Edinburgh
259 km²
San Francisco
121 km²
United Kingdom
USA
Area Comparison
Edinburgh is 2.1x larger than San Francisco
Population Comparison
Edinburgh has 1.8x fewer people than San Francisco
Yes — Edinburgh is 2.1x larger than San Francisco by area. Edinburgh spans 259 km² (100 mi²) while San Francisco covers 121 km² (47 mi²) — a difference of 138 km². You could fit San Francisco inside Edinburgh approximately 2 times.
To put Edinburgh's size in perspective, its area of 259 km² is about 1.2x the size of Amsterdam. Meanwhile, San Francisco at 121 km² is about 1.2x the size of Paris (city proper).
Edinburgh's footprint is roughly about 36,000 American football fields, 130 times the area of Monaco, or 76 times the area of Central Park — pick whichever unit feels intuitive. San Francisco, by comparison, equals about 17,000 American football fields, 60 times the area of Monaco, or 35 times the area of Central Park.
Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 council areas. It is located in southeast Scotland and is bounded to the north by the Firth of Forth and to the south by the Pentland Hills. Edinburgh had a population of 506,520 in 2020, making it the second-most-populous city in Scotland and the seventh-most-populous in the United Kingdom. The wider metropolitan area had a population of 912,490 in the same year.
Known as "Auld Reekie", Edinburgh covers 259 km² with a population of 0.5 million. The city was established in 601. Edinburgh is known for Edinburgh Castle, Royal Mile, Arthur's Seat, among other attractions.
Edinburgh is bounded by the Firth of Forth to the north and the Pentland Hills to the south.
San Francisco, officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the fourth-most populous city in California and the 17th-most populous in the United States, with a population of 826,079 in 2025. Among U.S. cities with a population of 300,000 or more, San Francisco is ranked first by per capita income, second by population density, and sixth by aggregate income as of 2023.
Nicknamed "The City by the Bay", San Francisco has an area of 121 km² and is home to 0.9 million people. It was established in 1776. Visitors come for Golden Gate Bridge, Alcatraz Island, Cable cars, and much more. Getting around is easy with the BART & Muni.
San Francisco ranks first by per capita income among all US cities with 300,000+ residents as of 2023.
Edinburgh has a population density of 1,892 people per km² — a relatively spread-out city. San Francisco, with 7,190 people per km², is a densely populated city. San Francisco is dramatically more crowded, with 3.8x the population density.
Size Ratio
San Francisco fits inside Edinburgh ~2 times
Density Gap
San Francisco is 3.8x more densely populated
History
Edinburgh is ~1,175 years older
Edinburgh covers 259 km². Cities with a similar urban footprint include Taipei (272 km²), Kuala Lumpur (243 km²), Boston (232 km²), Osaka (225 km²), or Amsterdam (219 km²).
San Francisco covers 121 km². Cities with a similar urban footprint include Vancouver (115 km²), Paris (105 km²), Miami (143 km²), Barcelona (101 km²), or Lisbon (100 km²).
The straight-line distance from Edinburgh to San Francisco is 8,123 km (5,048 miles), with an estimated flight time of ~10h 3m.
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