Free Museum Admission Days in San Francisco

Calendar of Free Days for 2020

NOTE: As of July 4, San Francisco and Bay Area counties are slowly reopening. Many large events (including 4th of July fireworks & festivals), theater performances, and concerts are cancelled or postponed. Click here to stay up-to-date with what's open and opening soon.

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 thanks to Pacific Gas & Electric Company
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

Month by Month Calendar of Free Days

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.

March | April | May

June | July | August

September | October | November | December

Let me know if you have any questions about these upcoming free days!

More Top Events Each Month in SF

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.

March 2020

Date	Museums with Free Admission
Sunday, March 1	Asian Art Museum
Tuesday, March 3	Conservatory of Flowers Contemporary Jewish Museum de Young Museum of Fine Arts Legion of Honor Museum of Craft & Design Yerba Buena Center for the Arts
Tuesday, March 10	Botanical Gardens in Golden Gate Park

>> More things to do in March

>> Free March things to do

Tickets to Top SF Museums

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

April 2020

Date	Museums with Free Admission
Sunday, April 5	Asian Art Museum
Tuesday, April 7	Conservatory of Flowers Contemporary Jewish Museum de Young Museum of Fine Arts Legion of Honor Museum of Craft & Design Yerba Buena Center for the Arts
Tuesday, April 14	Botanical Gardens in Golden Gate Park

>> More things to do in April in SF

>> April free things to do

May 2020

Date	Museums with Free Admission
Sunday, May 3	Asian Art Museum
Tuesday, May 5	Conservatory of Flowers Contemporary Jewish Museum de Young Museum of Fine Arts Legion of Honor Museum of Craft & Design Yerba Buena Center for the Arts
Sunday, May 10	Exploratorium
Tuesday, May 12	Botanical Gardens in Golden Gate Park

>> More fun things to do in May

>> List of free things to do in May

June 2020

Date	Museums with Free Admission
Tuesday, June 2	Conservatory of Flowers Contemporary Jewish Museum de Young Museum of Fine Arts Legion of Honor Museum of Craft & Design Yerba Buena Center for the Arts
Sunday, June 7	Asian Art Museum
Tuesday, June 9	Botanical Gardens in Golden Gate Park

>> More fun things to do in June

>> Additional free ideas for your June visit

July 2020

Date	Museums with Free Admission
Sunday, July 5	Asian Art Museum
Tuesday, July 7	Conservatory of Flowers Contemporary Jewish Museum de Young Museum of Fine Arts Legion of Honor Museum of Craft & Design Yerba Buena Center for the Arts
Tuesday, July 14	Botanical Gardens in Golden Gate Park

>> Events this July around San Francisco

>> July free things to do

August 2020

 

Date	Museums with Free Admission
Sunday, August 2	Asian Art Museum
Tuesday, August 4	Conservatory of Flowers Contemporary Jewish Museum de Young Museum of Fine Arts Legion of Honor Museum of Craft & Design Yerba Buena Center for the Arts
Tuesday, August 11	Botanical Gardens in Golden Gate Park

>> More events this August

>> Additional free ideas for your August stay

September 2020

Date	Museums with Free Admission
Tuesday, September 1	Conservatory of Flowers Contemporary Jewish Museum de Young Museum of Fine Arts Legion of Honor Museum of Craft & Design Yerba Buena Center for the Arts
Sunday, September 6	Asian Art Museum
Tuesday, September 8	Botanical Gardens in Golden Gate Park

>> More events in September

>> Additional free ideas for your September visit

October 2020

Date	Museums with Free Admission
Sunday, October 4	Asian Art Museum
Tuesday, October 6	Conservatory of Flowers Contemporary Jewish Museum de Young Museum of Fine Arts Legion of Honor Museum of Craft & Design Yerba Buena Center for the Arts
Tuesday, October 13	Botanical Gardens in Golden Gate Park

>> More fun events this October

>> Additional free things to do around SF this month

November 2020

Date	Museums with Free Admission
Sunday, November 1	Asian Art Museum
Tuesday, November 3	Conservatory of Flowers Contemporary Jewish Museum de Young Museum of Fine Arts Legion of Honor Museum of Craft & Design Yerba Buena Center for the Arts
Tuesday, November 9	Botanical Gardens in Golden Gate Park

>> More events this November

>> Tree lighting events for the holiday season

December 2020

Date	Museums with Free Admission
Tuesday, December 1	Conservatory of Flowers Contemporary Jewish Museum de Young Museum of Fine Arts Legion of Honor Museum of Craft & Design Yerba Buena Center for the Arts
Sunday, December 6	Asian Art Museum
Tuesday, December 8	Botanical Gardens in Golden Gate Park

>> More fun things to do in December

>> More free ideas for your December visit

More on SF's Museums

Click the links below to learn more about each museum.

Asian Art Museum	Botanical Gardens	Chinese Historical Society	Conservatory of Flowers

Contemporary Jewish Museum	de Young Fine Arts Museum	Legion of Honor	Museum of Craft & Design

More Great Museum Pages

Top SF Art Museums	Best History Museums	Museum Exhibit Calendar

Add your questions or comments below!

Back to the Top