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
