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