Many San Francisco museums offer free admission to their facilities at least once a month. During these days, you gain access to each museum's permanent exhibits. Most of the monthly free admission days are on the first Sunday, Tuesday, or Wednesday of the month.
While some museums offer a free day evey month, a handful of them offer free days just four to five times a year. These include the California Academy of Sciences and the Exploratorium.
Here is the general pattern of free days for each SF museum, in alphabetical order. You can also scroll down for a list of dates for each museum by month.
SF Museum | Free Admission Days |
Asian Art Museum |
First Sunday of every month (sponsored by Target) |
California Academy of Sciences | Select Sundays throughout the year |
Conservatory of Flowers |
First Tuesday of every month |
Contemporary Jewish Museum |
First Tuesday of every month |
de Young | First Tuesday of every month |
Exploratorium | Four to five times a year |
GLBT | First Wednesday of the month (sponsored by the Bob Ross Foundation) |
Legion of Honor |
First Tuesday of every month |
Museum of Craft and Design |
First Tuesday of every month |
SF Botanical Gardens |
Second Tuesday of every month, as well as Thanksgiving, Christmas Day, & New Year's Day |
Yerba Buena Center for the Arts |
First Tuesday of every month |
To make it easier for you, I've also created a month by month calendar for all of the museums mentioned above. Either scroll down or click on these links to jump ahead to a specific month.
If you are looking for additional events to attend during your visit, check out my full monthly calendars. Click the link below for the month of your visit to learn more.
Event Calendars | ||
January | February | March |
April | May | June |
July | August | September |
October | November | December |
Disclaimer: I receive a small commission from some of the links on this page.
Date | Museums with Free Admission |
December 1 |
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Tuesday, December 10 |
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>> More things to do this December
Can't make it during these free museum admission days in San Francisco? You can pick up your tickets in advance to enjoy these museums during your stay.
California Academy of Sciences | Exploratorium
Asian Art Museum | Legion of Honor | de Young Fine Arts Museum
Date | Museums with Free Admission |
January 5 |
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January 7 |
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Tuesday, January 14 |
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>> More fun things to do in January
Date | Museums with Free Admission |
February 2 |
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February 4 |
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Tuesday, February 11 |
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>> More things to do in February
Date | Museums with Free Admission |
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Tuesday, March 10 |
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Date | Museums with Free Admission |
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Tuesday, April 14 |
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>> More things to do in April in SF
Date | Museums with Free Admission |
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Tuesday, May 12 |
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>> More fun things to do in May
Click the links below to learn more about each museum.
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Museum |
Gardens |
Society |
Flowers |
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Jewish Museum |
Arts Museum |
of Honor |
Craft & Design |
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Art Museums |
Museums |
Calendar |
Hi there! I'm Jill and I love writing about San Francisco travel as much as I love exploring my amazing city. Thanks for stopping by and please contact me if you have any questions before your trip.