Austin vs San Francisco
Not opinions, measured walking data. On what we can measure, San Francisco leads 4–2. Character is a different question: Austin is the capitol and the music; San Francisco is the gold rush city.
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Places with a story
spots where a route tells you what happened there
Austin
34
San Francisco
60
San Francisco leads
How often you pass a story
metres from one story to the next; fewer is better
Austin
272
San Francisco
329
Austin leads
Historical figures
real people you meet in its stories
Austin
3
San Francisco
4
San Francisco leads
Instagrammability
score /100, on the index’s fixed scale
Austin
15
San Francisco
23
San Francisco leads
Group outings
of every 100 plays, how many bring a group of 3+
Austin
28
San Francisco
22
Austin leads
International visitors
% of player reviews written in a foreign language
Austin
0
San Francisco
6
San Francisco leads
| What we measure | Austin | San Francisco | Leads |
|---|---|---|---|
| Places with a storyspots where a route tells you what happened there | 34 | 60 | San Francisco |
| How often you pass a storymetres from one story to the next; fewer is better | 272 | 329 | Austin |
| Historical figuresreal people you meet in its stories | 3 | 4 | San Francisco |
| Instagrammabilityscore /100, on the index’s fixed scale | 15 | 23 | San Francisco |
| Group outingsof every 100 plays, how many bring a group of 3+ | 28 | 22 | Austin |
| International visitors% of player reviews written in a foreign language | 0 | 6 | San Francisco |
Differences under 5% count as ties. Sample sizes and definitions on the methodology page.
What their stories are about
How many places with a story each city has per theme: Austin in orange, San Francisco in blue. All bars share one scale, so lengths are comparable everywhere on the chart.
Austin scorecard
The capitol and the music
San Francisco scorecard
The gold rush city
