The Ultimate Guide to Traveling San Francisco on a Budget: 20+ Tips to Save Money on Food, Accommodations, Activities, and More
INTRODUCTION – SAN FRANCISCO ON A BUDGET
It’s no secret that San Francisco is one of the most expensive cities in the United States (and the world!)
Even a short weekend trip to San Francisco can break your budget … unless you use these tips to save money on everything from flights, activities, hotels, and more. It’s possible to travel to San Francisco on a budget, and I’m here to show you how. Use my guide and you can save around $500 (or more!)
How much money can you save? Let’s find out!
Cheap Flights to San Francisco
1. How to Score Cheap Flights to San Francisco with One Easy Trick- Instead of looking at flights between your home airport and San Francisco International Airport (SFO), try adding San Jose Airport (SJC) and Oakland Airport (OAK). In the photo above, you can save almost $100 just by re-routing your plans a little bit!
2. Fly on “Off” Days – I know this really depends on how flexible your work is, but try to not fly into San Francisco on weekend days like Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. A lot of businessmen and start-up employees tend to stay in San Francisco for conferences during the week and fly back home to their family on the weekend. Instead, try to fly on Tuesdays and Wednesdays.
Bonus: The flight might be half empty, which means more space for you. 
3. Shop & Compare Flights- There’s only one final step before booking your trip to San Francisco: make sure to shop around! I start looking at potential flights on Google Flights to make sure I know what to expect, then book through Skyscanner or Momondo because they often have the cheapest deals – and smaller/lesser-known airlines that Google Flights tends to miss.
4. Take BART – San Francisco Airport (SFO) and Oakland Airport (OAK) are both a 30-minute drive from downtown San Francisco. If you’re traveling alone or in a small group, it’s cheaper to take the BART train instead of a taxi/Uber. Here’s how much you can save (all prices are one-way):
Uber from OAK to downtown SF: $35 // BART ticket: $10.45
Uber from SFO to downtown SF: $40 // BART ticket: $9.15
* For fare info and BART schedule, click here! *
*Price as of August 2018
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Cheap Accommodation in San Francisco
5. Don’t Book a Downtown Hotel – But Luda, all the fun stuff is downtown San Francisco! No, dear reader, not always 
You can save over $100 per night if you don’t stay in the traditional touristy areas of SF like Downtown, SoMa, Fisherman’s Wharf, Nob Hill, etc. Best of all, there are plenty of cheap hotels in San Francisco – just take a look below:
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Here are my top picks for hotels outside of Downtown/SoMa/the Financial District -San Remo Hotel (North Beach District): San Remo is voted 4 stars on TripAdvisor (woo hoo!) and is located in San Francisco’s Italian neighborhood. If you’re looking to stay in an authentic “Victorian” house, you’re in luck – San Remo was built in 1906 and has the classical style that SF is known for. -Chelsea Motor Inn (Marina District): Another4-star property, the Chelsea Inn is located in the trendy foodie district known as the Marina. The hotel is close to many bars, restaurants, and cafes, and is only a 25-minute bus ride to Union Square/downtown. –Geary Parkway Motel (Richmond District): Geary Parkway is a great hotel to book if you’re planning on spending time in Golden Gate Park or the beach. You can take the 38 bus straight to downtown (3o min.) or the 28 up to the Golden Gate Bridge. |
6. Name Your Price with Priceline – Although I haven’t used this before, a few of my friends have had success by bidding on hotel rooms through Priceline. The only downside is you won’t know the name of the hotel until you get your offer accepted, but you can save up to 60% or more – plus, I’ve seen some rooms as low as $70 or $80/night!
Getting a 10% genius discount on the San Remo hotel
7. Use Booking.com for Extra Discounts- After you find a hotel (or hotels) that you like, the next step is to compare prices and see which booking site has the best deals. My favorite is Booking.com for a few reasons – If you reserve hotels through Booking 5 times, you’ll become a Genius member and get extra discounts (10% off) or complimentary goodies (bottle of wine, late checkout, etc).
They also offer free cancellations if you booked with their flexible option, have an app, and also have “deals of the day” that give you extra discounts.
8. Score Last-Minute Deals with Hotel Tonight- If you’ve decided to spontaneously visit San Francisco and need something super cheap and last-minute – check out Hotel Tonight! When hotels can’t sell rooms in time, they list the rooms on this useful app for much cheaper than the usual rate. Hotel Tonight isn’t just for last-minute deals – in some cities, you can book hotels up to 3 months ahead of your arrival!
Use code LBERDNYK to get $25 off your Hotel Tonight booking!
9. Stay in Hostels- If all else fails, book a hostel – there are a few good and cheap hostels in San Francisco. My personal favorite is the Green Tortoise – they have free breakfast every day, free dinner 3x a week, pub crawls, and even a sauna. You can get a bed in a 5-bed dorm for around $30, and a private room for around $80. Amsterdam Hostel is also a good place to stay in San Francisco – dorm beds for $20 a night, free movie nights, a terrace, and bike rentals – plus it’s in the center of downtown and Chinatown.
10. Consider a House sit or Homestay- These two options are often overlooked by travelers, but if you plan in advance then it’s possible to stay in San Francisco for free. To do this, you’ll need to create an account on Trusted Housesitters and stay applying to housesitting assignments. Once the owner agrees, you’ll be taking care of their house and/or pets in exchange for free accommodation. Housesitting requires some degree of flexibility because the dates are usually exact, but if you can manage it, you’ll save a ton of money on housing (and as a bonus get to play with cute cats or dogs!)
If you love to socialize and want to live like a local, don’t forget to check out homestays as well. Similar to Airbnb, you’ll rent a private room in your host’s house. As an added bonus, you can ask your host anything about San Francisco, and they might even take you to their favorite spots! The last time I checked, the cheapest room in San Francisco was going for $35/night.
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Planning a trip to San Francisco soon?
Check out all of my San Francisco posts here!
Cheap Food in San Francisco
10. Groupon Restaurant Deals– Groupon has a ton of deals for restaurants in San Francisco for every budget, neighborhood, and cuisine. The crepes above were only $10 for 2 thanks to a Groupon deal!
PS – I totally think you can survive your vacation in San Francisco only on Groupon restaurant deals – what do you think? Does anyone want to try? ;)
11. Get Bonus Goodies with Yelp Offers– Yelp is a crowdsourced website that allows people to rate local businesses such as restaurants, museums, bars, and more (similar to TripAdvisor). Yelp also has a feature that’s often overlooked: Yelp check-in offers. These are similar to coupons and can range from $X off your order to 1 free drink and even x% off!
How do you find a place that has a check-in offer from the hundreds of places listed?
Simply open the app > go to Search > click on Filter in the top left corner > and toggle the button that says “Offering a Deal.” Voila!
12. Eat at Restaurants Outside the City Center – Similar to the hotel trick above, don’t spend all of your time (and money) in downtown San Francisco. I’m not sure if it’s inflation from the businessmen or tourists, but to be honest, food is more expensive and less tasty in downtown SF. I recommend taking the bus/metro and exploring other areas of the city – you might find a hidden gem ;)
If you’re looking for specific cuisines, check out these neighborhoods:
-Italian: North Beach
-Mexican: The Mission
-Russian: The Richmond (Around Geary and 20th Ave)
-Chinese: Chinatown or Taraval St (Take the L metro from downtown)
-Japanese: Japantown or the Richmond
13. Take Advantage of Lunch Specials– This isn’t a San Francisco exclusive, but many restaurants lower their prices for lunch. There’s a lot of research and economic research behind this – feel free to Google it if you have time, and if not, then just take advantage of the lunch special and eat less for dinner. For example, my favorite Italian restaurant charges $5 more for the pasta entree and $3 more for an appetizer – for the same amount of food. Granted, this isn’t in every restaurant, but it’s a good tip to know. Don’t forget to also check for Happy Hour specials and Buy One Get One deals!
Free Things to Do in San Francisco
14. Free Museum Days– Whaaat? Free admission in San Francisco!? Yes, it’s possible!
San Francisco museums are generous enough to offer a free admission day, usually once or twice a month. There’s a helpful list of museums and their “free days” that you can find here. If you’ve been reading the list carefully, you should plan to visit San Francisco on the first week of the month ;)
* If you’re looking for a specific museum, you can google “[museum name] free day” for direct information. *
15. Bundle Your Activities & Save Money with the SF CityPass – If your travel style is doing the most touristy things possible in each city (*raises hand*), then the SF CityPass should be in your hand. For $94 per person, you’ll get access to 3 museums, a boat ride around the bay, and – my favorite – a 7-day MUNI Passport. Even if you don’t plan to use everything on the CityPass, the MUNI Passport alone makes it worth the price, because you’ll have unlimited rides on the busses, metro, trolley cars, and even the cable cars (which are $7 per ride!).
If you’re interested, check out my detailed review and price breakdown of the San Francisco CityPass.
16. Find Events on FunCheapSF- For a city that’s hella expensive, San Francisco does a great job at hosting free events. One of my absolute favorite websites for finding events and activities in San Francisco is FuncheapSF. There are festivals, events, yoga classes, stand-up comedy nights, and even admission to nightclubs – the best part is that all these events are free!
17. Groupon Activities – Hey, remember Groupon? Well, guess what: it’s back! Groupon is the first website I check when planning activities for my vacation, and San Francisco is no different. You can save a ton of money on things you were planning to do anyway, like Hop On bus tours or bike rentals. In fact, when my friend from Hong Kong came to visit, we both got $25 off our bike trip across the Golden Gate Bridge by using a Groupon. 
Here are some sample deals that you can get from Groupon:
–$118 for a Tour of Muir Woods or Wine Country for One Person ($135 Normally)
–$36 for Any Sailing Tour Ticket ($60 Normally) *Get the Sunset Tour!
–$35 Bicycle Rental for Two People ($80 Normally)
Note: Some of these deals are seasonal and may not always be available, but there are plenty of other Groupons!
18. Cheap Shows, Tours, and Even Sports Tickets – If you’re into theater or sports, then you have to check out Goldstar. You can save up to 70% off tickets to things like champagne brunch cruises, Beach Blanket Babylon (my favorite show!), Giants games, improv shows, food tours, and more.
19. Take Advantage of the Free Walking Tours – Experienced travelers might know about this “travel hack,” but San Francisco takes it one step further. Most cities might have 3, 5, maybe 15 free walking tours at most… San Francisco has almost 100 free walking tours! (Yes, I counted: there are currently 94).
Many of the tours are year-round, although there are a few ‘limited edition’ tours that are only done in May and October. You don’t need to wait for the weekend – tours are conducted every day (although weekends usually have more availability!).
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Looking for free tour suggestions? Check out my favorites below: – Chinatown Family Associations, Tongs, and Gangs: A Historic Look – If you think San Francisco is only a bunch of hippies with flowers in their hair, think again – and go on this tour to learn about the dangerous (and scandalous) history of Chinatown. –Japanese Tea Garden – Look, I know you’re planning on going to the Golden Gate Park, so why not add this tour to your schedule? On the 3 times that I’ve taken it, the guides were all very informative, interesting, and went to Japan before they were a guide (I’m serious! Is this some kind of prerequisite to becoming a guide? –Nob Hill: This one is for the architecture, luxury, and hotel lovers. It’s also a perfect starting tour when you arrive in San Francisco, since it’s in the center and talks a lot about the early history of the city. |
). The tour takes you through the entire Japanese Tea Garden and explains each little detail – don’t forget to look out for the hidden dragon!—
Cheap Souvenirs & Shopping in San Francisco
So you’ve been in San Francisco for almost a week, your flight home is tomorrow, and you don’t have any gifts for your friends (
). No worries! In San Francisco, there are 2 places where you can buy cheap souvenirs: Chinatown and Fisherman’s Wharf. I would have added the streets around Union Square, but they’re too expensive and don’t have much selection.
20. Cheap Souvenirs Part 1: Chinatown – Let’s start with Chinatown: the quality isn’t the best, but you’ll get a variety of souvenirs (thanks to cheap rent = more space) and cheap prices (guess where the souvenirs are made).
My go-to souvenir store in Chinatown is Far East Flea Market (pictured above) – don’t think about the name too much and get the San Francisco hoodies ($10), magnets ($1-2), and snow globes ($7 for a huge one). Heck, you can even buy a Japanese katana if you want, but get ready to explain it to the TSA agent.
21. Cheap Souvenirs Part 2: Fisherman’s Wharf– Fisherman’s Wharf is full of overpriced souvenirs – *ahem* $35 for a cheap hoodie – and dozens of stores. If you want cheap souvenirs, I recommend walking a few blocks away. The cheapest souvenirs are located the furthest from Pier 39! Another tip is to see how much they price the postcards (seriously): If it’s $1 for 2 or 3 postcards, skip it. If it’s $1 for 7 to 10 postcards, congrats, you’ve found a cheap store! I recommend looking around Hyde St. and Beach St., near Ghirardelli Square.
22. Japantown & Daiso- Honestly, Japantown should have its own blog post, but that’s for another time. If you’re looking for cheap food and goodies, Daiso is the place. Almost everything is $1.50, including makeup, notebooks, Japanese snacks (Pocky, candies, ramen, etc) and Japanese drinks. If you have time, go upstairs and check out Ichiban Kan too.
23. Crossroads and Buffalo Exchange– San Francisco locals love to go thrift store shopping, and I’d recommend it if you have some free time – sometimes you’ll get really lucky! The best thrift stores are in the Haight-Ashbury or the Mission, like Buffalo Exchange.
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That’s it! I hope your San Francisco trip is fun, interesting, and won’t break the bank 
If you’ve used any of these tips or have your own, I’m excited to hear it – comment down below and see you soon!
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San Francisco is awesome because there are so many airports and cities around it that are well connected. You can get all of the city vibe without the city price. I stayed in Oakland once and just took the BART in, super easy.
That’s so true, it’s a very easy city to get around :) Hope you had a great stay!
As someone from the Bay Area, I can say you’ve definitely got a great of tips here. Especially Daiso!!!!
xoxo,
Berniedette | PetiteAndToned.com
Thank you so much! The best store in the Bay Area ;)
18 & 19 I’m definitely taking note of. I have done a few on this list and you are absolutely right about your thoughts and advice. Thanks for sharing so much insight and information.
I love these ideas. I loved my time in San Francisco and we took the Bart everywhere but I never even considered to think of landing in Oakland as that is so accessible! These are fab tips :)
Thank you so much! BART is awesome for getting around other cities, and super fast and convenient :)
Very helpful tips. One can actually save a lot if planned well on food.
I also liked your tips on souvenirs.
Thank you! I agree, local food is delicious, especially if it’s cheap :P
this is super helpful! i love san fran and wanna travel there multiple times this post is helpful for me in so many ways!
Thanks Mozelle! Come visit, I’m sure you’ll love SF :)
San Francisco is one of my favorite cities! I love your post, thanks for the additional tips for next time I get to visit.
Thank you so much! It’s one of my favorites too :)
What a magnificent guide! Thank you for all the work you put into this. San Fran can be very expensive, so cutting costs here and there really makes all the difference. Brava!
Thank you so much, Leah, I really appreciate it! Money saved = more money for food, souvenirs, and other cool stuff ;)
My parents went to San Francisco on one of my dad’s business trips when I was really young. I remember them bringing me back this beautiful silk dress that my mom found in Chinatown. I was devastated when I finally outgrew it. Perhaps the quality was different back then because this would have been more than 30 years ago.
That’s such a lovely memory! I think they should still sell silk dresses in some stores (or maybe they can do a custom-made dress?) in Chinatown :)
Very helpful post! I have never been to SAN FRANCISCO. But I would definitely visit this place after reading your review 🙂
Thank you so much! Come visit anytime! :)
This is an amazing compilation. And a very helpful one for a place like SFO. I had no idea about Priceline, for example. Have pinned this for further reference.
Thank you! I learned about Priceline and it made my travels so much easier (and cheaper!)
Such a good guide for an expensive city! I never even thought about flying into nearby airports.
I really, really wish this post existed two months ago when I was in SF!! I definitely did not have a budget-friendly trip! But hey, now I know all the cool, affordable things I can do there without spending a month’s salary (Seriously though…). Great post!!
Thank you! Ahh dang, I understand your pain about spending a month’s salary in SF (😭) – but at least it’s a good excuse to come back and do a budget-friendly trip! ;)
San Francisco is definitely one of the great spots on the west coast. Flying from Canada is never cheap but your suggestion to find a mid-week flight might help reduce the costs. We often will take public transport from the airport if we are not travelling with too much luggage. Would be perfect for a short trip where we have only carry on. We use Groupon for tours but never thought about using them for restaurants. Good tip! We have had mixed success with city passes. Would depend on how active we wanted to be. A great bunch of suggestions for saving some money in San Fran!
Thank you! :) You’re right, taking the public transport vs a taxi can often save a good chunk of money (that might go to souvenirs, activities, and other fun things) – especially if a city has multi-day transportation passes. Groupon also started a new cashback program for restaurants and it seems like a good idea as well!
You had me at San Francisco on a budget :-) I’ve never actually been to San Francisco and haven’t planned a trip because I didn’t think I could afford it. All your tips, especially the activities, show that it is indeed possible to visit this awesome city without breaking the bank. I would definitely take advantage of the free walking tours. I find walking tours to be the perfect way to get acquainted with a city upon arrival. I can’t believe the city offers 94 of them! Also, the Goldstar site looks like a fantastic resource to reserve some activities as well- Hello champagne brunch cruise! Thanks for this fantastic post, bookmarking to plan a future trip!
Thank you so much! Let me know when you plan to visit, hopefully these tips will come in handy. :)
It’s amazing how many free tours there are in SF (I think the maximum I saw for other cities is maybe 5 or 10!) – you’re right, they’re an awesome way to get acquainted with a city and learn more from the locals. I’ve used Goldstar a few times and can personally recommend it – I think the last time I paid full price for a ticket was 2 years ago!
Very helpful tips and tricks in this post. Cities like San Francisco can be very daunting cost-wise, but it seems that there are many ways to get around that. Will give some of these a shot.
Thank you! Come visit anytime, I’m sure you’ll love SF :)
Great tips! I love San Francisco, but yes it can indeed break the budget! We love Chinatown for cheap eats and souvenirs. We also found that Haight Ashbury was super cheap for meals out too. I love the tip to use Groupon – we do that with every city we visit!
Ahh, the food in Chinatown is amazing! Do you have any favorite restaurants? There’s also a good Mexican food place in the Haight (forgot the name but it’s on a street corner) :)
Great tip to use Priceline. I have never heard of the facility of bidding on a room, but I am definitely going to give it a try. It seems like there is nothing to lose and if you are successful you can get an excellent bargain.
Let me know how it goes! :) I also plan to use it for my next trip, let’s see what happens!
Awesome tips! Why havent I thought of Groupon when travelling! Thanks for this post!
Thank you so much! Stay tuned for a separate post on saving money with Groupon <3
Very helpful tips, I have never been to the USA, but I am sure San Francisco is one the most expensive American cities. Some of your tips would work on other expensive cities around the world like London. But the good thing is most of the Museums in London are always free :
Wow that’s awesome, I had no idea the majority of museums in London are free – I’ll have to check them out when I make it across the pond. Thanks for the tip! :)
Greetings!
My husband and I are planning a trip in April! (Is this a good time to go?) After 32 years, this is our first vacation EVER. We are super excited but are also on a budget. We understand that everything is super expensive and we’re a little concerned about that. We are prepared for the flight, hotel room and city pass. We’re concerned about the being prepared for the incidentals and food. On an average, what can we expect to pay on food, eating twice per day?
Also, is Union Square (Hotel Diva) a good area to be in, as far as being around everything and walking distance? Any help or suggestions would be greatly appreciated.
Heya Michelle! That’s awesome – I’m so happy you and your husband chose SF for your vacation! :)
Yes, April is a fantastic time to visit, since it’s not tourist season yet but the weather is looking up (and there should be plenty of sun!).
For food, I would say around $50~65/person per day if you have two meals and maybe stop for a coffee or snack. I would also recommend checking out when and where there are food trucks (we have dozens of events per week!) since they have some delicious and unique dishes to try. Here’s the website of events: https://offthegrid.com/
Union Square is a great starting point, since you’ll be near all the major transportation (metro station, BART if you plan to go outside of SF, cable cars, and busses) and many tourist hotspots. Just be sure to not wander into the Tenderloin (located to the left of Union Sq) since it’s not the best area.
Hotel Diva is a good starting point, although I heard the rooms weren’t the most up to date. I did a staycation with my mom at the Zeppelin (located on the other side of the block from Diva) and loved it. It’s a similar price point and location but better amenities. :)
Let me know if you have any other questions, and happy travels!