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Data Ownership and Sharing

We strongly recommend that you fully understand data ownership terms before buying an air quality monitor, as some of them can be extremely restrictive. For many companies, the ability to monetize the data that your air quality monitor generates is an inherent part of their business model. Unfortunately, most companies are not transparent about it.

You Own The Data. Period.

We at AirGradient believe that the owner of our air quality monitors should own the data and have full control over it. If you read our terms & conditions, this is the first entry: “YOU own the data from your monitor"

From AirGradient’s Terms & Conditions

Source: https://www.airgradient.com/terms-conditions/

You have full decision-making power over your data. You can share it or keep it private, sell it or delete it, and we at AirGradient have no rights to it.

We Encourage You to Share Your Data

Air quality data has value and can be very helpful to share with others.

It might be so that people in the same location can better protect themselves from hazardous pollution, or it might be because scientists want to better understand global trends in air quality and climate change.

Part of our mission at AirGradient is to raise awareness of the dangers of air pollution by running webinars, working with environmental justice organizations, and providing air quality data from our community members. As a result, we encourage all people who own an AirGradient outdoor monitor to share the data they own, not only with us but also with third parties that have an interest in using the data.

We also see our mission in promoting fair use of the data, especially when it’s shared via our data platform and uses our infrastructure. Therefore, when you opt in to data sharing, the following licenses apply:

  1. Sharing on the AirGradient Map
    When you share the data on the AirGradient map, we will use the data under CC-BY-SA 4.0. This means that you as contributors are properly attributed and that in case we create derivative works, these remain open.

  2. Direct sharing with OpenAQ.
    We have a direct data transfer to OpenAQ and this data is shared under CC-BY 4.0. OpenAQ is a global repository of air quality data used by many organizations and research institutions, and we recommend people to share their data with OpenAQ if they can. We are an official partner of OpenAQ and strongly support their mission, as well as share the same ethos around open data. For parties using data from AirGradient monitors below outlined attribution requirements apply.

  3. Sharing via the AirGradient Public API.
    If you make your data available via the AirGradient API endpoint, anybody can access and use the data. In order to promote openness of data -especially when getting the data from the AirGradient infrastructure- this data is shared under CC-BY-SA 4.0. This means that the users of this data need to make available derivative works (see below).

Data Attribution Requirements

If You Want to use the Data, this is What You Need to Comply With

The CC-BY 4.0 and CC-BY-SA 4.0 licenses mentioned above allow you to freely use, share, and adapt the AirGradient air quality data for any purpose, even commercially. However, it comes with two key obligations:

  1. Attribution (BY): You must give appropriate credit to the original creators and source of the data.
  2. ShareAlike (SA): If you modify or build upon the data, you must distribute your contributions under the same CC-BY-SA 4.0 license or a compatible license.

Specific Attribution Requirements for AirGradient Air Quality Data

To comply with the CC-BY 4.0 and CC-BY-SA 4.0 licenses and provide proper attribution when using data from the AirGradient Public API or via OpenAQ, you must include the following elements in your attribution statement, wherever the data is displayed, used, or referenced:

1. Contributor Attribution:

  • Public Contributor Name: If the data point includes a “publicContributorName” property, you must clearly attribute the data to this contributor.

Example: If the API response includes “publicContributorName”: “Example NGO”, your attribution should include: “Data contributed by Example NGO”.

  • Public Place URL: If the data point includes a “publicPlaceUrl” property, you should include a link to this URL alongside the contributor name. This allows users to learn more about the organization or entity contributing the data.

Example (Continuing the previous example): If the API response also includes “publicPlaceUrl”: “https://example-ngo.org”, your attribution should ideally be: “Data contributed by Example NGO”. (This assumes you are displaying the data in a digital format where links are possible. In other formats, provide the URL in plain text).

2. AirGradient Attribution:

  • Acknowledge AirGradient as the Data Platform: You must clearly state that the data originates from the AirGradient data platform.

Required Text: “Data provided by AirGradient”

Example (Combining with the previous examples in a digital format): “Air quality data for this location is provided by Example NGO via AirGradient.” or “Data Contributor Example NGO via AirGradient.”

3. OpenAQ Attribution:

In case you use data from AirGradient monitors via the OpenAQ platform / API, the following attribution requirements apply:

  • Acknowledge AirGradient and OpenAQ as the Data Platform: You must clearly state that the data originates from the AirGradient data platform distributed via OpenAQ.

Required Text: “Data provided by AirGradient via OpenAQ”

Example (Combining with the previous examples in a digital format): “Air quality data for this location is provided by Example NGO via AirGradient distributed by OpenAQ.” or “Data Contributor Example NGO via AirGradient distributed by OpenAQ.”

4. License Information:

  • State the License: You must clearly state that the data is licensed under the Creative Commons Licenses.

Required Text for Data shared via the AirGradient API: “Licensed under CC-BY-SA 4.0”

Required Text for Data shared via OpenAQ: “Licensed under CC-BY 4.0”

Examples of Attribution in Different Contexts:

Website or Application:

  • Display the full attribution text (as exemplified above) clearly near the data visualization or in a dedicated “Data Sources” or “Attribution” section.
  • Ensure links are functional and easily accessible.

Reports, Publications, or Academic Papers:

  • Include the attribution text in a footnote, endnote, or in a “Data Sources” or “Acknowledgements” section.
  • For printed materials, provide the URLs in plain text if hyperlinks are not feasible.

Presentations or Infographics:

  • Include the attribution text on the slide or infographic itself, or in the presentation notes accompanying the slide.

Important Considerations:

  • Prominence: Attribution should be reasonably prominent and easily noticeable to users of the data.
  • Context: The specific placement and formatting of the attribution may vary depending on the context of use, but the required elements must always be present.
  • Dynamic Data: If you are displaying real-time or frequently updated data, the attribution should be consistently present and updated as needed.

Crucial ShareAlike Obligation: Licensing Your Derivative Works

  • Derivative Works Must Be Shared Under the Same License: The ShareAlike (SA) condition of the CC-BY-SA 4.0 license is essential. It means that if you modify, transform, or build upon the AirGradient air quality data in any way (e.g., by creating visualizations, analyses, forecasts, publications, combining it with other datasets, or incorporating it into a new product), you must license your resulting work (the “derivative work”) under the same CC-BY-SA 4.0 license or a compatible license.

  • Promoting Openness and Collaboration: This ShareAlike requirement ensures that any improvements or new creations based on AirGradient’s data also remain openly accessible and can be further built upon by the community. It fosters a collaborative environment for air quality data sharing and innovation.

  • Example - Air Quality Forecast: If you use AirGradient’s historical data to train a model to create air quality forecasts, and you then distribute these forecasts (e.g., via an app or website), you must make those forecasts available under the CC-BY-SA 4.0 or equivalent license. This includes making your methodology and, where reasonably possible, the underlying forecast data itself openly available under the same terms.

By adhering to these attribution requirements and the ShareAlike obligation, you ensure compliance with the CC-BY-SA 4.0 license and contribute to the open and transparent sharing of air quality data.

Thank you for properly acknowledging the contributors and AirGradient for providing this valuable resource and for supporting the open data ecosystem.

If you have any questions regarding these attribution requirements or the ShareAlike obligation, please do not hesitate to contact us.

More Information on Our Data Sharing

If you are interested to learn more about the reasoning behind above approach, please read the following blog posts:

Updated April 2025 (to clarify OpenAQ attribution requirements)



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