Dating Tips and Advice from our Award Winning Matchmakers

How to Date in San Francisco

Dating in San Francisco

San Francisco is one of the trendiest places on the West Coast. It’s the perfect location for dating—although if you’re new to the city then there’s a bunch of intriguing dating rules you might not be aware of. So today let’s delve into our top tips to bringing your A game on the San Fran dating scene!

Dating in San Francisco often veers away from the traditional. For instance, many men prefer going Dutch rather than paying the bill outright. It’s all about equality. Another area in which etiquette diverges from lots of other places is the wardrobe.

When you think of going to a nice restaurant for dinner, you might envisage your date showing up with flowers and dressed in their finest. Not so in San Fran. Here there’s no such thing as dressing up for a date. Everyone goes casual. Why? Because this is California—and the weather is incredible!

With gorgeous bright sunshine for most of the year, people are less focused on what they wear, and more interested in kicking back and catching some rays in good company. Plus the fabulous weather means there’s no shortage of fun activities to try out with your dates.

The evenings are light, and the nightlife is second to none. The opportunities for meeting new and interesting people are endless.

Now here’s a pretty niche dating difference in San Fran: emojis. Yep, you read that right. Emojis are used with far greater abandon in the Golden City. People get seriously inventive with those little smiley faces and the like, and it’s an undeniably fast form of communication. Hey, maybe people are just too busy soaking up that Cali sun to be writing out full texts! Go with it—if you can’t beat ’em, join ’em. It can be a lot of fun!

In San Francisco, social media seems to play a bigger role in dating than in most other places. As soon as people meet a romantic interest, there’s no holding back in adding one another on every social channel they’ve got going. It’s all part of the game; it’s all about showing interest in getting to know someone. San Franciscans might even make the relationship Facebook-official before discussing it in person! Be on the lookout for that all-important notification…

Another quirk of San Francisco: while the city is big, it’s small in other more subtle ways. It seems like everyone you meet knows someone you know—like everyone’s dated someone you know, too (and perhaps more). It’s strange, but you’ll soon see the funny side. And if that small-town vibe isn’t quite your thing, there’s a ton of neighbouring cities to choose from. Just make sure to factor in the commute!

Lots of relationships in San Fran move fairly fast compared to in other places. People aren’t backward in coming forward about what they want, and if both are on board then they’re happy to take things at a pace and start their lives together.

So if you’re open-minded and happy to try new things, you’ll fit in like a true San Franciscan. Prepare to up your emoji game, get to know some sexy mysterious souls, and dive headfirst into a city that’s romantic like no other!


If you are ready to meet someone special, contact the friendly award winning matchmakers at Drawing Down the Moon Matchmaking.

As the UK’s Premier matchmaking company, we have been  successfully introducing tens of thousands of interesting people since 1984. 

Contact us now, perhaps we can change your dating life for the better, forever?