The EIAQI is Dubai Municipality’s 0–500 indoor air quality score, published in February 2025 as DM-HSD-GU141-IAQI2. It rates ten parameters, including PM2.5, PM10, CO₂, VOCs and formaldehyde, in six colour bands from Good (0–50) to Hazardous (301–500), and expects continuous monitoring with ISO 17025 calibration and five years of stored data.
What is the EIAQI?
The Environmental Indoor Air Quality Index is a Dubai Municipality guideline that converts indoor measurements into one score, so building owners, facility managers and occupants can understand air quality at a glance. It applies to “all buildings and facilities in Dubai, especially those equipped with IoT-based or smart indoor air quality monitoring systems, excluding medical healthcare facilities with special requirements” (Scope, p5).
Which parameters does it include?
Ten: PM2.5, PM10, carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide, volatile organic compounds, formaldehyde, nitrogen dioxide, ozone, relative humidity and temperature (p8). PM2.5 carries the largest weight in the reporting score (0.25), followed by PM10 (0.14) and CO₂ (0.13) (p12).
What do the six colour bands mean?
Scores of 0–50 are Good (green), 51–100 Moderate (yellow), 101–150 Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups (orange), 151–200 Unhealthy (red), 201–300 Very Unhealthy (purple) and 301–500 Hazardous (maroon) (p9).
What counts as good CO₂, PM2.5 and VOC levels?
Each pollutant has breakpoints for every band (Table 2, p10). “Good” means CO₂ of 400–600 ppm, PM2.5 of 0–12 µg/m³ and VOCs of 0–0.3 mg/m³. Thermal comfort is defined separately as 22–25.5 °C and 40–60% relative humidity (p11).
| Pollutant | Good | Moderate | Sensitive groups | Unhealthy | Very unhealthy | Hazardous |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PM2.5 (µg/m³) | 0–12 | 12.1–35 | 35.1–55 | 55.1–150 | 150.1–250 | > 250 |
| PM10 (µg/m³) | 0–50 | 51–100 | 101–150 | 151–250 | 251–350 | > 350 |
| CO₂ (ppm) | 400–600 | 601–1,000 | 1,001–1,500 | 1,501–2,500 | 2,501–5,000 | > 5,000 |
| CO (ppm) | 0–4 | 4.1–9 | 9.1–15 | 15.1–30 | 30.1–50 | > 50 |
| VOCs (mg/m³) | 0–0.3 | 0.31–0.6 | 0.61–1 | 1.1–1.5 | 1.51–2 | > 2 |
| HCHO (µg/m³) | 0–50 | 51–80 | 81–100 | 101–300 | 301–500 | > 500 |
| NO₂ (ppb) | 0–50 | 51–100 | 101–150 | 151–200 | 201–300 | > 300 |
| O₃ (ppb) | 0–50 | 51–100 | 101–150 | 151–200 | 201–300 | > 300 |
How is the score calculated?
Each pollutant’s reading is converted to a sub-index using the breakpoints. The real-time EIAQI is the highest sub-index, so the dominant pollutant sets the score. For reporting, the guideline uses a weighted sum over 8-hour and 24-hour averages (p13–14).
What monitoring does the EIAQI expect?
Appendix 1 (p16–17) describes continuous monitoring with “IoT-enabled or any smart sensors” and real-time data, 1-hour averaging plus 8-hour and 24-hour averages, multi-point monitoring, device calibration in accordance with ISO 17025, secure data storage for a minimum of five years, and automatically generated compliance reports.
Buildings with high-risk occupants, such as schools and elderly care homes, “must implement enhanced IAQ monitoring protocols and additional mitigation strategies” (p15).
How is the EIAQI different from the outdoor AQI?
The outdoor Air Quality Index describes the air outside, from city monitoring stations. The EIAQI describes the air inside a specific building, including indoor-only parameters such as CO₂, VOCs and formaldehyde. A building can score well indoors on a dusty day if its filtration works, and poorly on a clear day if ventilation is inadequate.
Frequently asked questions
When was the EIAQI published?
Dubai Municipality issued DM-HSD-GU141-IAQI2, Version 1, on 14 February 2025.
Does the EIAQI apply to hospitals?
It excludes medical healthcare facilities with special requirements (Scope, p5).
What is a good indoor CO₂ level on the EIAQI?
400–600 ppm is Good; 601–1,000 ppm is Moderate; 1,001–1,500 ppm is Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups.
Can existing monitors report the EIAQI?
Monitors that log the index parameters continuously, with calibration and data storage, can feed EIAQI reporting. We check which parameters your system covers.
Sources
- Dubai Municipality, Environmental Indoor Air Quality Index (EIAQI), DM-HSD-GU141-IAQI2, Version 1 (14 February 2025): Scope p5; parameters p8; bands p9; Table 2 p10; comfort p11; weights p12; method p13–14; schools p15; Appendix 1 p16–17.
This guide explains public standards in plain language. It is not legal advice; check the current version of each document for compliance decisions.