was 10.1 in 1999.
- How does Japan rank for outdoor air pollution exposure?
- Japan ranks 161st out of 241 countries with data for 2024.
- Is outdoor air pollution exposure rising or falling in Japan?
- Over the last ten years it is down 19.8%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Japan data come from?
- The figures come from Our World in Data, published as part of Outdoor air pollution exposure. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 27 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).