September to October. Month by month below, with the weather, what's on and what it costs to fly there from your city.
Early fall is the sunniest, warmest and least foggy stretch; late August and November are also named, and spring is a second choice.
4 of the 4 travel guides we read name these months.
Average high and low in San Francisco, and days with rain
JanuaryChecking fares…January to March is quieter with fewer crowds and good deals; Muir Woods is peaceful with winter mist.San Francisco keeps good temperatures in January, February and March.SF Sketchfest · Napa Lighted Art Festival
FebruaryChecking fares…Chinese New Year parade with dragons in mid-February.Winter is wet, foggy and fairly cold, but it does not freeze or snow.Yosemite Firefall
MarchChecking fares…March highs around 63F, lows 50F, with about seven days of rain.Spring temperatures are usually in the 60s, and rain tapers off.
AprilChecking fares…The Cherry Blossom Festival is in April.Spring from April to early June is a great window: the city is in bloom and crowds are modest.
MayChecking fares…By May highs reach about 68F with only one or two rain days.Yerba Buena Gardens festival season runs from early May to end of October.Yosemite waterfalls at peak snowmelt · The Napa Table
JuneChecking fares…The Pride Parade is at the end of June.Summer is cool and foggy; fog horns in July surprise visitors.San Francisco Pride Parade
JulyChecking fares…July is sunny-ish, but summer fog can occasionally appear.Summer is the high season, with higher prices and crowds.Festival Napa Valley
AugustChecking fares…Afternoon skies in August are generally not overwhelmed by cloud; the best weather starts in late August.Sunny days run from late August through early November.Monterey Car Week
Best timeSeptemberChecking fares…September is the warmest month, with highs of about 71F.Locals call September and October the sweet spot, with the warmest days and clearest skies.Oktoberfest at Pier 48 is in the third week of September.Monterey Jazz Festival
Best timeOctoberChecking fares…October brings the warmest days, clearest skies and a break from fog.Fall has fewer tourists, so top experiences are less crowded.
NovemberChecking fares…November brings more rain and fog, with highs about 62F.Rain is frequent in November and December.Monarch butterflies at Pacific Grove
DecemberChecking fares…December is the wettest and coldest month, with about eleven rain days.Indoor options include Aquarium of the Bay and SFMOMA when it rains.Weather: San Francisco averages from NOAA (1961 to 1974 averages), as listed in its climate table on Wikipedia.
Live fares from your airport. Watch them and we alert you when they drop.
Festivals and seasons through the year
Cancún
The Grand Canyon
Disneyland
Miami
Myrtle Beach
Prague
Bali
Maui
Montreal
Venice
Aruba
New Orleans
Nashville
Disney World
New York
Rome
San Diego
Phuket
Boston
Dubai
Seoul
Florida
Lisbon
Los Angeles
Chicago
Paris
Las Vegas
Edinburgh
Napa
Sydney
Hawaii
Scotland
Punta Cana
Savannah
Washington, DC
Mexico City
Zion National Park
Turks and Caicos
Puerto Vallarta
Honolulu
Banff
Yosemite
Tulum
The Bahamas
Sedona
Seattle
Santorini
Buenos Aires
London
Charleston
Rio de Janeiro
Palm Springs
Yellowstone
Amsterdam
Toronto
Key West
Orlando
Europe
Austin
Machu Picchu
Cabo San Lucas
Niagara Falls
Colorado
Oregon
Arizona
Acadia National Park
Galapagos
Lake Tahoe
Montana
Kauai
Okinawa
US Virgin Islands
Amalfi Coast
Santa Fe
Destin
Curacao
Utah
Joshua Tree
Patagonia
St. Thomas
Florida Keys
Smoky Mountains
Copenhagen
Death Valley
Mallorca
Madeira
Cape Town
Ibiza
Zanzibar
Lake Como
Madrid
New Mexico
Tennessee
Vermont
Wyoming
Bryce Canyon
Oahu
St. Martin
Hilton Head
Dolomites
Cape Cod
San Antonio
Rocky Mountain National Park
Dublin
Catalina Island
Athens
Asheville
Texas
South America
Shenandoah National Park
Phoenix
North Carolina
Medellín
Cairo
Budapest
Arches National Park
St. John
South Carolina
Reykjavik
Mykonos
Milan
Houston
Hanoi
Canary Islands
Big Island of Hawaii
Atlanta
The Caribbean
St. Barts
South Dakota
Rhode Island
New England
Nassau
Lima
Kyoto
Koh Samui
Colorado Springs
Chiang Mai
Stockholm
Porto
Montego Bay
Michigan
Melbourne
Louisiana
Kuala Lumpur
Kruger National Park
Jeju
Florence
Dallas
Zurich
Tampa
St. Kitts
Osaka
Munich
Moorea
Kailua-Kona
Everglades
Door County
Cusco
Calgary
Boracay
Bonaire
Swiss Alps
St. Croix
Seville
San Juan Islands
New Hampshire
Minnesota
Mazatlán
Manila
Kentucky
Isla Mujeres
Guam
French Riviera
Fort Lauderdale
Cinque Terre
Asia
Algarve
Virginia
Tenerife
Sapporo
Nairobi
Mumbai
The Hamptons
Grand Teton National Park
Finger Lakes
Charlotte
Bogotá
Auckland
Maine
Bora Bora
Olympic National Park
Redwood National Park
Sequoia National Park
Big Bend National Park
Mackinac Island
Sint Maarten
Nantucket
Outer Banks
California
Big Sur
Crater Lake
Scottsdale
Nice
Mount Rainier
Cozumel
Badlands National Park
Salt Lake City
Denali
Philadelphia
Tucson
Provence
Guadalajara
Albuquerque
Upper Peninsula
Sonoma
Memphis
Idaho
Da Nang
Cotswolds
Arkansas
St. Louis
Capri
Glacier National Park
Barcelona
Vancouver
Denver
Istanbul
Riviera Maya
Carmel-by-the-Sea
Santiago, Chile
Naples, Italy
Central America
Minneapolis
Sarasota
Halifax, Nova Scotia
Pittsburgh
Helsinki
Pensacola
Johannesburg
Brisbane
Málaga
Phu Quoc
Perth
Dubrovnik
Corpus Christi
Massachusetts
Oklahoma
Torres del Paine
Czech Republic
Ho Chi Minh City
Anchorage
Boise
Louisville
Juneau
Quito
West Virginia
Wisconsin
Canyonlands National Park
Baja California
Blue Ridge Mountains
Fort Myers
Detroit
Kansas City, Missouri
Kathmandu
Reno
Cebu
Brussels
Guangzhou
Chattanooga
Antalya
Daytona Beach
Cairns
Hilo
Alabama
Connecticut
New Jersey
Pennsylvania
Capitol Reef National Park