Alameda County vs San Francisco County
Two neighbouring counties in California, compared on population, size, income and housing. They share 13 mi of border.
Alameda County
California
San Francisco County
California
Both outlines are drawn at true relative size. Alameda County spans about 66.3 km at its widest.
Side by side
| Measure | Alameda County | Difference | San Francisco County |
|---|---|---|---|
| Population | 1,636,630 | +98.1% | 826,079 |
| Change since 2020 | -2.6% | +3.0 pp | -5.6% |
| Land area | 737.5 sq mi | +1479.6% | 46.7 sq mi |
| Population density | 2,219 per sq mi | -87.5% | 17,695 per sq mi |
| Median household income | $129,367 | -8.2% | $140,970 |
| Median home value | $1,090,100 | -21.8% | $1,394,500 |
| Median age | 39.0 | -2.5% | 40.0 |
| Households | 598,246 | +64.4% | 363,970 |
| Housing units | 637,212 | +53.7% | 414,602 |
Sources: US Census Bureau, Population Estimates Program, Vintage 2025 Population Estimates, released 26 March 2026; US Census Bureau, Gazetteer Files, 2025 Gazetteer Files, released 10 September 2025; US Census Bureau, American Community Survey, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-Year Estimates, released 29 January 2026; US Census Bureau, County Adjacency File, 2025 County Adjacency File, released 15 September 2025. The difference column is computed here: the first county's figure against the second, expressed as a percentage of the second. The change-since-2020 row is the exception: two growth rates differ in percentage points (pp), not percent. Retrieved 30 August 2026.
What the numbers say
- Alameda County holds about 2.0 times the population of San Francisco County: 1,636,630 against 826,079.
- Alameda County covers more ground, at 737.5 square miles against 46.7.
- San Francisco County is the more crowded of the two, at 17,695 people per square mile against 2,219.
- Median household income is higher in San Francisco County, by 11,603 dollars a year.
- Since 2020, Alameda County has shrunk by 2.6% and San Francisco County has shrunk by 5.6%.
- They share 13 mi of common border, which the Census Bureau publishes in its county adjacency file and which almost no other county reference presents.
Full pages
Want a different pair? Compare any two of the 3,144 US counties.
Rebuilt from source data 30 August 2026. How these figures are produced.