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San Francisco Tourism Statistics for November 2026
San Francisco received an estimated 23.77 million visitors in 2025, 2.0% more than in 2024 but 9.3% fewer than in 2019. Visitors spent an estimated $9.43 billion in the city in 2025 (+1.8%), and international overnight visitors accounted for $4.89 billion of that. San Francisco International Airport handled 54.5 million passengers in 2025, 4.3% more than in 2024.
How many people visit San Francisco, what they spend, how they arrive and what tourism brings in for the city. The figures are compiled from official statistics and the tourism board's published estimates, and full sources are listed at the bottom of the page. Headline numbers are for 2025, the most recent full year, with 2026 year-to-date where available. The City and County of San Francisco share one boundary; airport and national park figures cover places elsewhere in the Bay Area, and each one is labelled.
Visitor numbers
Visitors to San Francisco
San Francisco received an estimated 23.77 million visitors in 2025, 2.0% more than in 2024 (23.30 million). That is 9.3% fewer than in 2019 (26.21 million), a gap of about 2.4 million visitors. Day visitors made up 15.42 million of the 2025 total, domestic overnight visitors 6.09 million and international overnight visitors 2.26 million. International overnight visitors fell from 2.34 million in 2024 and remain well below 2019 (2.95 million). The latest forecast is 24.4 million visitors in 2026.
View data table
| Period | Value | Note |
|---|---|---|
| 2019 | 26.21m | pre-pandemic |
| 2022 | 21.94m | |
| 2023 | 23.09m | |
| 2024 | 23.30m | |
| 2025 | 23.77m | +2.0% |
Visitor numbers are modelled estimates made for the city's tourism board, not head counts. They cover the city of San Francisco and include day visitors, but not daily commuters. Totals for 2019–2024 are the sums of the published day, domestic overnight and international overnight figures, as revised in June 2026. The 2024 total was first published as 23.06 million. No estimates for 2020 and 2021 are given in the latest report.
Visitor spending
What visitors spend in San Francisco
Visitors spent an estimated $9.43 billion in San Francisco in 2025, 1.8% more than in 2024 and 1.4% less than in 2019 ($9.56 billion), in current dollars. After adjusting for inflation, spending was 21.8% below 2019. International overnight visitors spent $4.89 billion, down from $5.02 billion in 2024. Domestic overnight visitors spent $3.00 billion and day visitors $1.54 billion. Spending by convention and meeting planners and exhibitors added $644.6 million, for total tourism spending of $10.08 billion. The latest forecast for 2026 is $9.94 billion in visitor spending.
View data table
| Period | Value | Note |
|---|---|---|
| 2019 | $9.56bn | pre-pandemic |
| 2020 | $2.67bn | pandemic |
| 2021 | $3.56bn | |
| 2022 | $7.47bn | |
| 2023 | $8.83bn | |
| 2024 | $9.26bn | |
| 2025 | $9.43bn | +1.8% |
Modelled estimates of goods and services bought by visitors inside the city of San Francisco, in current (nominal) dollars, excluding spending by convention and meeting planners and exhibitors. Values are as published in June 2026; earlier releases may differ. A separate official state estimate puts visitor spending in the city and county at $10.6 billion in 2025 (preliminary, +5.3%). It uses a different method and visitor definition, so the two should not be compared.
Type of visit
Day and overnight visitors
Most visitors to San Francisco come for the day. Of the estimated 23.77 million visitors in 2025, 15.42 million (65%) were day visitors, 6.09 million (26%) domestic overnight visitors and 2.26 million (10%) international overnight visitors. Overnight visitors account for most of the spending: international overnight visitors spent $4.89 billion and domestic overnight visitors $3.00 billion, against $1.54 billion by day visitors.
- Day visitors 15.42m
- Domestic overnight 6.09m
- International overnight 2.26m
Modelled estimates for 2025. Overnight visitors stay at least one night in the city, in paid accommodation or with friends and family. Day visitors travel to the city for leisure or business; daily commuters are excluded. Shares are rounded.
Places to visit
National park sites in the Bay Area
Golden Gate National Recreation Area, which includes Alcatraz Island, recorded 15.7 million recreation visits in 2025, 8.4% fewer than in 2024. San Francisco Maritime National Historical Park had 2.94 million visits (+16.1%) and Fort Point National Historic Site 1.01 million (−15.0%). North of the Golden Gate in Marin County, Point Reyes National Seashore had 2.43 million visits and Muir Woods National Monument 756,573.
Recreation visits in calendar year 2025, summed from monthly counts; the muted figure is the change on 2024. Golden Gate National Recreation Area covers parkland in San Francisco, Marin and San Mateo counties, so its count is not limited to the city. San Francisco Maritime and Fort Point are in the city. No separate annual count for Alcatraz Island is included.
Accommodation
Hotels & occupancy
San Francisco hotels had an average occupancy of 67.2% in 2025, at an average daily rate of $245.38. Revenue per available room was $164.85, 14.4% more than in 2024. The city's General Fund received $255.3 million in hotel tax in the 2024–25 fiscal year (July–June), and the city projected $288.1 million for 2025–26, 12.8% more. Hotel tax for all funds was projected at $323.3 million. From July 2025 to March 2026, revenue per available room averaged $183.86, 25.7% more than a year earlier. Hotel and motel guests spent $7.33 billion in the city in 2025 (preliminary, +6.9%) on the official state estimate.
Economic impact
Tourism in San Francisco's economy
By the tourism board's estimate, visitor spending supported 63,908 jobs in San Francisco in 2025, 3.5% more than in 2024 but more than 22,000 below 2019. It generated $654.9 million in city tax revenue (+8.3%), of which hotel tax was $311.3 million (48%), property taxes $180.1 million and sales tax $69.6 million. The official state estimate puts direct travel spending in the city and county at $14.2 billion in 2025 (+3.3%), supporting 55,400 jobs (+0.2%) and $4.3 billion in earnings.
Direct travel spending of $14.2 billion includes $10.6 billion spent by visitors and $3.6 billion of other travel spending, such as residents' air travel and convention services. Direct tax revenue from travel was $973.8 million in 2025 (preliminary): $560.3 million in local and $413.5 million in state taxes. Convention and meeting spending, including spending by attendees, was an estimated $1.23 billion in 2025, 64.6% more than in 2024. Moscone Center hosted 34 events in 2025, generating 635,227 hotel room nights, against 25 events and 399,000 room nights in 2024.
At a glance
Fast facts
- 2.26m International overnight visitors (2025 estimate)
- 15.9m International passengers at SFO (2025, +1.0%)
- 34 Moscone Center events (2025)
- 635,227 Hotel room nights from Moscone Center events (2025)
- $1.23bn Convention and meeting spending (2025 estimate)
- 2.94m Visits to San Francisco Maritime National Historical Park (2025)
Questions
Frequently asked questions
How many tourists visit San Francisco each year?
An estimated 23.77 million visitors came to San Francisco in 2025, 2.0% more than in 2024. Of these, 15.42 million were day visitors, 6.09 million domestic overnight visitors and 2.26 million international overnight visitors. The 2019 total was 26.21 million. The figures are modelled estimates and include day visitors.
How much do tourists spend in San Francisco?
Visitors spent an estimated $9.43 billion in San Francisco in 2025, up 1.8% on 2024 and 1.4% below 2019. International overnight visitors spent $4.89 billion of that. Adding spending by convention and meeting planners and exhibitors gives total tourism spending of $10.08 billion.
How many international tourists visit San Francisco?
About 2.26 million international visitors stayed overnight in San Francisco in 2025, down from 2.34 million in 2024 and 2.95 million in 2019. They spent $4.89 billion. Mexico, the United Kingdom, China, Canada and India are the top five source markets. SFO handled 15.9 million international passengers in 2025, 1.0% more than in 2024.
How many passengers use SFO each year?
San Francisco International Airport handled 54.5 million passengers in 2025, 4.3% more than in 2024. Domestic passengers rose 5.7% to 38.4 million and international passengers 1.0% to 15.9 million. In January–August 2026 the airport handled 37.2 million passengers, 2.1% more than a year earlier. The airport is in San Mateo County, and its counts include local residents and connecting travellers.
How much hotel tax does San Francisco collect?
The city's General Fund received $255.3 million in hotel tax in the 2024–25 fiscal year. The city projected $288.1 million for 2025–26, 12.8% more, and $323.3 million for all funds. The hotel tax rate is 14%, of which 1.5 percentage points go to arts programmes outside the General Fund.
Is San Francisco tourism growing in 2026?
The latest forecast is 24.4 million visitors and $9.94 billion in visitor spending in 2026. Hotel revenue per available room from July 2025 to March 2026 was 25.7% higher than a year earlier, and Moscone Center is forecast to host 38 events. SFO passengers rose 2.1% in January–August 2026, while international passengers fell 1.2%.
Using these figures?
Cite this page
Journalists, researchers and bloggers are welcome to use the statistics on this page. Please credit San Francisco Tourism Statistics and link to this page.
San Francisco Tourism Statistics (2026). Visitors, spending and trends. Last reviewed 2 November 2026. https://www.ustourismstatistics.com/san-francisco
<a href="https://www.ustourismstatistics.com/san-francisco">San Francisco Tourism Statistics</a> Notes & sources
Methodology & sources
This page compiles official statistics and published estimates; the sources for every figure are listed below. Main caveats:
- Visitor numbers, visitor spending, jobs and tax revenue for 2025 come from the San Francisco Travel Association report published in June 2026. Hotel performance and Moscone Center figures are from its release of 7 May 2026, and the 2026 forecasts from its release of 26 August 2026. County spending, jobs and tax figures come from the Dean Runyan Associates report for Visit California (April 2026), which is preliminary for 2025. 2026 figures are January–August airport traffic and July 2025 to March 2026 hotel revenue per room.
- Visitor numbers are modelled estimates by the San Francisco Travel Association and Tourism Economics, not counts, and the model has been used to revise the series back to 2008. They count people visiting the city of San Francisco, including day visitors but not daily commuters. Totals for 2019–2024 are the sums of the three published segments. The 2024 total was first published as 23.06 million in March 2025 and is now 23.30 million. The May 2026 release rounds international overnight visitors to 2.2 million; this page uses the 2.26 million in the full report. Changes for segments are calculated from the published figures.
- Visitor spending ($9.43 billion), jobs (63,908) and city tax revenue ($654.9 million) are the tourism board's estimates for the city. The Dean Runyan estimate for San Francisco County, which has the same boundary as the city, gives visitor spending of $10.6 billion, direct travel spending of $14.2 billion and 55,400 direct jobs. The two sets use different methods and visitor definitions and are not comparable. Direct employment is rounded to the nearest 10. Values are nominal.
- Hotel tax figures are General Fund receipts of the City and County of San Francisco by fiscal year (July–June), from the Controller's May 2026 Nine-Month Budget Status Report; 2025–26 is a projection, not a final actual. The $311.3 million hotel tax figure in the economy section is the tourism board's estimate of tax paid by visitors in calendar 2025 and is not comparable with these receipts. Occupancy, average daily rate and revenue per available room are as published by the tourism board for San Francisco hotels.
- SFO passenger totals are from San Francisco International Airport and count all arriving and departing passengers, including residents, connecting travellers and passengers who stay on the same aircraft. The airport is in San Mateo County. Park figures are National Park Service recreation visits summed from monthly data. Golden Gate National Recreation Area spans San Francisco, Marin and San Mateo counties. The SFO and park figures match the California page on this site.
Primary sources
- San Francisco Travel Association: Visitor Volume and Direct Spending Estimates 2025 : Research report published June 2026, prepared with Tourism Economics and Future Partners: visitor volume by segment (day, domestic overnight, international overnight) for 2019 and 2022–2025, direct visitor spending 2019–2025, convention and meeting spending, jobs and city tax revenue (modelled estimates).
- San Francisco Travel Association: 2025 results and 2026 forecast (press release) : Release of 7 May 2026: 2025 visitors, spending, tax revenue and jobs, 2025 hotel occupancy, average daily rate and RevPAR, Moscone Center events and room nights, top international source markets.
- San Francisco Travel Association: 2026 and 2027 forecast (press release) : Release of 26 August 2026: forecast visitor volume, visitor spending, hotel performance and Moscone Center events for 2026 and 2027.
- San Francisco Travel Association: 2024 results and 2025 forecast (press release) : Release of 20 March 2025: 2024 visitors (23.06 million as first published), spending, tax revenue and jobs.
- Visit California / Dean Runyan Associates: The Economic Impact of Travel in California, 2025p : State, regional and county impacts, April 2026 (2025 preliminary): San Francisco County direct travel spending, visitor spending by type of accommodation, earnings, employment and tax revenue, 2015–2025.
- San Francisco International Airport: Comparative Traffic Report, December 2025 : Calendar year 2025 and 2024 total airport passengers, domestic and international (report dated 2 February 2026).
- San Francisco International Airport: Comparative Traffic Report, August 2026 : Calendar year to date January–August 2026 and 2025 total airport passengers, domestic and international.
- National Park Service: Visitor Use Statistics : Monthly recreation visits for five park units in the San Francisco Bay Area, January 2024–December 2025 (summed to annual totals).
- City and County of San Francisco, Office of the Controller: Nine-Month Budget Status Report, FY 2025-26 : Report of 12 May 2026: General Fund hotel room tax actuals for FY 2024-25 and projection for FY 2025-26, hotel tax for all funds and the arts allocation.
- City and County of San Francisco, Office of the Controller: FY 2026-27 and FY 2027-28 Revenue Letter : Controller's discussion of the Mayor's proposed budget, 9 June 2026: budgeted hotel tax and RevPAR for July 2025 to March 2026.