There are many options to travel between San Francisco International Airport, or SFO, and Downtown San Francisco. Travelers can hail ride share vehicle (that will cost around $80), taxi, or rent a car. There is one mode of transportation that travels quickly between those two destinations, that is boarding the Bay Area Rapid Transit, or BART.
BART is a heavy rail (or subway train) that travels throughout the San Francisco Bay area. This train travels through San Francisco, Daly City, Oakland, Berkley, San José, Richmond, San Bruno, and other surrounding cities in the Bay Area.
In summary, if traveling between Embarcadero in Downtown San Francisco and SFO, the trip takes between 25-30 minutes and the full fare (as of September 2025) is $11.15 (per person).
The YouTube video demonstrates on how to travel from SFO Terminal 2 Baggage Claim to Downtown San Francisco using BART.
BART is a regional transit agency that travels most of the San Francisco Bay Area (and soon connecting to Downtown San José).
This system is similar to Atlanta’s MARTA (Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority) or Washington DC WMATA (Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority).
SFO Station
SFO Station is located after Terminal G. The best way to travel to that station is taking the AirTrain to Garage/BART Station.
There is no cost to ride the SFO AirTrain (free to ride).
Fares
BART fares depends on how fare you are traveling to. For example, as of September 2025, from SFO Airport to Embarcadero Station in Downtown San Francisco costs $11.15 one way. Or from SFO Airport to Antioch (far east of San Francisco Bay) would cost around $15 one way. BART has a fare calculator on their webpage. Visit their webpage to get an idea how much it would cost to travel to the destination you’re going to.
BART accepts two types of payments:
- Contactless Payment
- Credit Card
- Debit Card
- Mobile Payment (Apple Pay or Google Pay)
- Clipper
- Clipper Card
- Clipper App for mobile devices
Contactless Payment
The video clip below demonstrates how to enter (or exit) BART fare gate using a Clipper Card (this also applies with Contactless Payment)
BART accepts Contactless Payment at the fare gate. Passengers can use their credit/debt card card, mobile payments (Apple Pay or Google Play) or Clipper Card (or Clipper App) to tap to enter and exit the fare gate.
Clipper Card
Clipper Card can be purchased at the ticket vending machine, retailer stores (in Bay Area only), or Clipper Online Store. Tickets can also be purchased on mobile phones using the Clipper App(available on Android or iOS device).
The one time fee will be an additional $3.00 if purchasing a brand new Clipper Card.
Recommendations about fares
I highly recommend to use the Clipper App or Contactless Payment. Do not get the Clipper Card. Clipper Card can be a headache because when I tried to reload the money online, it will take between 24-48 hours to accept the fund (and reload) to my card. That is outrages! While the Clipper App, I can instantly reload the fund using my mobile phone.
Using the Clipper is recommended if traveling more than BART. For example, if I want to take the San Francisco Muni Metro, Golden Gate Transit Ferry (transit agency that travels between San Francisco and Golden Gate Bridge on a bus or ferry), CalTrain (commuter train that travels between San Francisco and San José), or Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority (VTA; transit agency for San José), then Clipper is needed. However, if using just BART, then contactless payment is okay and there is no need for Clipper.
Boarding
During the weekdays, the trains are very frequent (less waiting time).
Traveling to San Francisco
If traveling to San Francisco, board the Yellow Line (or Red Line if otherwise) that is inscribed San Francisco, Antioch or Richmond.
Traveling to San José
If traveling to San José, board the Red Line (and sometimes the Yellow Line) that train sign displays “Millbrae”.
At Millbrae Station, transfer to Caltrain Commuter Train Southbound to San José. Caltrain accepts Clipper Card. However, before boarding
Caltrain, tap your Clipper Card to the Caltrain Clipper Fare Reader. After arriving to San José (or any towns south of San Francisco), tap the card again to exit. If you do not tap you card, Caltrain will assume that you’ve rode the whole train journey from San Francisco to San José (resulting higher fares).
