The Beat of the Bay: San Francisco’s Ultimate Lineup of Music Festivals and Summer and Fall Events
San Francisco (May 5, 2025) – San Francisco pulses with the sound of celebration every summer and fall. From iconic music festivals and dance parties to free concerts and cultural parades, the city delivers an unforgettable season of rhythms, beats, and community spirit, with many events free to all.
From the 88th season of the iconic Stern Grove Festival and the 25th anniversary of Hardly Strictly Bluegrass to electrifying Pride stages, outdoor dance parties, and porch-front jams, San Francisco delivers one of the most diverse and dynamic free entertainment calendars in the country. Whether it’s folk music in Golden Gate Park, jazz on Fillmore Street, or country on Front Street, there’s a beat — and a festival — for everyone.
Free Annual Music Festivals and Concerts
The longest-running free music festival in the United States, Stern Grove Festival, returns for its 88th season. Icons such as Diana Ross and The Pointer Sisters, indie legends, and genre-bending trailblazers will headline performances on Sundays in June, July and August in the eucalyptus-wooded natural amphitheater. Free tickets are available through a ticket lottery system.
The Illuminate LIVE concert series is back at the Golden Gate Bandshell (aka Spreckels Temple of Music) in Golden Gate Park and is celebrating the bandshell’s 125th anniversary with 125 free performances through October.
The Golden Gate Park Band, San Francisco’s oldest musical organization, returns to the park for its 142nd season with free weekly performances showcasing Bay Area cultural organizations and heritages every Sunday at 1 p.m. through Sept. 28.
Music and community come together on June 7 at the annual SF Porchfest, a day of music on the porches, backyards and stoops in the Mission District. Last year, the free event featured eight venues and 50 bands.
The annual free two-day, 12-block-long Fillmore Jazz Festival takes place July 5 and 6.
Gather some flowers for your hair: the San Francisco Free Folk Festival will take place on July 12 in Golden Gate Park.
The annual free Jerry Day concert returns to the Jerry Garcia Amphitheater on Aug. 2. The civic and cultural event celebrates Jerry Garcia, one of the greatest rock guitarists of all time, a San Francisco native, and founding member of the Grateful Dead. This year’s event marks Jerry’s 83rd birthday and the 60th anniversary of the Grateful Dead.
Flower Piano celebrates its 10th anniversary from September 12 to 21. For 10 days, Flower Piano transforms the 55-acre San Francisco Botanical Garden into an alfresco concert hall where everyone is invited to play pianos and listen.
The free Hardly Strictly Bluegrass festival celebrates its 25th anniversary this year. The festival returns to Golden Gate Park from October 3 to 5 with a lineup of country, soul, folk, and other performers across stages.
Ticketed Music Festivals & Series
Summer of Jazz: The 42nd annual San Francisco Jazz Festival (June 13–15) features a revamped format with 35 concerts across multiple stages, a brand-new Festival Tent, and an outdoor street market. Summer at SFJAZZ 2025 (July 17–August 17) presents over 30 concerts with a dynamic mix of jazz, Latin, blues, and R&B with legendary artists like Taj Mahal and Sun Ra Arkestra, alongside rising stars like Monsieur Periné and talented Bay Area musicians.
SoSF, a groundbreaking new Pride music festival, will be held at the Pier 80 Warehouse on June 28. The festival is held in collaboration with Kehlani, The Midway, Non Plus Ultra, XoXo San Francisco, Dreamland NYE, Electroluxx, Fake and Gay, and more of - San Francisco’s party starters.
Outside Lands, a San Francisco flagship festival, returns for its 17th year to boast the finest music, food, drinks, art and cannabis in Golden Gate Park from August 8 to 10. Outside Lands offers premium experiences, top-tier talent (including Tyler, the Creator; Hozier and Doja Cat), culinary excellence, and dazzling installations to explore. For the second year, attendees can get married at an exclusive wedding venue inside the festival grounds. High rollers can book the Golden Gate Club.
Portola Festival will return to Pier 80 with September dates to be announced. The festival brings together new, buzzing electronic artists, metaverse pop stars, and legendary names.
Free Summer Events
Yerba Buena Gardens Festival returns for its 25th anniversary season with over 80 free performances from May to October, including outdoor music, theater, circus, dance, poetry, and children’s programs. Offerings include a new First Thursday Dance Night in the Yerba Buena East Garden, the return of YBG ChoreoFest in July, and the Children’s Garden Series.
Fort Mason Center for Arts & Culture (FMCAC) and its partners, West Coast Craft and Off the Grid, host the monthly free Fort Mason Friday Night Market series. The outdoor market transforms the historic waterfront Fort Mason campus into a showcase of 100+ local artisans and 25+ food and drink options. Live music performances, DJs, creative workshops, special menus, and public art installations from FMCAC resident organizations round out the experience. Visit fortmason.org for dates through December.
Union Square’s 200 Days of Programming starts May 1 with 13 free weekly programs running through October 20. Offerings range from mahjong, juggling, and sketching to blues music performances and toddler activities. Monthly movie nights, karaoke events, and art showcases will kick off in August. The programming coincides with Union Square in Bloom, the annual event, which transforms the district into a wonderland with floral displays, couture, and curated culinary experiences.
Circus Bella presents its 16th Annual free Circus in the Parks Season. Performances of "HOOPLA!" will take place in various parks, including Yerba Buena Gardens (June 20–21), PROXY Hayes Valley (July 19), and Salesforce Park Amphitheatre (July 20).
Mission Rock and China Basin Park launched “Pregame at the Park,” a program that transforms the park into the perfect pregame destination approximately 2.5 hours before every San Francisco Giants home game with music, food and beverage vendors, and games.
Downtown First Thursdays (DFT), an all-ages dance party in SoMa with seven entertainment zones, runs every first Thursday on Second Street between Market and Howard streets throughout the year. There’s disco in the streets, DJs, live music, drag, fashion, and street performances.
Downtown Hoedown (May – October 2025) expands DTF to bring country-western to Front Street every first Thursday. The high-energy, western-themed street party features live country and bluegrass performances, line dancing, mechanical bull rides, and an immersive hoedown experience.
Civic Center Soundtrack, a free concert series at Fulton Plaza between the San Francisco Main Library and the Asian Art Museum, brings diverse performances every Tuesday and Thursday from noon to 3 pm.
In honor of the Grateful Dead’s 60th anniversary, Haight Street Daydream takes place in the iconic neighborhood from noon to 6 p.m. the first weekend of every month, starting in May and running into October.
Chinatown Pride (May 24): The Chinese Culture Center of San Francisco and Edge on the Square are co-presenting “We are Immortal!” — a powerful evening-long festival and bold celebration of resistance through art, dance, and storytelling. The festival opens with the first-ever Chinatown Pride procession.
Carnaval San Francisco (May 25 & 26) is the largest multi-cultural celebration on the West Coast. The free two-day family festival and Grand Parade in the Mission District’s historic Latino Cultural District showcase the best Latin American and Caribbean cultural arts and traditions. The celebration encompasses 17 blocks with five main stages, 50 local performance artists, and over 400 vendors, while the Grand Parade features a 60-contingent lineup and over 3,000 artists.
The Union Street Festival (May 31-June 1) in Cow Hollow is one of the largest street festivals in San Francisco, with live music, food, vendors, and family-friendly activity zones.
Fisherman’s Wharf is bringing back its Pier Party at the Wharf. The series runs from June through September on the 2nd and 4th Saturdays of the month.
The North Beach Festival (June 14 – 15) features over 200 vendors on 11 blocks, plus kid-friendly zones, beer gardens, dining and entertainment.
California’s largest Juneteenth celebration takes place in the historic Fillmore District (June 14) and features three stages of live performances, a classic car show, a Kids Zone, food, and fashion.
The San Francisco PRIDE celebration (June 28 – 29) attracts up to one million visitors each year for a weekend filled with parties and concerts that culminate in the largest LGBTQ+ parade in the world.
The 51st Nihonmachi Street Fair returns to San Francisco's Japantown August 2 to 3. The fair celebrates the rich traditions and dazzling diversity of the Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander communities with music and cultural performances, Asian artisans, food, and exhibits.
The San Francisco Pizza, Bagel & Beer Festival in North Beach (Aug. 16) is the brainchild of award-winning pizzaiolo and legendary restaurateur Tony Gemignani. Nearly 40 pizzerias will be serving slices.
One of San Francisco’s iconic events, the 46th annual Haight Street Fair, takes place September 7 and features performances from legendary acts as well as up-and-comers.
Fleet Week, one of the largest and oldest air shows in the United States, takes place from October 5 to 13. There is the waterfront Fleet Fest, a parade of ships, and more, plus dazzling air shows between the Golden Gate Bridge and Alcatraz, headlined by the U.S. Navy Blue Angels.
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