SmogRank / World / North America / United States / Kentucky

Most polluted cities in Kentucky, United States

11 measured cities, last 7 days; 0 above the WHO 24-hour guideline. Worst: Valley Station at 7.7 µg/m³, #1,289 in the world.

Ohio: 27 measured citiesNorth Carolina: 15 measured citiesVirginia: 13 measured citiesMissouri: 10 measured citiesIllinois: 33 measured citiesKentucky: 11 measured citiesArkansas: 4 measured citiesTennessee: 12 measured citiesWest Virginia: 3 measured citiesIndiana: 21 measured cities#11 Nicholasville: 4.4 µg/m³#9 Paducah: 4.7 µg/m³#10 Fort Thomas: 4.7 µg/m³#8 Ashland: 4.9 µg/m³#6 Elizabethtown: 5.0 µg/m³#7 Jeffersontown: 5.0 µg/m³#5 Lexington-Fayette: 5.1 µg/m³#4 Saint Matthews: 5.4 µg/m³#3 Owensboro: 6.1 µg/m³#2 Louisville: 6.5 µg/m³#1 Valley Station: 7.7 µg/m³
Each dot is a measured city, coloured by its PM2.5; tap a dot to open the city.
← Valley Station 7.7 WHO 24-hour guideline
Every measured city in Kentucky, United States, one column each, worst on the left and cleanest on the right. Point at it to read a city; tap to open it.
  1. 1Valley Station 7.7
  2. 2Louisville 6.5
  3. 3Owensboro 6.1
  4. 4Saint Matthews 5.4
  5. 5Lexington-Fayette 5.1
  6. 6Elizabethtown 5.0
  7. 7Jeffersontown 5.0
  8. 8Ashland 4.9
  9. 9Paducah 4.7
  10. 10Fort Thomas 4.7
  11. 11Nicholasville 4.4
Good0–5
Fair6–15
Moderate16–50
Poor51–90
Very poor91–140
Extremely poor141+

The European Environment Agency's air quality index bands for PM2.5 (2024 revision); it has bands, not numbers, so values stay in µg/m³. Show values as: µg/m³ · US AQI · India AQI · China AQI · European AQI · UK DAQI · Canada AQHI+. About the scales

Estimated: cities without a monitor

Kentucky cities we can't measure, with model estimates for the last 7 days. Listed by population, not ranked: estimates aren't precise enough to rank. Model estimates from the Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service (CAMS), adjusted to measured cities nearby where there are any. Adjusted, a single day lands within ×1.5 of what a monitor would read about two times in three; unadjusted, it can be off by half or double. Treat them as a guide, not a measurement.

City7-day estimateBand
Lexington≈ 5 µg/m³Good
Meads≈ 5 µg/m³Good
Bowling Green≈ 4 µg/m³Good
Covington≈ 6 µg/m³Fair
Richmond≈ 4 µg/m³Good
Georgetown≈ 4 µg/m³Good
Florence≈ 4 µg/m³Good
Hopkinsville≈ 5 µg/m³Good
Henderson≈ 7 µg/m³Fair
Frankfort≈ 4 µg/m³Good
Independence≈ 5 µg/m³Good
Radcliff≈ 7 µg/m³Fair
Newburg≈ 6 µg/m³Fair
Madisonville≈ 6 µg/m³Fair
Murray≈ 4 µg/m³Good
Erlanger≈ 6 µg/m³Fair
Winchester≈ 4 µg/m³Good
Fern Creek≈ 6 µg/m³Fair
Okolona≈ 6 µg/m³Fair
Danville≈ 4 µg/m³Good
Burlington≈ 6 µg/m³Fair
Shively≈ 6 µg/m³Fair
Newport≈ 6 µg/m³Fair
Shelbyville≈ 5 µg/m³Good
Highview≈ 6 µg/m³Fair

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SmogRank, most polluted cities in Kentucky, United States, PM2.5, last 7 days to 2 Oct 2026, 03:00 UTC, smogrank.com/us/region/kentucky?w=7d.

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Updated 2026-10-02 03:07 UTC. Values are PM2.5 (fine particles), the median of each city's monitors in µg/m³.