San Francisco packs more different kinds of running into seven miles square than
anywhere else on this list. Golden Gate Park runs three miles inland from the Pacific,
the Presidio is a forested former army post with the bridge at the end of it, Crissy
Field is flat sand and bay on the north shore, and Twin Peaks sits in the middle of it
all at nine hundred feet.
Almost none of it is flat, and the exception is not where you would guess.
Measured against terrain data across the nine routes below, only one carries under seven
metres of climb per kilometre — and it is the loop from the Caltrain depot, out along
the old industrial waterfront. The easy five kilometres by the water at Crissy Field
carries twelve. In this city the flat run is the one through Mission Bay, not the one
in the park.
21 named features9 examples belowThe peninsula, California
Nine routes in San Francisco, nine different requests
Nine, drawn on demand
Asked for“an easy 5K by the water”
Crissy Field and the Golden Gate Promenade
Crissy Field and the Golden Gate Promenade is a 5.2 km loop on the north shore of San Francisco, and the most off-road of the nine at 48% off tarmac. Easy is relative here: it still carries 61 m of climb, because getting back off the shore means getting back up to it.
Distance5.2 km
Ascent61 m
Steepest4.5%
On path48%
San Francisco BayCrissy FieldGolden Gate Bridge
Why this one
The climbing is spread evenly — no third of the route carries more than 44% of it. 48% of it is off tarmac, more than any of the other eight.
Golden Gate Park end to end is an 8.0 km loop in San Francisco through the three miles of park that run down to the Pacific, with 35% of it off tarmac. JFK Drive through the east end has been closed to cars since the pandemic and has stayed that way.
Distance8.0 km
Ascent80 m
Steepest4.6%
On path35%
Golden Gate ParkPark pathsJFK Promenade
Why this one
60% of the climbing sits in the middle third — you start flat and you finish flat. 9% of it doubles back on ground already covered, and it stays within 0.9 km of the start.
The Presidio and Mountain Lake is an 8.6 km loop through the old army post at the north-west corner of San Francisco, 41% of it off tarmac and 156 m of climb. Eucalyptus and cypress planted by the Army when it was a garrison, and the bridge appearing between the trees.
Distance8.6 km
Ascent156 m
Steepest9.4%
On path41%
TrailPresidioMountain Lake
Why this one
The climbing is spread evenly — no third of the route carries more than 45% of it. 4% of it doubles back on ground already covered, and it stays within 1.3 km of the start.
Asked for“something short, right through downtown”
Union Square, Chinatown and North Beach
Union Square, Chinatown and North Beach is a 6.4 km loop through the middle of San Francisco, over the shoulder of Nob Hill and down through Chinatown. It carries 99 m of climb in six kilometres, which is what downtown means in this city.
Distance6.4 km
Ascent99 m
Steepest8.9%
On path0%
Union SquareChinatownNorth BeachHilly
Why this one
59% of the climbing sits in the middle third — you start flat and you finish flat. Only 0% of it leaves tarmac, less than any of the other eight — it is the one to run when you do not want to pick your feet up.
The Caltrain depot and Mission Bay is a 9.9 km loop from the platforms at Fourth and King in San Francisco, and the flattest of the nine at 23 m of climb. Out along the old industrial waterfront to Crane Cove and back, passing within 8 m of a public toilet.
Distance9.9 km
Ascent23 m
Steepest2.5%
On path5%
CaltrainMission BayRestrooms
Why this one
There is barely any climb to place: 23 m across 9.9 km, and never steeper than 2.5%. 2% of it doubles back on ground already covered, and it stays within 1.3 km of the start.
Ocean Beach and the Great Highway is a 13.1 km loop on the Pacific edge of San Francisco, three miles of straight sand with the city behind you. The highway beside it is closed to cars and is now a promenade, which is why this works as a run at all.
Distance13.1 km
Ascent100 m
Steepest4.7%
On path24%
Pacific OceanOcean BeachGreat Highway
Why this one
The climbing is front-loaded: 50% of it inside the first third, so the run flattens out as it goes. It goes further out than any of the others, 2.7 km from the start at the far point.
The Panhandle and Buena Vista is a 7.5 km loop from the strip of park that runs east out of Golden Gate Park in San Francisco. It is the quiet option rather than the easy one: 120 m of climb, most of it in the block up to Buena Vista and back down.
Distance7.5 km
Ascent120 m
Steepest7.2%
On path5%
PanhandleBuena Vista ParkHaight
Why this one
The climbing is front-loaded: 45% of it inside the first third, so the run flattens out as it goes. No part of it is run twice — the loop never comes back on itself.
Twin Peaks and the ridge is an 11.7 km loop over the middle of San Francisco, and the hilliest of the nine by a wide margin — 375 m of climb and 14.2% at its sharpest pitch. From the top you can see both bridges and the ocean on a clear day, which is rarer than the guidebooks admit.
Distance11.7 km
Ascent375 m
Steepest14.2%
On path23%
Twin PeaksMount SutroHilly
Why this one
The climbing is spread evenly — no third of the route carries more than 38% of it. 17% of it doubles back on ground already covered, and it stays within 1.2 km of the start.
The park to ocean half marathon is a 21.8 km run from Golden Gate Park in San Francisco, and the only one of the nine that gets you race distance without repeating a mile. West to the Pacific, north along the beach, back through the Sunset and the park, with 313 m of climb.
Distance21.8 km
Ascent313 m
Steepest8.5%
On path15%
Half marathonPacific OceanGolden Gate Park
Why this one
The climbing is spread evenly — no third of the route carries more than 42% of it. 3% of it doubles back on ground already covered, and it stays within 2.7 km of the start.
Each of those nine started as one sentence. Tell RunFlex the distance, the surface and when you need to be back, and it draws one from your front door — not from the middle of San Francisco, and not from a list of runs other people have already done. If it isn’t right, say what is wrong and it draws another.
You describe it, it draws itA sentence in, a route on real streets out. Say “make it flatter” and it redrafts from what you already have.
It shows its workingEvery route above opens on the measurements it was judged against — where the climb sits, how much of it you run twice, what it never gets further than.
Then it goes to your wristOne tap sends it to the watch, which navigates turn by turn on its own GPS.
What you get here that you don't get from a route list
Side by side
Other route sites
RunFlex
What you get
Routes other people ran, in a fixed order
A route drafted for the run you asked for, tonight
Where it starts
Wherever that person started
Your front door
Why this route
No reason given
The scoring is on screen while it drafts
If it is wrong
Scroll to the next one
Say what is wrong and it redrafts
On the run
Your phone, in your hand
Turn by turn on your watch, phone left at home
Who has run it
Thousands of people, and the mud and the closed gate are in the comments
Nobody. It is drawn fresh, so you are the one finding out
That last row is the real trade. A library of routes has been tested by other runners
and a drafted route has not. RunFlex bets that being able to say what you want tonight
is worth more than that.
Leave the phone at home
Send any route above to an Apple Watch and it navigates on its own GPS, turn by
turn, with a tap before each one. The run syncs back when you are home. None of
the other sites on this search can do that, because none of them are an app you
run with.
What you can run to from downtown
All inside 8 km of Union Square
Water
San Francisco BayPacific OceanLake MercedMountain Lake
Parks
Golden Gate ParkPresidioCrissy FieldLands EndBuena Vista ParkDolores Park
The other thing that shapes a run here is how much light there is. The sun sets at
4:51 PM in mid-December and 8:33 PM in
mid-June, so the same after-work hour is a summer evening or a
night run depending on the month.
Computed for San Francisco at 37.7750°N 122.4190°W, on the 15th of each month in 2026.
Times are local — daylight saving time where it applies — and the clocks
go back on November 1, 2026, after which sunset on the Monday is
5:09 PM. First and last light are civil twilight.
The numbers behind the chart
Month
First light
Sunrise
Sunset
Last light
Daylight
January
6:55 AM
7:23 AM
5:14 PM
5:43 PM
9h 51m
February
6:32 AM
6:59 AM
5:48 PM
6:15 PM
10h 50m
March
6:54 AM
7:20 AM
7:17 PM
7:43 PM
11h 57m
April
6:07 AM
6:34 AM
7:45 PM
8:12 PM
13h 11m
May
5:30 AM
5:59 AM
8:12 PM
8:42 PM
14h 13m
June
5:15 AM
5:47 AM
8:33 PM
9:04 PM
14h 46m
July
5:29 AM
5:59 AM
8:31 PM
9:01 PM
14h 31m
August
5:57 AM
6:25 AM
8:02 PM
8:30 PM
13h 37m
September
6:25 AM
6:51 AM
7:17 PM
7:43 PM
12h 26m
October
6:51 AM
7:18 AM
6:31 PM
6:58 PM
11h 14m
November
6:22 AM
6:50 AM
4:58 PM
5:26 PM
10h 08m
December
6:48 AM
7:17 AM
4:51 PM
5:21 PM
9h 34m
Try it on your own run. Say the distance and the surface, and RunFlex drafts it from your front door — not from the town centre, and not from a list.
Golden Gate Park is the obvious start: three miles end to end, with paved paths, trail and JFK Drive closed to cars. The Embarcadero runs flat along the waterfront, and Crissy Field gives you the bay and the bridge. The Presidio is the hilliest of them, on trail. Lands End is the wildest. All nine routes above start inside the city, and RunFlex will redraw any of them from your own front door.
Where can I run 5K in San Francisco?
Crissy Field is the obvious 5K in San Francisco: flat, traffic-free, gravel and promenade along the bay with the Golden Gate Bridge ahead of you, and about 1.5 miles each way. The Panhandle and Golden Gate Park’s eastern end are the alternative if you would rather be under trees than beside water.
Is there a traffic-free running route in San Francisco?
The Embarcadero promenade and Crissy Field, joined by the bay trail, give you a long flat traffic-free stretch along the northern waterfront. Inside Golden Gate Park, JFK Drive is permanently closed to cars, so the park’s eastern half runs as a traffic-free loop of its own.
Where can I run in San Francisco without a car?
Every route on this page starts inside the city, so none of them needs one. Embarcadero station puts you on the waterfront promenade, flat and continuous north towards Fisherman’s Wharf. The N Judah runs along the south side of Golden Gate Park, and any stop on it drops you a block from the park’s interior paths.
Where can I run with other people in San Francisco?
The San Francisco Road Runners Club runs open group runs and track sessions and takes drop-ins. November Project meets outdoors, early and free, no sign-up. Running shops across the city host free weekly group runs, several of them through Golden Gate Park. Any of the routes above works as a solo run the rest of the week, and RunFlex will redraw them from your own front door.
What is the flattest run in San Francisco?
The flattest run in San Francisco of the nine on this page is Caltrain depot and Mission Bay, at 23 m of climb over 9.9 km and never steeper than 2.5%. Ocean Beach and the Great Highway is next, at 100 m over 13.1 km. Both figures are measured off the drawn line rather than estimated from the map.
How hilly is San Francisco?
San Francisco is rolling rather than hilly. Measured across the nine routes on this page, the flattest carries 2.3 metres of climb per kilometre and the hilliest 32.1, and the steepest single pitch on any of them is 14.2%. The climbing sits in the valley sides rather than in any one hill.
When does it get dark in San Francisco?
In San Francisco the sun sets at 4:51 PM in mid-December and 8:33 PM in mid-June. The clocks go back on November 1, 2026, and sunset on the Monday after is 5:09 PM, so from early November most weekday running here happens after dark. The month-by-month figures are in the table above.
Nine of an unlimited number. Yours is not drawn yet.
Say the distance and the surface. RunFlex drafts it from your door and sends the one you pick to your watch. Ask again tomorrow and you get a different one. Free early access while it is being built — no card, and no price to pay yet.
RunFlex is built by Rob Gotlieb, who runs. The nine routes above were
drafted by RunFlex from the San Francisco street and path network, measured by the same
services the app uses, and read by a person before this page went up. Nobody has run
them end to end — that is the trade in the table above.
If something here is wrong, and on a page of nine drafted routes something
eventually will be, tell us and it is fixed on the next build rather than sitting in a
comment thread.