Are you spending a weekend in the city and looking for the best place to have fun? San Francisco has an eclectic selection of venues to suit your every need: gay clubs, karaoke bars, salsa dance floors and everything in between. Visiting a nightclub in San Francisco is the perfect end to a day exploring the trails of this beautiful city, enjoying romantic meals, admiring creative public art, and taking in incredible views of the city, bay, and ocean. San Francisco's history as a music scene during the Summer of Love and subsequent decades continues to exist here. Whether you like live music or a DJ's clever choices, you can still hear the echoes of Sly and the Family Stone, Jefferson Airplane, Carlos Santana, Grateful Dead, Journey and other bands in the heart of San Francisco. So raise a glass, strike a pose at the bar and chat as the lights go out in the city.
The best clubs in San Francisco
1. Raven Bar
Club DJs Raven, Raven Bar's weekly dance parties on Friday and Saturday nights, specialize in danceable, soulful nostalgia, calling it a "throwback night with some memories to come". There are two dance floors on the upper and lower levels of the venue, while resident DJs Mark Andrus and Scotty Fox play music videos upstairs.
2. Public Works
Described as a “community-focused nightclub and event venue,” Public Works is an industrial-style nightclub located in the Mission District that often partners with local organizations and nonprofits. The audience here is diverse (everyone is welcome) and the venue often hosts international DJs, underground artists and local musicians. Discover the wooden floors and the Function One sound system.
3. DNA Lounge
This expansive SoMa lounge features two stages, seven bars and four dance floors, plus a late-night restaurant and café to fuel your kinetic triumph. Here you'll experience everything from burlesque dancers, live bands and experimental DJs to... a lecture series. Quirky Fun: Every third Thursday, stop dancing and watch the "Dirty Talk" game show, where panelists compete to be crowned the dirtiest mouth in San Francisco.
4. Madrone Art Bar
Madrone is not just discos. As the name suggests, the walls of this neighborhood bar on Divisadero Street feature a wide variety of artwork, including paintings, mixed media, videos and photographs. This creative spirit extends to events including Monday's Motown and other dance parties on the small dance floor. We're intrigued by the Live Model Tuesday sketch (yes, draw a live model accompanied by Newman's cavalcade of jazz and chaos). Sounds like fun!
5. Cat Club
There's something for everyone at the Cat Club, south of Market. Regular themed dance parties immerse people in the music that excites them most: '80s pop and new wave, '70s disco and funk, goth, Brit-pop and more. This simple club features two dance floors with an incredible array of lights and video projections, as well as two full bars, a smoking area, VIP booths and an abundant cage.
6. Audio
This European-style nightclub offers unprecedented sound and light effects with the world's first Funktion One 3D surround system and speakers. It attracts world-renowned techno, house and EDM artists and an equally passionate audience. The complex three-dimensional lighting system consists of lasers, robotic lights, a dazzling LED tunnel and an infinite mirror vortex.
7. The Great Northern
The Great Northern, with its "FutureDeco" aesthetic based on modern art, features two bars, 30-foot ceilings and a huge, twisting, crowded dance floor lit by Super - 80,000 watt high fidelity vacuum sound system sounds. The music here tends towards electronic music, but the club also occasionally hosts jazz or pop artists and themed events such as ABBA's glittering disco night. This all-inclusive club also hosts regular LGBTQ+ dance parties.
