45+ Bay Area Music Festivals To Put On Your Calendar Right Now

It’s hard to beat the SF arts and culture scene, especially when it comes to Bay Area music festivals. There are dozens of diverse events to keep track of, ranging from famous names like Outside Lands and Hardly Strictly Bluegrass to smaller niche celebrations like Jerry Day and Yerba Buena Night. Read on for our running list of the best Bay Area music festivals to check out in 2023.

Ongoing music festivals in the Bay Area

1. Illuminate Live at the Bandshell – March-Nov, 2023 – Golden Gate Park Bandshell, San Francisco. Catch over 100 free performances throughout the year in a variety of genres including R&B, soul, jazz, funk, big band, strings, indie, rock, reggae, salsa, electronic, and EDM.
2. Yerba Buena Gardens Festival – May-Oct, 2023 – Yerba Buena Gardens, San Francisco. For six months of the year, this nonprofit puts on accessible cultural eventsincluding world-class music, theater, dance, and more.
3. Blue Note Summer Sessions – May-Sept, 2023 – Silverado Resort, Napa – A series of summer concerts with performers including EmmyLou Harris, St. Paul & The Broken Bones, Marlon Wayans, and more.

Spring music festivals in the Bay Area

Some of the biggest events coming up this spring are the Mill Valley Music Festival headlined by Cake and Michael Franti & Spearhead; and BottleRock, headlined by the Red Hot Chili Peppers, Post Malone, Lizzo, The Smashing Pumpkins, and many more.

1. 420 Hippie Hill – Apr. 20, 2023 – Golden Gate Park, San Francisco
2. Berkeley Bluegrass Festival – Apr 21-23, 2023 – Freight & Salvage, Berkeley
3. Pickin’ on the Polk – Apr. 22, 2023 – Polk St, San Francisco
4. Half Moon Bay Wine & Jazz Festival – May 13, 2023 – Downtown Half Moon Bay
5. Mill Valley Music Festival – May 13-14, 2023 – Friends Field, Mill Valley
6. California Roots Music & Art Festival – May 25-28, 2023 – Monterey County Fair & Event Center, Monterey
7. BottleRock Napa Valley – May 26-28, 2023 – Napa Valley Expo, Napa
8. Carnaval San Francisco – May 27-28, 2023 – Mission District, San Francisco

Summer music festivals in the Bay Area

The summer season brings an unrivaled lineup of exciting festivals to countless Bay Area venues. We’re excited to check out Re:SET in Stanford, a new concert series headlined by LCD Soundsystem; the Blue Note Jazz Festival headlined by Chance the Rapper, Mary J. Blige, and Nas; and of course Outside Lands headlined by Kendrick Lamar, Foo Fighters, Odesza, Lana Del Rey, and more. If you want to cut costs, consider checking out some free events and performances courtesy of Stern Grove Festival and the Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk.

1. Re:SET – June 2-4, 2023 – Frost Amphitheater, Stanford
2. San Francisco Jazz Festival – June 7-18, 2023 – San Francisco
3. San Francisco International Arts Festival – June 8-18, 2023 – San Francisco
4. Free Live Music on the Colonnade – June 15-Aug 10, 2023 – Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk, Santa Cruz
5. Sierra Nevada World Music Festival – June 16-18, 2023 – Mendocino County Fairgrounds, Boonville
6. Country Summer Music Festival – June 16-18, 2023 – Sonoma County Event Center, Santa Rosa
7. Healdsburg Jazz Festival – June 17-25, 2023 – Healdsburg
8. San Francisco Pride – June 24-25, 2023 – Market St, San Francisco
9. Stern Grove Festival – June-Aug, 2023 – Stern Grove, San Francisco
10. Huichica Music & Wine Festival – *canceled for 2023*
11. Fillmore Jazz Festival – July 1-2, 2023 – Fillmore District, San Francisco
12. Mosswood Meltdown – July 1-2, 2023 – Mosswood Park, Oakland
13. Festival Napa Valley – July 8-23, 2023 – Meritage Resort, Napa
14. SFJAZZ Summer Sessions – July 13-Aug 20, 2023 – San Francisco
15. Blue Note Jazz Festival – July 28-30, 2023 – Silverado Resort, Napa
16. Petaluma Music Festival – July 29, 2023 – Sonoma-Marin Fairgrounds, Petaluma
17. Golden Gate Jazz Festival – July (2023 dates TBA) – Presidio Theatre, San Francisco
18. Midsummer Mozart Festival – July (2023 date TBA) – Saratoga
19. Art + Soul Oakland – July (2023 date TBA) – Frank Ogawa Plaza, Oakland
20. Stanford Live – July-Aug, 2023 – Frost Amphitheater, Stanford
21. People in Plazas – July-Sept (2023 dates TBA) – San Francisco
22. Jerry Day – Aug 5, 2023 – Jerry Garcia Amphitheater, San Francisco
23. San Jose Jazz Summer Fest – Aug 11-13, 2023 – Downtown San Jose
24. Outside Lands – Aug 11-13, 2023 – Golden Gate Park, San Francisco
25. Bay Area Latin Jazz Festival – Aug 19, 2023 – Rowell Ranch, Castro Valley
26. Concord Jazz Festival – Aug (2023 date TBA) – Concord

Fall music festivals in the Bay Area

Summer may be over but music festival season is still in full swing! Some of the most highly-anticipated events are Hardly Strictly Bluegrass, a free event in Golden Gate Park with five stages and unbeatable lineups every year; and the new Portola Festival, which wowed crowds last year with exciting performances from ’90s and ’00s electronic, hip-hop, and pop legends.

1. Due South – Aug-Oct (2023 dates TBA) – Jerry Garcia Amphitheater, San Francisco
2. Solano Avenue Stroll – Sept. 10, 2023 – Albany and Berkeley
3. Monterey Jazz Festival – Sept. 22-24, 2023 – Monterey County Fairgrounds, Monterey
4. Hardly Strictly Bluegrass – Sept. 29-Oct 1, 2023 – Golden Gate Park, San Francisco
5. Portola Festival – Sept 30-Oct. 1, 2023 – Pier 80, San Francisco
6. Breakaway Festival – Oct. 13-14, 2023 – Bill Graham Civic Auditorium, San Francisco
7. SF Music Day – Oct. 15, 2023 – San Francisco
8. Day to Night Festival – Oct (2023 dates TBA) – Treasure Island, San Francisco
9. Halloween Meltdown – Oct (2023 dates TBA) – Mosswood Park, Oakland
10. How Weird Street Faire – Oct (2023 date TBA) – SoMa, San Francisco
11. Yerba Buena Night – Oct (2023 date TBA) – Yerba Buena, San Francisco
12. Sonoma Harvest Music Festival – Oct (2023 date TBA) – B.R. Cohn Winery, Sonoma
13. San Francisco International Hip Hop Dancefest – Nov 11-12, 2023 – Palace of Fine Arts Theatre, San Francisco