PurpleAir’s Real-Time Map is a Progressive Web App (PWA) which can be installed on Android, IOS and desktop devices. Look for the “Add to Desktop” options on your phone or the install button in your web browser.
Below are steps on how to install a PWA on Chrome:
Android:
On your Android device, open Chrome .
Go to a website with a web app that you want to install.
On the right of the address bar, tap More Add to home screenInstall.
Follow the on-screen instructions.
If you want the map to remember your location and selected map settings, save cookies.
IPhone:
On your iPhone or iPad, open Chrome .
Go to a website that you want to add.
On the right of the address bar, tap Share .
Find and tap Add to Home Screen.
Confirm or edit the website details and tap Add.
If you want the map to remember your location and selected map settings, save cookies.
Accepting Cookies
Accepting cookies is required for the map to save your location and selected map settings such as the data layer.
You can change your cookie preferences at any time by selecting “cookies” on the bottom bar. This can be difficult to see on mobile and may be obscured. The following screenshot is from an iPhone. Although “cookies” is partially covered by a black bar, it can still be clicked to change your cookie settings.
If you use a different browser that isn’t listed here, search using the following keywords:
browser's name + PWA
There are also many other options available to you for viewing data.
The PurpleAir Map
The PurpleAir Map is as easily accessible on a phone as it is on a computer. Simply navigate to a browser of your choice and enter map.purpleair.com into the address bar.
Additionally, you can create a bookmark with all of your preferred map settings for ease-of-access.
Google
Google has added PurpleAir as a data source for Google Maps on Android and IOS. Tap on the button in the top right corner of your screen on mobile or the bottom left on a computer to see available map layers. Then select “Air Quality.”
Third-Party Apps
A number of third-party apps use PurpleAir data and could provide what you are looking for. A list of those apps is below.
What happened to Airwyn? Was using it regularly, so very sorry to see that it is no longer available. Which app would people recommend to use in its place where I can track my own sensor data quickly?
I’m trying to add a PurpleAir home screen shortcut to my iPad (iPadOS 18.3) using Chrome, however I would like it to link directly to a specific sensor.
I have the URL I would like it to link to, and when opening it in the browser it correctly shows the sensor I want on the PurpleAir map. However, when I go to Share and select Add to Home Screen, the UI that appears defaults to “PurpleAir” and a URL of “https://map.purpleair.com/” – i.e. it strips all URL parameters. The behavior is the same when using Safari.
I think this might have something to do with the https://map.purpleair.com/manifest.json file specifying “start_url”: “/” for the PurpleAir PWA, which ends up overriding the actual URL being shared in this add to home screen flow.
Anybody aware of a solution to this? Or is it an issue that should be fixed via the PurpleAir PWA manifest.json?
With AIR MATTERS I was unable to add my station to their app.
They wrote to me to say that:
“Unfortunately it appears that Purple Air devices can no longer connect with our app. We are still in contact with the Purple Air team. We will confirm with you once we have more information.”
I wonder why? Is there a particular reason or just a glitch?
AIR MATTERS say that the reason for abandoning PurpleAir is the following:
“The decision to discontinue support for Purple Air sensors is primarily due to the company’s implementation of costs for accessing their API. We are currently evaluating the cost implications and exploring the possibility of reintegrating support in the future.We understand the value of Purple Air sensors and appreciate your feedback. We’ll keep you updated on any changes regarding this matter.”
I want to highlight that we’re not aware of Air Matters reaching out. If you are in contact with someone who developed the app, please encourage them to email us at contact@purpleair.com. We want to be part of the solution.
Dear Andrew,
As you will probably have noticed, I put you in blind carbon copy to the
email I sent them.
I do hope they reach out. Or if you wish to do so, you have a couple of
contacts in my mail…
Thank you for your feedback.
I have been advised by PurpleAir that they are not aware of this and
want to help.
They have asked me to ask you to reach out to them: /I want to highlight that we’re not aware of Air Matters reaching out.
If you are in contact with someone who developed the app, please
encourage them to email us at contact@purpleair.com. We want to be part
of the solution./
Please do send them an email as I feel it would be a great shame for the
connection to be broken! There are a lot of PurpleAir sensors that
could be of use.
Yes, I didn’t see the email, so I appreciate the follow-up! I hope they will reach out. If I don’t hear from them, I’ll send an email along to those addresses.
..
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