Photos: Amsterdam by Hans, Pexels License; San Francisco by Elijah Cobb, Pexels License.
Amsterdam or San Francisco?
Our verdict in twelve categories, each scored against the same fixed benchmark cities, and the climate month by month, so you can choose for your trip.
Choose Amsterdam for
- nightlife
- getting around
- day trips
What lies behind each score is written up on Amsterdam’s own page.
Choose San Francisco for
- nature and the outdoors
- food and drink
What lies behind each score is written up on San Francisco’s own page.
Scoreboard
Twelve categories on one fixed scale from 0 to 100. The shaded stretch is the gap between the two.
What lies behind each score is written up on the two cities’ own pages: Amsterdam and San Francisco.
Your match
Pick a travel style or drag the sliders, and both match scores follow your weighting.
Wins on nightlife and getting around with your weighting.
Wins on nature and the outdoors and food and drink with your weighting.
What matters to you?
When should you go?
Pick your month. The climate figures are measured averages, not a forecast.
Amsterdam in July
San Francisco in July
Daytime high, °C
Rainfall in the month, mm
Where the figures come from
Amsterdam has no rain gauge within 25 km of the centre, so its rainfall comes from a gridded climate dataset read at the city rather than from a gauge further away.
Amsterdam's sunshine is measured 35 km from the centre, at De Bilt.
Temperature and rainfall are climate normals, averaged over the years shown. Amsterdam: 1991-2020 normals, Amsterdam Airport Schiphol (12 km from centre). San Francisco: 1981-2010 normals, Alameda Naval Air Station (9.1 km from centre).
Before you go
| Measure | Amsterdam | San Francisco |
|---|---|---|
| Official language | Dutch | - |
| Currency | Euro (EUR) | US Dollar (USD) |
| Sockets | CF230 V, 50 Hz | AB120 V, 60 Hz |
| Driving side | Right | Right |
| Time zone | UTC+1, UTC+2 in summer | UTC-8, UTC-7 in summer |
| Emergency number | 112 | 911 |
| Elevation | -2 m | 16 m |
| Main airport | Amsterdam Airport Schiphol (AMS)12 km from centre287 non-stop destinations | San Francisco International Airport (SFO)18 km from centre142 non-stop destinations |
| Public holidays this year | 11 days | 13 days |
By the numbers
| Measure | Amsterdam | San Francisco |
|---|---|---|
| City population | 921,468 | 873,965 |
| People per km² | 4,208 | 1,455 |
| Museums within 10 km | 101 | 51 |
| UNESCO World Heritage sites within 50 km | 5 | 0 |
| Swim season, months above 21 °C | None | None |
Where else could you go?
Every comparison below shares a destination with this one, so you can follow Amsterdam or San Francisco somewhere new.