U.S. Post Office and Courthouse · Photo: James Knox Taylor · Public domainHousehold incomes in San Francisco are higher than in 94% of U.S. towns
Poverty touches 11.2% of residents, next to 12.0% for California as a whole. The two grades for San Francisco are B+ for jobs and income and A+ for walkability. Home is the office for 31% of workers; California has 17%.
Census ACS 2020–24, Census LEHD 2023, EPA Smart Location Database. How the two grades are made
What sets San Francisco apart on work
A lot of San Francisco works from home
31% of San Francisco workers work from home, against 17% across California. Time on the road ↓
San Francisco is where the jobs are
San Francisco has 683,793 jobs, 1.7 for every working resident. Day and night ↓
Most jobs here, and most residents’ jobs, pay over $40,000
78% of San Francisco’s working residents earn over $3,333 a month (about $40,000 a year) at their main job, the top earnings band in the Census data, and so do 82% of the jobs based in San Francisco. The jobs ↓
Written from the Census figures on this page. Commute flows, distances and jobs are Census LEHD 2023, primary jobs only (the self-employed aren’t counted); commute time and working from home are from the Census American Community Survey.
What drives the Jobs & income grade in San Francisco
On income, poverty, unemployment and job access, San Francisco is better than 71% of U.S. towns, #278 of 847 in California. Job access by car holds San Francisco’s grade up; unemployment pulls it down (6.1%, U.S. 5.2%). It also does well on household income.
A firm grade. At either end of the Census margins of error for income, poverty and unemployment, San Francisco stays B+.
How long San Francisco spends getting to work: about 30 minutes
Round trip, about 230 workdays a year: roughly 9.7 full days in the car, bus or train.
Average commute minutes, one way
of San Francisco workers work from home, vs 17% across California. Their commute is the hallway.
Share of the 321,804 commuters (the 31% who work from home are left out). Across California: 79% drive alone, 3% take transit; U.S.: 81% and 4%. Census ACS 2020–24.
From the Census survey of workers who don’t work from home.
Who works in San Francisco, and who works elsewhere
On a workday 172,113 residents head out to work, 228,851 work right here, and 454,942 people come in from elsewhere.
About 1,109,000 people are in San Francisco on a workday afternoon, 34% more than live here.
1.7 jobs for every working resident, so more people commute in than out.
Workday population = residents − those who work elsewhere + those who come in (the Census “commuter-adjusted” method). Residents: Census survey; commuters: LEHD 2023, primary jobs.
Most jobs in San Francisco are in services
683,793 jobs are based in San Francisco.
What kind of work
What it pays
Who does it
Jobs based in San Francisco, 2013 → 2023: 584,002 → 683,793. Big swings can come from how a large employer reports its locations, not only from real openings or closings.
Primary jobs covered by unemployment insurance (not the self-employed). Pay is monthly earnings. LEHD 2023.
Here is what they are, next to the jobs San Francisco’s own residents hold wherever they work.
Commuting in to San Francisco: where workers come from
Where San Francisco clocks in
4% of workers
3% of workers
2% of workersLines run between town centers. The top 10 towns each way; “Everywhere else” is the rest, including other states.
A thicker line means more commuters. Switch between where residents work and where the people who work here live.
How far San Francisco goes to work
Straight-line distance from each worker’s home block to their main job’s block. LEHD 2023.
Every working resident’s trip, home to work, as the crow flies. Roads add to it, so real drives run longer.
San Francisco is among the most walkable U.S. towns
On EPA’s walkability index and the share of commuters who walk, bike or take transit, San Francisco is among the most walkable U.S. towns, #3 of 847 in California. Both inputs place San Francisco near the same point nationally.
A firm grade. EPA’s index has no published margin of error; the commuting share comes from a Census survey of 466,388 workers.
How TownRatings grades walkability →
Transit service (shown, not graded). 99% of residents live within a ¾-mile walk of a bus or train stop, 82% within a quarter mile. At the weekday evening rush, about 37.5 trips an hour stop near the typical resident, among the most of the 9,825 U.S. towns with transit data.
Transit at the evening rush trips an hour stopping within ¼ mile of the typical resident, EPA 2020
Households without a car (shown, not graded). 30.2% of San Francisco households have no vehicle (California 7.1%, U.S. 8.4%). 27% of San Francisco’s commuters take a bus or train.
These are town averages; neighborhoods differ.
For jobs and income, San Francisco is 4th of 21 U.S. towns of 578,000 to 1,115,000
| # | Town | People | Household income | Poverty | Unemployment | Work in town | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Hempstead NY | 795,734 | $141K | 5.9% | 5.2% | 28% | A |
| 2 | San Jose CA | 989,814 | $146K | 8.1% | 5.1% | 36% | A− |
| 3 | Seattle WA | 784,777 | $124K | 9.9% | 4.6% | 60% | A− |
| 4 | San Francisco CA | 826,079 | $141K | 11.2% | 6.1% | 57% | B+ |
| 5 | Denver CO | 740,613 | $95K | 11.2% | 4.9% | 45% | B+ |
| 6 | Austin TX | 1,002,632 | $94K | 12.0% | 4.7% | 65% | B+ |
| … | |||||||
| 21 | Detroit MI | 649,095 | $40K | 32.7% | 14.0% | 31% | C− |
Census ACS 2020–24 (income, poverty, unemployment), Census LEHD (work in town), TownRatings Jobs & income grades. Each town links to its Work & commute page.
Ranked on the Jobs & income grade: the towns either side of San Francisco, the top three, the last and three more from California.
Around San Francisco: the bordering towns
The biggest share goes to Berkeley (1%).
Average commute minutes, one way
Jobs & commute next door
| Town | San Francisco workers there | Jobs & income | Walkability | Commute | Household income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| San Francisco | – | B+ | A+ | 30 min | $140,970 |
| Daly City | under 2% | A− | A+ | 29 min | $123,547 |
| Brisbane | under 2% | A− | A | 34 min | $156,169 |
| Tiburon | under 2% | A− | A+ | 29 min | $232,969 |
| Alameda | under 2% | A− | A+ | 32 min | $137,697 |
| Richmond | under 2% | B− | A+ | 34 min | $95,391 |
| Albany | under 2% | A | A+ | 31 min | $144,107 |
| Berkeley | 1% | A | A+ | 28 min | $108,092 |
Same-state neighbors only. Commute: average minutes each way, Census ACS 2020–24.
Darker towns draw more of San Francisco’s workers. Tap a town to see its commute.
What this data can and can’t tell you
- Two sources, two years. Trips, distances and jobs based here: Census LEHD 2023, primary jobs, where the employer reports them. Income, poverty, unemployment, commute time and how people travel: Census ACS 2020–24 averages.
- Straight lines, older transit. Miles are as the crow flies. EPA’s walkability and transit files use 2017–20 inputs.
Jobs and commuting in San Francisco: questions
What is the median household income in San Francisco?
$140,970 (±$2,593) (Census ACS 2020–24), against $99,122 across California and $80,734 nationally.
What is the poverty rate in San Francisco?
11.2%, against 12.0% across California and 12.5% nationally (Census ACS 2020–24).
How long is the commute from San Francisco?
30 minutes each way on average, against 29 across California and 26 nationally. 31% of workers work from home.
Where do people who live in San Francisco work?
57% work in town. The top destinations elsewhere are Oakland (4%, 11 mi), South San Francisco (3%, 9 mi), San Jose (2%, 47 mi) (Census LEHD 2023).
Is San Francisco walkable?
San Francisco is among the most walkable U.S. towns (Walkability A+): an EPA walkability index of 16.1 out of 20, and 46% of commuters walk, bike or take transit.
Can you get around San Francisco without a car?
27% of commuters take transit and 30% of households have no car. 82% of residents live within a quarter mile of a stop.
Commuter talk
Getting to work from San Francisco, from the people who make the trip.
More of San Francisco
Flows, distances and jobs: U.S. Census Bureau, LEHD Origin-Destination Employment Statistics (LODES 8), 2023, primary jobs. Commute time, working from home and working out of state: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-year estimates. Distances are straight lines between home and work; real drives run longer. Walkability index, job access and transit service: U.S. EPA Smart Location Database. The two grades are our own summaries of these figures, not official ratings.