# San Francisco — relocation profile

San Francisco, United States · Flawed democracy · livability 56/100

## At a glance

- **Country:** United States
- **Region:** North America
- **Estimated monthly cost of living (solo, renting in the centre):** $6,373/month
- **Livability score:** 56 / 100 (rank 108 of 132 Townleap cities)
- **Settler safety score:** 56 / 100 (rank 91 of 132)
- **Cost vs New York City:** 17% cheaper
- **Also appears in:** Remote Workers, Lowest Crime, Budget Maximizers, Startup Cities, Sun + Beach, Rising Stars, Remote Work Visa Cities, Fresh Start Cities, Family-Friendly Cities, English-Friendly Cities, Retire Abroad, Free Societies, Tech Settler, Queer Settlers, Leaving the UK, Freelance-Friendly

## Cost of living

| Item | USD / month |
| --- | --- |
| Rent — 1-bed, city centre | $3,413 |
| Rent — 1-bed, outside centre | $2,771 |
| Rent — 3-bed, city centre | $5,720 |
| Average net salary (after tax) | $7,288 |
| **Total monthly cost (solo, rent included)** | **$6,373** |

One-off cost to land (deposit, agency fee, furnishing, first admin): $18,822.

Reference point: 18% cheaper than New York.

## Settling

- **Democracy index (EIU, 0–10):** 7.8
- **Regime type:** Flawed democracy
- **Homicide rate:** 4.4 per 100,000/year
- **Time to permanent residency:** 10 years
- **Time to citizenship:** 13 years
- **English proficiency:** Very High (EF EPI 650)
- **Main languages:** English, Spanish

## Day to day

- **Summer (low–high):** 14–21°C
- **Winter (low–high):** 8–15°C
- **Internet speed:** 180.5 Mbps
- **Healthcare index (0–100):** 79.7
- **Natural features:** ocean

## Economy

- **GDP per capita:** $85,810 (2024, country-level)
- **Inflation:** 2.9% (2024)
- **Unemployment:** 4.2% (2025)
- **Population:** 827,526

## Similar cities

| City | Country | Rent (1-bed, centre) | Monthly cost | Page |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Seattle | United States | $2,442 | $5,095 | /cities/seattle |
| Los Angeles | United States | $2,839 | $5,568 | /cities/los-angeles |
| Vancouver | Canada | $1,925 | $4,047 | /cities/vancouver |
| London | United Kingdom | $3,000 | $6,004 | /cities/london |
| Honolulu | United States | $2,703 | $5,635 | /cities/honolulu |

## Related pages

- Cost of living breakdown: /cost-of-living/san-francisco
- Compare with another city: /cities/compare
- Visa and residency paths: /cities/san-francisco/visa

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Source: [Townleap](https://www.townleap.com/cities/san-francisco) — permanent-relocation data for people picking a country to actually live in, not visit.

Cost figures are Numbeo-derived and in USD unless labelled otherwise. Economics are World Bank. Every number on this page is also on the HTML page at the same URL — this variant exists so you do not have to parse a React app to read a rent figure.