7 in 10 Adults Have Noticed Indoor Air Problems on Bad Air Days, GPS Air Finds

New report finds poor outdoor air quality is changing daily routines and raising questions about the air inside buildings

CHARLOTTE, N.C., Nov. 11, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- When wildfire smoke, pollen or other poor outdoor air conditions make it difficult to spend time outside, going indoors is often the first response. Yet outdoor pollutants can enter schools, offices and other buildings through heating and cooling systems, raising questions about the air people breathe inside. GPS Air, a leading provider of indoor air quality (IAQ) solutions, released new research examining how people respond to bad air days and what they expect from the buildings they rely on.

The 2026 GPS Air Indoor Air Quality Report: Smoke, Pollen and Bad Air Days, conducted in October 2026 via the third-party survey platform Pollfish, surveyed 750 U.S. adults who experience poor outdoor air conditions where they live. The report examines how bad air days affect daily routines and people's confidence in indoor air quality.

Key findings include:

• Indoor air problems are common on bad air days. 70% have noticed an air quality problem inside a building on a bad air day, including 68% of those who believe indoor air is better than outdoor air.
• Few believe buildings clean incoming outdoor air. Only 15% think outside air gets cleaned before reaching occupants through a building's heating and cooling system.
• Bad air days disrupt daily routines. 83% say the last bad air day changed how they spent their day, including 46% who stayed home instead of going out.
• Indoor air concerns affect where people go. 32% have skipped visiting an indoor location because they weren't sure the air inside would be any better than outside.
• People expect buildings to respond. 60% expect buildings to clean indoor air more than usual or bring in less outside air on bad air days.
• Parents have limited confidence in school air quality. Only 12% of K-12 parents are very confident their local schools keep indoor air healthy on bad air days.

"Buildings need to be able to clean the air inside and know that it's working,” said Audwin Cash, CEO of GPS Air. “That's especially important in schools, where parents expect the building to provide a healthy place for their kids to spend the day. The opportunity here is to treat indoor air like any other part of building performance: measure it, manage it and communicate to give people confidence that the building is responding when conditions change."

Visit the 2026 GPS Air Indoor Air Quality Report: Smoke, Pollen and Bad Air Days on GPS Air's website for the complete survey results and additional insights.

About GPS Air

GPS Air creates technology that cleans indoor air while cutting energy costs. The company's patented Needlepoint Bipolar Ionization (NPBI®) technology is installed in over 300,000 schools, offices, healthcare facilities and airports worldwide. GPS Air recently introduced smartIAQ®, an intelligent clean air system that improves air quality while reducing energy and equipment costs. All GPS Air products are tested to ASHRAE standards, certified to UL 2998 for zero ozone emissions, and the company is ISO 9001:2015 certified. Based in Charlotte, North Carolina, GPS Air welcomes visitors to experience its technology firsthand at its new Experience Center. Learn more at gpsair.com.

Media Contact

Idea Grove on behalf of GPS Air
gpsair@ideagrove.com