There are well over six hundred public staircases in this city, built wherever the hills were too steep to put a street. Four entries, ranked: three staircases worth a trip in their own right, plus the route that strings a dozen more of them together.
Do the 16th Avenue steps early. It is a residential street, the neighbors are patient but not infinitely so, and the light on the mosaic is better before the crowd arrives.
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1
16th Avenue Tiled Steps
A 163-step mosaic staircase in the Inner Sunset that runs sea-to-sky, leading up to Grandview Park.
163 steps covered in more than 2,000 handmade tiles and roughly 75,000 glass fragments. The sea-to-sky mosaic is best viewed from below looking up.
Moraga St between 15th & 16th Ave, San Francisco, CA 94122 Full write-up → -
2
Lincoln Park Steps
Mosaic-tiled staircase at the end of California Street climbing to Lincoln Park and the Legion of Honor. Fewer crowds than the 16th Avenue Steps, with ocean views at the top.
End of California St at 32nd Ave, Outer Richmond Full write-up → -
3
Vermont Street
Potrero Hill's Vermont Street has seven switchbacks between 20th and 22nd Streets. Site of the annual Bring Your Own Big Wheel race every Easter Sunday.
Questa è la vera strada più ripida di San Francisco
Vermont St between 20th and 22nd Sts, Potrero Hill Full write-up → -
4
Urban Hike: Stairways of San Francisco
San Francisco has hundreds of public stairways climbing its hillsides. Filbert Steps to Coit Tower, the 16th Avenue Tiled Steps, the Lyon Street Steps, and dozens more, often lined with garden plantings.
Hit the Filbert Steps early when the wild parrots are out, then save the Tiled Steps for the climb back up.
Last checked August 17, 2026
