New York City vs San Francisco
Not opinions, measured walking data. On what we can measure, New York City leads 4–2. Character is a different question: New York City is the island of arrivals; San Francisco is the gold rush city.
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Places with a story
spots where a route tells you what happened there
New York City
369
San Francisco
60
New York City leads
How often you pass a story
metres from one story to the next; fewer is better
New York City
291
San Francisco
329
New York City leads
Historical figures
real people you meet in its stories
New York City
99
San Francisco
4
New York City leads
Instagrammability
score /100, on the index’s fixed scale
New York City
75
San Francisco
23
New York City leads
Group outings
of every 100 plays, how many bring a group of 3+
New York City
20
San Francisco
22
San Francisco leads
International visitors
% of player reviews written in a foreign language
New York City
2
San Francisco
6
San Francisco leads
| What we measure | New York City | San Francisco | Leads |
|---|---|---|---|
| Places with a storyspots where a route tells you what happened there | 369 | 60 | New York City |
| How often you pass a storymetres from one story to the next; fewer is better | 291 | 329 | New York City |
| Historical figuresreal people you meet in its stories | 99 | 4 | New York City |
| Instagrammabilityscore /100, on the index’s fixed scale | 75 | 23 | New York City |
| Group outingsof every 100 plays, how many bring a group of 3+ | 20 | 22 | San Francisco |
| International visitors% of player reviews written in a foreign language | 2 | 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: New York City in orange, San Francisco in blue. All bars share one scale, so lengths are comparable everywhere on the chart.
New York City scorecard →
The island of arrivals
San Francisco scorecard →
The gold rush city