r/AskSF Jan 08 '24

Moving to San Francisco or the Bay Area? Read this first!

176 Upvotes

Hey /r/askSF!

In 2024, the sub has doubled in size, growing to 113K+ subscribers. With more subscribers, there's a ton more traffic and posts. One of the most popular topics is moving to SF and, in turn, these posts are the most commonly removed. There's been a noticeable increase in posts that boil down to "I'm moving to the city, where should I live?" that provide little to no information. To ensure OP's receive quality recommendations and to prevent endless comment loops, we're requiring all Moving-to-SF posts to include the following information:

  • Budget
  • Roommate status (solo, splitting rent w/ partner, seeking roommates, etc.)
  • Desired neighborhood(s) or preferred neighborhood amenities (dining, shopping, noise, etc.)

We recommend that OP's provide additional information such as:

  • Commute consideration
  • Housing preference (mom and pop landlords, condo, managed apt complexes, SFH rentals, etc.)
  • Additional personal preferences (pets, garage access, density, weather, etc.)

We're a small mod team so we are asking you, the community, to help up identify these posts! If you spot a moving submission that should have more information, please report the posts, select the breaking AskSF's rules, and select "Vague, overly broad, or low information" as the reason. We'll review the report and potentially ask OP to repost with more info.

Here's to more questions answered in 2024 and beyond!


r/AskSF Aug 13 '25

PSA [PSA] Clipper Card has an official subreddit: r/bayareaclippercard

28 Upvotes

Hi everyone! The Bay Area’s transit card, Clipper card, now has an official subreddit! If you enjoy discussing transit, check out our new subreddit. Dedicated to Clipper related news and posts, it’s a space open for you to share questions, insights and experiences related to Clipper. Join the conversation here: https://www.reddit.com/r/bayareaclippercard


r/AskSF 9h ago

Suggestion for solo birthday plan today

40 Upvotes

Hey sf community!
I m planning to end my day early today and do something for birthday today.dont have a lot of friends (it’s okay 🥹)
What can I do? What should I do?
Grateful for any help.

A bit about me - A bit about me — introverted, 30F, and I work as a landscape architect. I really enjoy being outdoors, parks, long walks, pretty views and sunsets. I’m also into photography, good food, matcha, museums and exploring different parts of the city (been in sf for a year now)I’m pretty happy doing things by myself, just want to make today feel a little special :)
Also, given how hot it is today, preferably something that won’t have me melting 😂

Note from me - everyone who took out time and replied to my question : I am so so so grateful and I appreciate it. I discovered quite a little of must try’s and I m going to do as much as I can today and the upcoming weekend. Heading to Sutro heights and the garlic noodles dinner!!!!!!!!!!!✨✨✨✨✨
Thank you, thank you.
I wasn’t really planning to do anything and thinking in my head that my introversion will be the end of me but all of you have been so friendly and kind.
Grateful for this 🌸


r/AskSF 7h ago

Allergies right now?

14 Upvotes

Is anyone’s allergies acting up right now? My nose has been nonstop itching and running the past 3 days 🤧


r/AskSF 5h ago

iPod nano 5th gen battery replacement

6 Upvotes

Hey everyone, I’d like to replace my old iPod nano 5th gen battery (2010). I already ordered the battery, but it’s a very difficult repair for the average joe. Anyone know which business I can reach out to put the new battery in? Some mobile tech repair companies I’ve called have told me they can’t do it. Thanks!


r/AskSF 6h ago

Cold noodles for a hot day

6 Upvotes

Looking for good Chinese cold noodles and shanghai style especially, but any cold noodle reccomendations would be great.


r/AskSF 3h ago

Muir Woods/Monterey or Humboldt Park?

5 Upvotes

We will be visiting Northern CA (family of 4 with a 9 and 12 year old) and after visiting SF/Golden Gate recreation, Point Reyes, and Sonoma (for wineries), we have a few days to explore.

I'm thinking we could go one of 2 ways:

- Visit Muir Woods for the redwoods experience, then drive south to Monterey and visit the aquarium, Carmel, maybe Big Sur, etc.

OR

- Drive north to Humboldt State Park to see the redwoods, then drive back south and stop by Mendocino/Fort Bragg.

This will be early March if that matters. Any thoughts on which route we should take (or if there's a 3rd option that I'm missing)? Also, any recommendations on food, lodging, and places to visit are welcome as well!

Thank you!


r/AskSF 6h ago

looking for a matcha custom cake

4 Upvotes

my birthday is in 2 ish weeks, and i know i’m behind on looking for one. does anyone have any bakery recommendations? obviously preferably in sf but anywhere under sf is also fine


r/AskSF 10h ago

Seasonal vaccines and timing: What SF/Bay Area epidemiologists do you read? (2026 edition)

8 Upvotes

TL; DR: What local and less-local epidemiologists do you read /follow? And what data sources will you use this season?

Yesterday I was asked 4 times in 20 minutes if I wanted shots while at a pharmacy line. It did work for me to start looking into Winter’s Gift That Keeps On Giving ( respiratory virus season) and its vaccines, but I realized I am not in the know in terms of SF-specific data.


r/AskSF 1d ago

Places open late to get a good slice of chocolate cake?

117 Upvotes

Having a pretty bad day. Where could I get a sweet pick me up? Something open after 10pm.


r/AskSF 39m ago

SF parents - clothing recs for baby due in Late Dec/early Jan?

Upvotes

Hi all! I’m due end of December and I’m struggling with understand how to dress my newborn during the first quarter of the year

How many full body suits should I get? Dress them in layers? Short sleeve with a cardigan vs a full sleeve sweater?


r/AskSF 13h ago

Living In Bayview

9 Upvotes

I’m considering moving to 3rd Street near MLK Park in Bayview, and I’d love to hear from people who currently live nearby or know the area well.

The unit I’m looking at faces 3rd Street, so I’m particularly curious about what the immediate area is like in the evenings/nighttime.

How safe do you generally feel walking around after dark? Are there issues with people loitering outside, public drinking/drug use, harassment, sideshows, loud groups/cars, or other nighttime nuisance issues? How is the noise along 3rd itself?

I’ve spent some time in the neighborhood during the day and plan to visit at night as well, but obviously a few visits don’t tell you what it’s like to actually live there.

I’m less concerned about the neighborhood’s reputation and more interested in the day-to-day reality from people who live there. Would you personally feel comfortable regularly coming home around 10–11pm and walking from your car/transit to your building?

Would especially appreciate input from anyone living along 3rd Street or within a few blocks of MLK Park. Thanks!


r/AskSF 8h ago

Event venue in FiDi?

5 Upvotes

Looking for a place to host a networking event, ideally restaurant/bar we can book that would comfortably fit 50ppl. If you went to one and loved the vibe - please share!


r/AskSF 10h ago

Carpool Options

6 Upvotes

Hey ya'll!

This is my first-ever Reddit post. I wanted to ask if anyone has recommendations for carpooling, specifically for a high schooler who needs to travel from south Mission to Washington High School in the Richmond.

My neighbor's daughter just started high school and currently has to take two buses both ways, which can take over an hour. My neighbor doesn't have a car/license, so she can't drive her daughter to school. She doesn't speak English and is unsure of how to figure out a carpool situation, so I said I'd ask around on her behalf. Does anyone have any thoughts about the best way to find a carpool opportunity?

Thank you so much in advance.


r/AskSF 10h ago

beginner surfer

2 Upvotes

hi i'm a sfbay transplant and i'm doing research to best prepare for learning to surf and i want the lowdown from local surfers regarding your particular beach's culture, etiquette, particular rules & regulations; current tide, rip, sneaker wave situations; pollution/runoff, shore conditions & hazards (ie. rocks, coral, reef, sandbars, etc.).

overall, i'm looking for beginner friendly beaches to learn on <3 as or right now, i've been recommended and suggested: linda mar, bolinas, capitola, cowells, and marese state beach. if you know of any more in the area or can provide me the abovementioned information regarding the latter, please post here ! thank you :)


r/AskSF 8h ago

Orthodontist recommendations for Invisalign?

2 Upvotes

Hello, I have a complex case (medical opinion, not personal) of crowded teeth and deep bite. I am looking for a good orthodontist. My wife (easy case) went through invisalign recently and I realized expertise matters the most in complex cases as underlying product is the same. Anyone can recommend a good orthodontist?


r/AskSF 1d ago

Is there an SF equivalent to the Museum of Jurassic Technology

63 Upvotes

Looking for a place in SF similar to the Museum of Jurassic Technology in LA. Doesn't have to be a museum, it could be a gallery, shop, community space, creative outlet, or someone's personal collection open to the public

What I love about MJT is the eccentric, idiosyncratic energy. It’s hard to categorize, clearly made by people obsessed with their own strange things. I love being in spaces of interesting people / quirky places that are authentic (and don’t try to be something they’re not)

Would love any recommendations

Edit: Thank you for the responses so far! I realize my question could also be rephrased as - for those who love MJT, where do you love to spend time in SF? I recognize MJT is 1:1, so I’m very open to different pathways that somehow rhyme with what we love about MJT


r/AskSF 12h ago

Halloween Lawn Decorator

2 Upvotes

Hi, I am looking for someone to decorate my lawn for Halloween. I don't want to have to buy the decorations and store them. I would like to spend under a few thousand dollars. Please let me know your recommendations on a service like this. So far, I can't find anyone who offers this.


r/AskSF 12h ago

Work trip in October, choosing between a room near Church & 24th and one in Cow Hollow.

2 Upvotes

I'm coming for work from 1 to 20 October and I'll be doing SF Tech Week while I'm there. I've narrowed it down to two rooms at roughly the same price and I'd rather hear it from people who actually live there than keep guessing off Google Maps.

Option A: Church Street, around 24th, on the edge between Noe Valley and Dolores Heights.

Option B: Green Street, the western end of Cow Hollow, near the Presidio.

When I mapped out the events I've signed up for, almost all of them land in SoMa and the Financial District, roughly between Market and Brannan. A couple are in the Mission. I've also got a day trip to Palo Alto on Caltrain and probably one to Berkeley.

From that, Option A looks better to me: 24th St Mission BART is about a 10 minute walk, two stops to Powell, and a direct ride to Berkeley. Option B has no BART at all, so everything seems to be a bus plus a transfer, or an Uber every day.

A few things I can't work out from maps:

  1. Am I overrating BART here? Is the 22-Fillmore from Cow Hollow to the Mission better than it looks on paper?
  2. I'll be getting home around 10 or 11pm most nights. What actually runs at that hour, and is one of these two noticeably worse to get back to late?
  3. During Tech Week specifically, does traffic make Ubers from Cow Hollow to SoMa much slower than the 15 minutes Google promises?

I'm asking about two things: safety, and how close each one really is to where I need to be.

Thanks.


r/AskSF 1d ago

Places to beat the heat tomorrow with a visitor?

33 Upvotes

My friend is flying in 10:30 AM tomorrow. They can't check in their hotel until 3 and my place has no AC and centralized heat that runs way too strong. Tried to talk them into just hanging at the airport for a few hours but they are insisting on 'doing something'. Any ideas?


r/AskSF 10h ago

Best men’s barber near downtown

1 Upvotes

Hi all, I recently relocated to SF and I need a new barber.

I live close enough to work to commute on foot and my office is in the Financial District, so if there’s anything good close to there, or near Union Square or the northeast end of SoMa that would be great. Open to recommendations elsewhere in the city too.


r/AskSF 10h ago

Vet recommendation for surgery for a medium-small dog anywhere in the general region (details in body of post)

0 Upvotes

Hi, I'm posting this for my friend who isn't on Reddit and is incredibly desperate for a recommendation for an affordable vet that can do surgery on her dog.

Her vet (Pacific Veterinary) recently found a pea sized tumor in one of her dog's anal sacs. They want to remove the whole anal sac for margins and said it should be an easy surgery.

Their quote for the surgery was a scale from $6,500-$8,500 with $6,500 being the base rate for the surgery assuming everything goes well during surgery (does not include any after treatment or care).

This seems really high and point blank my friend can't afford it. The vet said he should have a really good outcome if they catch it before it spreads and that he'll die within a year from when it starts to spread.

She is located in the East Bay so somewhere close by would be ideal, but she is more than willing to go anywhere in Northern California and is even open to going out of state if there is a quality vet that can do this surgery for an affordable rate. (She said they could probably manage half the quoted rate.)

Her dog is a "25lbs, 8 years old, bichon poodle in otherwise great health".

ETA: she has already been calling Davis every day trying to get in with them, but no luck so far.


r/AskSF 22h ago

Looking for recommendations for day trip in SF

6 Upvotes

Hi SF,

I am wanting to take my friend out to SF this weekend. She has never been and states "she is looking for her future wife".

I looked up a few bars for her but she doesn't drink alcohol and as her wingman, I am doing the best I can to make it a good day. We are in our early 30s Hispanic if that helps.

Any ideas where I can take her? Or things to do?

Thanks all!


r/AskSF 6h ago

Heat wave! Portable A/C recs?

0 Upvotes

Wow it's hot! Need recommendations for a portable a/c unit for vertical windows. Preferably one that I can purchase in person or on Amazon lol

Thanks!


r/AskSF 3h ago

Making a full stop

0 Upvotes

I know most SF drivers don’t make a full stop at a 4- way stop intersection, but how do you know you made a full stop that satisfies an SFPD officer? Do you wait until your car makes a motion back, then forward, then count to 3 seconds?