Counties in Oregon by highest daily Air Quality Index (US EPA)

Deschutes County had the highest highest daily Air Quality Index (US EPA) of 23 counties in 2021, at 403. Columbia County had the lowest, at 66. The median was 170. Source: the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

Highest403Deschutes County

Lowest66Columbia County

Median17023 counties

Map of counties, 2021

Under 120
120 to 160
160 to 180
180 to 190
190 and over
No data

index, 2021. Hatched areas have no value for this period. Source: EPA, EPA AirData annual AQI by county: highest daily AQI. Boundaries: U.S. Census Bureau cartographic boundary files.

All counties, 2021

index. Source: EPA, EPA AirData annual AQI by county: highest daily AQI. Retrieved 2026-10-12.

Full ranking

Rank	Counties	2021 index	Change on 2020
1	Deschutes County	403	-696
2	Jackson County	266	-634
3	Klamath County	237	-526
4	Lane County	230	-770
5	Crook County	190	-843
6	Josephine County	188	-575
6	Lake County	188	+22
8	Douglas County	186	-716
9	Harney County	185	-172
10	Grant County	175	-218
11	Jefferson County	173	-962
12	Union County	170	-156
13	Umatilla County	169	-569
14	Wasco County	163	-436
15	Wallowa County	162	-60
16	Clackamas County	161	-320
17	Baker County	155	-70
18	Linn County	136	-717
19	Multnomah County	105	-674
20	Washington County	100	-495
21	Marion County	93	-1,179
22	Benton County	69	-472
23	Columbia County	66	-227

Other periods

About this ranking

Highest daily Air Quality Index (AQI) value recorded in a US county during the year, from the EPA AirData annual summaries. Values above 500 are beyond the AQI scale and are published as EPA computes them.

A single day decides the value, so one wildfire or dust event can set it. Dust from the dry Owens Lake bed puts Inyo and Mono counties in California in the thousands. United States counties with air quality monitors only, about 1,000 of some 3,100 in recent years; a county without monitors has no value. The number of days with an AQI differs between counties because some monitors run only in the ozone season.

Every value in the ranking comes from the same publisher and the same period, so the counties are compared on one definition. 3 counties with data in other periods have no value for 2021 and are left out rather than filled from another source. Equal values share a rank.

How to cite

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Air Quality System, AirData. EPA AirData annual AQI by county: highest daily AQI. https://aqs.epa.gov/aqsweb/airdata/download_files.html#Annual. Retrieved 2026-10-12.

Citation styles

The publisher is the author. Invokely is named only as the place the figures were read, where a style asks for it.

APA 7

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. (2026). EPA AirData annual AQI by county: highest daily AQI (Counties in Oregon by highest daily Air Quality Index (US EPA), 2021) [Data set]. Retrieved October 12, 2026, from https://aqs.epa.gov/aqsweb/airdata/download_files.html#Annual

MLA 9

EPA AirData annual AQI by county: highest daily AQI, Counties in Oregon by highest daily Air Quality Index (US EPA), 2021. U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, 13 July 2026, https://aqs.epa.gov/aqsweb/airdata/download_files.html#Annual. Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/highest-daily-air-quality-index/oregon-counties?period=2021. Accessed 12 Oct. 2026.

Chicago (author-date)

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. 2026. EPA AirData annual AQI by county: highest daily AQI. Counties in Oregon by highest daily Air Quality Index (US EPA), 2021. Dataset. Accessed October 12, 2026. https://aqs.epa.gov/aqsweb/airdata/download_files.html#Annual. Also distributed by Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/highest-daily-air-quality-index/oregon-counties?period=2021.

Harvard

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (2026) EPA AirData annual AQI by county: highest daily AQI, Counties in Oregon by highest daily Air Quality Index (US EPA), 2021 [Dataset]. Available at: https://aqs.epa.gov/aqsweb/airdata/download_files.html#Annual, via Invokely: https://invokely.ai/rankings/highest-daily-air-quality-index/oregon-counties?period=2021 (Accessed: 12 October 2026).

BibTeX

@misc{environmental_counties_in_oregon_by_2021,
  author = {{U.S. Environmental Protection Agency}},
  title = {{EPA AirData annual AQI by county: highest daily AQI: Counties in Oregon by highest daily Air Quality Index (US EPA), 2021}},
  year = {2026},
  howpublished = {Data set},
  url = {https://aqs.epa.gov/aqsweb/airdata/download_files.html#Annual},
  urldate = {2026-10-12},
  note = {Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/highest-daily-air-quality-index/oregon-counties?period=2021. Publisher attribution: U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Air Quality System, AirData. EPA AirData annual AQI by county: highest daily AQI. https://aqs.epa.gov/aqsweb/airdata/download\_files.html\#Annual. Retrieved 2026-10-12.},
}

RIS

TY  - DATA
AU  - U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
TI  - EPA AirData annual AQI by county: highest daily AQI: Counties in Oregon by highest daily Air Quality Index (US EPA), 2021
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/07/13
PB  - U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
DB  - Invokely
UR  - https://aqs.epa.gov/aqsweb/airdata/download_files.html#Annual
L2  - https://invokely.ai/rankings/highest-daily-air-quality-index/oregon-counties?period=2021
Y2  - 2026/10/12
N1  - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/highest-daily-air-quality-index/oregon-counties?period=2021.
N1  - Publisher attribution: U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Air Quality System, AirData. EPA AirData annual AQI by county: highest daily AQI. https://aqs.epa.gov/aqsweb/airdata/download_files.html#Annual. Retrieved 2026-10-12.
ER  -

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Rank Counties in Oregon by highest daily Air Quality Index (US EPA) using official data, and cite the source.

rank_places {"indicator":"aqi_max","level":"province","within":"Oregon","limit":10}
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Questions

Which county has the highest highest daily Air Quality Index (US EPA)?

Deschutes County, with 403 in 2021, according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

Which county has the lowest highest daily Air Quality Index (US EPA)?

Columbia County, with 66 in 2021.

Where does this ranking come from?

Every value comes from one source and one period, so the places are comparable: U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, EPA AirData annual AQI by county: highest daily AQI. Retrieved 2026-10-12. 3 counties have no value for 2021 and are not ranked.