San Francisco
121 km²
Vienna
415 km²
USA
Austria
Area Comparison
San Francisco is 3.4x smaller than Vienna
Population Comparison
San Francisco has 2.3x fewer people than Vienna
In terms of area, Vienna is 3.4x the size of San Francisco. Vienna spans 415 km² (160 mi²) while San Francisco covers 121 km² (47 mi²) — a difference of 294 km². You could fit San Francisco inside Vienna approximately 3 times.
To put San Francisco's size in perspective, its area of 121 km² is about 1.2x the size of Paris (city proper). Meanwhile, Vienna at 415 km² is about 1.5x smaller than Seoul.
Picture San Francisco another way: its area is large enough to fit about 17,000 American football fields, 60 times the area of Monaco, or 35 times the area of Central Park. For Vienna, that's about 58,000 American football fields, 120 times the area of Central Park, or 7 times the area of Manhattan.
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.
Known as "The City by the Bay", San Francisco covers 121 km² with a population of 0.9 million. The city was established in 1776. San Francisco is known for Golden Gate Bridge, Alcatraz Island, Cable cars, among other attractions. The city's main transit system is the BART & Muni.
San Francisco ranks first by per capita income among all US cities with 300,000+ residents as of 2023.
Vienna is the capital, most populous city, and one of the nine states of Austria. It is Austria's primate city, with just over two million inhabitants. Its larger metropolitan area has a population of nearly 2.9 million, representing nearly one-third of the country's population. Vienna is the cultural, economic, and political centre of the country, the fifth-largest city by population in the European Union, and the most populous of the cities on the river Danube.
Also known as "City of Music", Vienna has an area of 415 km² and is home to 2.0 million people. Its history stretches back to 500 BC. Visitors come for Schönbrunn Palace, St. Stephen's Cathedral, Hofburg Palace, and much more. Getting around is easy with the Wiener Linien (U-Bahn).
Vienna's metropolitan area holds nearly 2.9 million people, representing roughly one-third of Austria's entire population
Looking beyond city limits, the San Francisco metropolitan area covers 6,984 km², which is 1.8x larger than greater Vienna at 3,840 km². The San Francisco metro area is also more populous, with 4.7 million people compared to 2.8 million.
San Francisco has a population density of 7,190 people per km² — a densely populated city. Vienna, with 4,771 people per km², is a moderately dense city. San Francisco is noticeably denser, packing 1.5 times more people per square kilometer.
This comparison spans continents — San Francisco in North America versus Vienna in Europe. Despite the geographic distance, comparing their sizes reveals surprising insights about how cities grow worldwide.
San Francisco has a Mediterranean climate while Vienna experiences oceanic conditions. When it's noon in Vienna, it's 3:00 AM in San Francisco — a 9-hour time difference.
Size Ratio
San Francisco fits inside Vienna ~3 times
Density Gap
San Francisco is 1.5x more densely populated
Time Difference
9 hours apart
History
Vienna is ~2,276 years older
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).
Vienna covers 415 km². Cities with a similar urban footprint include Denver (401 km²), Oslo (454 km²), Portland (376 km²), Philadelphia (370 km²), or Seattle (369 km²).
The straight-line distance from San Francisco to Vienna is 9,622 km (5,979 miles), with an estimated flight time of ~11h 49m.
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