Overview
San Francisco's public transport is a patchwork of agencies, but as a visitor you can treat it as one connected network. The city operator is the San Francisco Municipal Railway, known as Muni, part of the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency (SFMTA). Muni runs the city's buses, the light-rail Muni Metro, the heritage F Line streetcars and the famous cable cars. Around it sit regional systems: Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) for fast trips under the bay and out to the airport, Caltrain for the Peninsula and Silicon Valley, and ferries across the bay.
Riding end to end is straightforward. Pay with a Clipper card, a contactless bank card, the MuniMobile app or exact cash, then board. On buses you tap or show your fare to the driver; in the Muni Metro subway you pass through fare gates or validate at ticket machines. Keep your ticket, pass or tapped card as proof of payment, because inspectors can issue a citation if you cannot show one. For a multi-day visit, an unlimited pass removes the need to think about fares on every trip.
The network
Muni Metro (light rail)
Muni Metro is the city's light-rail system, one of the surviving first-generation streetcar networks in North America. Five services — J Church, K Ingleside, L Taraval, M Ocean View and N Judah — run on separate surface routes and merge into a single east–west tunnel, the Market Street subway. The T Third Street line uses a separate north–south downtown tunnel, the Central Subway, which opened on 19 November 2022 and was later extended to Chinatown at Rose Pak Station, with an underground stop at Union Square/Market Street on Stockton Street. A supplementary S Shuttle runs within the Market Street subway and Twin Peaks Tunnel. The system has 117 stations, of which 63 (54%) are accessible.
BART (regional rapid transit)
BART is the regional metro, running under Market Street in downtown San Francisco and surfacing in the outer parts of the city. It crosses the bay through the Transbay Tube to Oakland, Berkeley, Richmond and Antioch, and runs south to San Leandro, Fremont and Pleasanton, with Peninsula service to San Francisco International Airport and Millbrae. BART operates five routes, four of which run through San Francisco, with three or four trains per hour on each route — so waits within the city are generally under five minutes. BART meets Caltrain at Millbrae.
Caltrain (regional rail)
Caltrain runs regional rail from San Jose to its San Francisco terminal at Fourth and King in SoMa, with rush-hour service on to Gilroy. It is the practical choice for the Peninsula, Silicon Valley and the South Bay. Weekday service is about two trains per hour for most of the day with extra trains at commute hours, including "Baby Bullet" limited services that run San Francisco to San Jose in 57 minutes; weekends and holidays are hourly, with only a midnight train after 10pm. The 4th & King terminal connects to Muni Metro.
F Line heritage streetcars
The F Line uses antique streetcars from other cities, running from the Castro District through the Ferry Building and Embarcadero to Fisherman's Wharf.
Cable cars
Three cable car routes survive: Powell-Hyde (Powell & Market to Beach & Hyde at Fisherman's Wharf), Powell-Mason (Powell & Market to Bay & Taylor) and the California Street line (Drumm Street to Polk Street). The Powell-Hyde line stops at the top of Lombard Street's crooked block, about three blocks' walk from Fisherman's Wharf; the California line passes through Chinatown and Nob Hill.
Buses
Muni buses fill in the rest of the city, and Golden Gate Transit runs North Bay buses to Marin and Sonoma — for example route #130 between San Rafael and San Francisco via the Transbay Terminal, Civic Center, the Golden Gate Bridge toll plaza and Sausalito. A free PresidiGo shuttle serves the Presidio.
Ferries
Golden Gate Ferry runs from the Ferry Building to Sausalito, Larkspur and Tiburon, and SF Bay Ferries provide other cross-bay services.
Tickets & fares
Fares below are approximate and change; check the operator's site for current prices.
- Clipper card — a plastic card or Digital Clipper card on your phone that works on all Bay Area systems, including Muni. Tap on readers inside Muni vehicles and at Muni Metro fare gates. It is the only payment method that gives you the Inter-Agency Transfer Discount.
- MuniMobile app — buy and activate fares on your phone when boarding a bus or entering the subway. Single Ride Passes are being withdrawn from MuniMobile from 1 September 2026.
- Cash — accepted on vehicles with exact change, and at ticket vending machines in Muni Metro subway stations. Machines accept U.S. currency and coin, do not give change, and issue a voucher for future use instead.
- Tap to Pay — chip-enabled credit or debit cards can pay an adult Single Ride Muni fare.
Typical Muni bus and streetcar fares are $3.00 in cash or $2.85 with Clipper or MuniMobile for adults; seniors pay $1.50 ($1.40 with Clipper or MuniMobile). Youth aged 18 and under ride free on regular Muni service, though not on cable cars; children aged 4 and under ride cable cars free. Cable car rides cost $9.00 for all ages, with a reduced senior/disabled fare of $4.00 between 9pm and 7am. BART fares vary by distance and start at $1.75 for short trips.
For passes, the SF Visitor Passport gives unlimited travel for 1, 3 or 7 days on buses, streetcars and cable cars (but not BART), sold through MuniMobile, a virtual or plastic Clipper card, or paper tickets from kiosks. The Muni Day Pass covers unlimited bus and streetcar travel (not cable cars), can be loaded on MuniMobile but not Clipper, and can be bought on board. Monthly passes are also available. Note that Golden Gate Transit does not accept the SF Visitor Pass or MuniMobile.
At the cable car turnarounds at Powell & Market, Hyde & Beach and Bay & Taylor you must buy a ticket before boarding; the California line has no ticket booth, so you pay on board. Re-boarding a cable car requires paying again unless you hold an unlimited pass.
From the airport
San Francisco International Airport (SFO) sits about 10 miles (16 km) south of the city. From the terminals, walk (about five minutes from United's domestic terminal) or take the free AirTrain shuttle to the BART station, which is next to the G side of the International Terminal. The BART ride to downtown San Francisco costs $8.95 one-way and runs every 15 or 20 minutes depending on the time of day, passing San Bruno, South San Francisco, Colma and Daly City before reaching the city, where you can connect to Muni. BART operates from 4am to midnight on weekdays, 6am to midnight on Saturdays and 8am to midnight on Sundays.
SamTrans routes 292, 397 and 398 also connect SFO with San Francisco for $2, running non-stop.
Oakland San Francisco Bay Airport (OAK) is closer to downtown than SFO and fog-free. From there, take the people mover to the BART station and continue directly into the city; the combined fare to downtown San Francisco is $10.20, of which the connector is $6, deducted automatically from your Clipper card. From San Jose, a free Airport Flyer shuttle (VTA Route #60) links to VTA Light Rail and Caltrain, and Caltrain runs to San Francisco for $7.50 one-way. Buy Caltrain tickets from station kiosks or use a Clipper card before boarding, as they are not sold on the trains.
Etiquette & customs
- Have your fare ready and your proof of payment accessible — inspectors do check, and a missing ticket can mean a citation.
- On buses, board at the front and pay the driver; cash riders need exact change.
- At busy downtown stations such as Powell, Montgomery and Civic Center, a local trick is to ride in the opposite direction to Embarcadero, where trains start empty — except the N-Judah and K-Ingleside.
- At cable car turnarounds, expect long queues at Powell & Market; boarding a stop or two past the turnaround usually avoids the wait, and evening rides are less crowded.
- Cyclists on Caltrain should use the designated car at the northern end of the train, as bike space is limited at commute hours. Bicycles are allowed on BART except at designated stations during commute hours.
- Keep noise down and give up priority seating to those who need it; keep aisles clear at rush hour and let passengers off before boarding.
Official links
Survival terms
San Francisco's transit is natively English-speaking, so the key terms are simply the local names you will see on signs and maps.
- Subway/metro — "Muni Metro" (city light rail) or "BART" (regional rapid transit)
- Ticket — "ticket" or "proof of payment"
- Line — "line" or "route" (e.g. N Judah, T Third Street)
- Entrance — "station entrance" or "fare gates"
- Exit — "exit"
- Transfer — "transfer" (Inter-Agency Transfer Discount with Clipper)
- Single fare — "Single Ride"
- Day pass — "Muni Day Pass" or "SF Visitor Passport"
Load a Clipper card or set up MuniMobile before you arrive, and always keep your tapped card or activated ticket handy, since proof of payment is what keeps you out of trouble on Muni.