Canada Wildfire Smoke Map
See where wildfire smoke is right now across Canada — the hourly smoke forecast layered over live air-quality readings and the active fires producing it. Find smoke near you, then protect your air.
The newest official data there is, pulled every few minutes as agencies publish · each flame marks where a fire was reported, not where its edge is right now
Loaded Oct 2, 9:06 AM EDT · source: NOAA smoke forecast (ECCC RAQDPS north of 60°N) + AirNow/OpenAQ monitors
Smoke pulled fresh from NOAA each time you load the page (30-min server cache)
Get alerted before wildfire smoke reaches your home
The moment official air-quality readings near you reach High Risk — or a new fire starts that could send smoke your way — we'll email you. So you can close the windows, run the purifier, and keep kids and elders inside before it arrives. We watch Environment Canada's Air Quality Health Index readings against your exact address. 100% free.
High-risk air
When official readings near your home reach High Risk on Canada's AQHI scale (Environment Canada), or unhealthy levels on nearby monitors.
New fire nearby
A new wildfire starts close enough to send smoke your way — official U.S. data today; Canadian-feed coverage is rolling out and switches on automatically.
Your exact address
Tuned to your neighbourhood, not a whole province.
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Free air-quality alerts — unsubscribe anytime. Next: add your home address so alerts are about your neighbourhood.
Awareness alerts from official Environment Canada & monitor data. For a medical emergency, call 911.
How to read the air on this map
Wildfire smoke’s main hazard is fine particulate (PM2.5). The map shows two kinds of stations: official ECCC AQHI stations (Canada’s 1–10+ scale, labeled in their popups) and continental monitors on the U.S. AQI scale (0–500), explained below. Both rank the same pollution — the official Canadian guidance for your area is your local AQHI forecast.
0–50 · Good
Air quality is satisfactory; little or no risk.
51–100 · Moderate
Unusually sensitive people should consider limiting prolonged exertion.
101–150 · Unhealthy for sensitive groups
People with heart/lung disease, kids, and older adults should limit exertion.
151–200 · Unhealthy
Everyone may begin to feel effects; sensitive groups more seriously.
201–300 · Very unhealthy
Health alert — everyone may experience serious effects.
301+ · Hazardous
Emergency conditions; stay indoors with filtered air.
How to protect yourself from wildfire smoke
Stay indoors and seal up
Close windows and doors, and run your AC or HVAC on recirculate so you’re not pulling smoke inside.
Run a HEPA air purifier
A true-HEPA purifier sized to the room dramatically cuts indoor fine particulate (PM2.5) — the part of smoke that harms lungs.
Make a DIY box-fan filter
A box fan with a MERV-13 furnace filter taped to the back is a cheap, effective backup when purifiers sell out during a smoke event.
Mask up outdoors with an N95
Cloth and surgical masks don’t stop PM2.5. A well-fitted N95 or P100 does. Limit time and exertion outside.
Watch sensitive groups
Kids, older adults, pregnant people, and anyone with asthma, COPD, or heart disease should be most cautious — keep medications handy.
Official air-quality & fire sources
For authoritative readings and health guidance, use these official sources.
About our data & sources
Wildfire smoke is a health issue, so we’re transparent about where this map’s data comes from. We don’t model or estimate smoke ourselves — every layer is pulled directly from official government feeds and refreshed automatically. Each source below links to its primary publisher so you can verify it.
The smoke layer is NOAA’s gridded surface-smoke forecast (National Digital Guidance Database) — the exact same layer as our U.S. smoke maps, so smoke renders identically on both sides of the border. Its domain reaches to about 60°N, covering where nearly all Canadians live; the far North (Nunavik and the territories) renders from the ECCC model below.
North of 60°N — beyond the NOAA model’s domain — the map shows Environment and Climate Change Canada’s Regional Air Quality Deterministic Prediction System, a gridded forecast of surface fine-particulate (PM2.5) from wildfire plumes, rendered on the same colour scale. It always shows the current hour of the newest model run.
Canada’s official air-quality scale, published by Environment and Climate Change Canada from monitoring stations across the country. AQHI stations appear on the map on their own 1–10+ scale; for official readings and health guidance for your community, always use the ECCC AQHI pages.
The AQI monitor dots come from the AirNow partnership and OpenAQ — continental feeds that include Canadian stations and report on the U.S. AQI scale (0–500), labeled as such. Readings are preliminary real-time data, not the fully validated regulatory record.
The active-fire layer shows current wildfire incidents from Natural Resources Canada’s national fire feed (Canadian Wildland Fire Information Framework) — the source fires producing the smoke — under the Open Government Licence – Canada.
Forecast smoke and live monitor readings can differ — smoke aloft in the forecast may not yet be at ground level, and local monitors capture conditions the grid can miss. For the official reading and health guidance where you are, always confirm with Environment Canada’s AQHI for your community. For the science behind smoke and your health, see our wildfire smoke health guide.
Related
Smoke map by province & territory
Live smoke forecast and air quality for every province — zoom in on your area for local readings.
Canada wildfire smoke map FAQ
How does the Canadian wildfire smoke map work?
The smoke layer is NOAA's continental smoke-forecast model — the exact same layer as our U.S. smoke maps, so smoke looks identical on both sides of the border — showing where wildfire smoke is expected at ground level. Its domain covers Canada up to about 60°N; above that, Environment Canada's RAQDPS wildfire-smoke model fills in the far North. Underneath are live air-quality monitor readings and every active fire Canadian agencies are tracking, so you can see the smoke, the air it's affecting, and the fires producing it on one map.
Why is there wildfire smoke where there are no fires near me?
Wildfire smoke travels with the wind at high altitude, often hundreds or thousands of kilometres from the fire that produced it. Smoke from boreal fires in northern Ontario or Québec regularly blankets southern cities — and in big seasons it crosses into the U.S. and even reaches Europe. That's why you can have hazy skies and poor air quality on a day with no local fire at all.
What is the AQHI, and why does this map show AQI numbers?
Canada's official air-quality scale is the Air Quality Health Index (AQHI), a 1–10+ scale published by Environment and Climate Change Canada. The map shows both kinds of readings: official ECCC AQHI stations (labeled on Canada's 1–10+ scale in their popups) and monitors from a continental feed that reports on the U.S. AQI scale (0–500) — each labeled with its own scale. The two scales rank the same underlying pollution. For official Canadian health guidance, check your local AQHI forecast.
How often is the smoke forecast updated?
The smoke forecast updates hourly at the source and our servers re-pull it about every 30 minutes — reload the page for the newest data (the far-North ECCC overlay always shows the current hour of its newest run). The air-quality monitor readings auto-update through the day (typically hourly per station), and the fire layer re-pulls from official feeds every few minutes.
Is this map a substitute for official warnings?
No. This map is for awareness. For official air-quality statements, special air quality advisories, and health guidance, follow Environment and Climate Change Canada and your provincial or local health authority. For evacuations and emergencies, follow local authorities and call 911.
FireRisk.ai is for awareness, not emergency guidance, and the health tips here are general information — not medical advice. If you have a heart or lung condition, are pregnant, elderly, or caring for children, consult your doctor and follow Environment and Climate Change Canada’s AQHI guidance. For evacuations and emergencies, follow local authorities and call 911. Smoke forecast — Data Source: Environment and Climate Change Canada.