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County · code 06075

San Francisco CountyCalifornia

San Francisco County is located in California and was created on February 18, 1850, with San Francisco as its county seat.

  • Founded1850
  • County seatSan Francisco
  • Named forSan Francisco, California
  • Land area47 sq mi + 185 sq mi water
  • Population873,965 2020 Census
  • Parcels mapped227,695 checked 16 October 2026
Open the free map Click any parcel in San Francisco County: acreage, parcel id, address and who publishes the map. No sign-in.

Updated

MarinSan MateoContra CostaAlameda San Francisco Census outline · seat marked

Where it is

San Francisco on the map of California

California has 58 counties and county equivalents, each with its own records office. Shapes with a page are links.

Alameda CountyAlpine CountyAmador CountyButte CountyCalaveras CountyColusa CountyContra Costa CountyDel Norte CountyEl Dorado CountyFresno CountyGlenn CountyHumboldt CountyImperial CountyInyo CountyKern CountyKings CountyLake CountyLassen CountyLos Angeles CountyMadera CountyMarin CountyMariposa CountyMendocino CountyMerced CountyModoc CountyMono CountyMonterey CountyNapa CountyNevada CountyOrange CountyPlacer CountyPlumas CountyRiverside CountySacramento CountySan Benito CountySan Bernardino CountySan Diego CountySan Joaquin CountySan Luis Obispo CountySan Mateo CountySanta Barbara CountySanta Clara CountySanta Cruz CountyShasta CountySierra CountySiskiyou CountySolano CountySonoma CountyStanislaus CountySutter CountyTehama CountyTrinity CountyTulare CountyTuolumne CountyVentura CountyYolo CountyYuba CountySan Francisco County San Francisco
Counties of California · San Francisco highlighted

History

Formed in 1850 from Branciforte County and Santa Cruz County

An old deed may name a county that no longer exists, or a boundary that has since moved.

The county was formed from territory that included Branciforte, now part of Santa Cruz County, though the boundary was disputed when the two counties disagreed over its interpretation. San Francisco County experienced significant boundary changes over its history, losing land to the creation of San Mateo County in 1856, and losing and regaining Angel Island in San Francisco Bay to and from Marin County between 1854 and 1860. Small boundary adjustments with Alameda County occurred in San Francisco Bay in 1874 and between 1949 and 1959 due to wharf placement and landfill expansion.

Boundary changes from the Newberry Library, Atlas of Historical County Boundaries; the 5 that matter most are shown first.

  1. 1850
    San Francisco County created San Francisco created from non-county area; southern boundary with Branciforte (now Santa Cruz) was in dispute when the counties disagreed over the interpretation of the boundary description.
    from Brancifortefrom Santa Cruz
    · Calif. Stats. 1849, 1st sess., ch. 15, sec. 8/pp. 59-60; Stanger, 88
  2. 1854
    Lost territory San Francisco lost "Island of Los Angeles" (Angel Island) in San Francisco Bay to Marin.
    to Marin
    · Calif. Stats. 1854, 5th sess., ch. 67/p. 121
  3. 1856
    Lost territory San Francisco lost to creation of San Mateo. Act passed 19 April 1856; took effect 1 July 1856.
    to San Mateo
    · Calif. Stats. 1856, 7th sess., ch. 125/pp. 145-146, 176-178
  4. 1857
    Gained territory San Francisco gained Angel Island in San Francisco Bay from Marin. Boundary between San Francisco and San Mateo adjusted to run on public land survey line (no change).
    from Marinfrom San Mateo
    · Calif. Stats. 1857, 8th sess., chs. 190, 192/pp. 209-210, 222-223
  5. 1860
    Lost territory San Francisco lost Angel Island in San Francisco Bay to Marin.
    to Marin
    · Calif. Stats. 1860, 11th sess., ch. 288/p. 269
Show all 9 changes (4 more, mostly small adjustments)
  1. 1850
    San Francisco County created San Francisco created from non-county area; southern boundary with Branciforte (now Santa Cruz) was in dispute when the counties disagreed over the interpretation of the boundary description.
    from Brancifortefrom Santa Cruz
    · Calif. Stats. 1849, 1st sess., ch. 15, sec. 8/pp. 59-60; Stanger, 88
  2. 1850
    Boundary clarified San Francisco boundaries in San Francisco Bay clarified (no change).
    no change
    · Calif. Stats. 1849, 1st sess., ch. 61, sec. 2/p. 156
  3. 1851
    Boundary clarified San Francisco boundaries redefined (no change).
    no change
    · Calif. Stats. 1851, 2d sess., ch. 14, sec. 8/p. 174
  4. 1854
    Lost territory San Francisco lost "Island of Los Angeles" (Angel Island) in San Francisco Bay to Marin.
    to Marin
    · Calif. Stats. 1854, 5th sess., ch. 67/p. 121
  5. 1856
    Lost territory San Francisco lost to creation of San Mateo. Act passed 19 April 1856; took effect 1 July 1856.
    to San Mateo
    · Calif. Stats. 1856, 7th sess., ch. 125/pp. 145-146, 176-178
  6. 1857
    Gained territory San Francisco gained Angel Island in San Francisco Bay from Marin. Boundary between San Francisco and San Mateo adjusted to run on public land survey line (no change).
    from Marinfrom San Mateo
    · Calif. Stats. 1857, 8th sess., chs. 190, 192/pp. 209-210, 222-223
  7. 1860
    Lost territory San Francisco lost Angel Island in San Francisco Bay to Marin.
    to Marin
    · Calif. Stats. 1860, 11th sess., ch. 288/p. 269
  8. 1874
    Lost territory San Francisco lost small area in San Francisco Bay to Alameda; placed all of the Central Pacific Railroad Wharf in Alameda. The wharf was removed in 1919.
    to Alameda
    · Calif. Stats. 1873, 20th sess., Acts Amendatory of the Codes, pp. 168-170; Coy, 62-63
  9. 1959
    Gained territory Between 1949 and 1959 (precise date unknown) San Francisco gained a small area of the Alameda Naval Air Station when landfill expansion extended westward over the county line between San Francisco and Alameda in San Francisco Bay.
    from Alameda
    · U.S.G.S., 7.5 Minute Series, Oakland West Quadrangle, "Edition of 1949" and "Edition of 1959"

Land and parcels

What the maps cover in San Francisco

Who publishes each layer, how good it is, and when we last checked.

Official
from the office that keeps the record
Good enough
a reliable statewide or national copy
Fallback
a guide only; check the official record
Missing
nothing public found yet

People and land

San Francisco by the Census

Population
873,965 2020 Census count
Housing units
406,628 2020 Census count
Land area
47 square miles
Water area
185 square miles · 80% of the county, including large bodies of water
People per sq mi
18,631 population ÷ land area

Source: US Census Bureau, 2020 Census; US Census Bureau, 2020 Gazetteer Files. Not endorsed or certified by the Census Bureau.

See your own lot on these maps

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Questions

Common questions about San Francisco County

When was San Francisco County founded?
San Francisco County was founded in 1850, formed from Branciforte County and Santa Cruz County, and named after San Francisco, California.
What is the county seat of San Francisco County?
The county seat of San Francisco County is San Francisco.
Is there an online parcel map for San Francisco County?
Yes. A public source publishes a parcel map of 227,695 parcels, rated good enough here. You can click any parcel on it in Parcel Chart's free map, no sign-in needed.
Has San Francisco County's boundary or name changed?
San Francisco County was created in 1850 from Branciforte County and Santa Cruz County. Since then the Atlas of Historical County Boundaries records 5 later changes, chiefly involving Alameda County, Marin County and San Mateo County.
Is my lot in a flood zone?
We do not have flood maps for San Francisco County yet. Look up the address on FEMA's Flood Map Service Center, which shows the effective flood map for any lot.

Nearby

Counties next door