Día de los Muertos in San Francisco 2026: The Festival of Altars and the Mission Procession

Día de los Muertos in San Francisco is two things on the same day in and around the Mission: a daytime Festival of Altars, where families build and visit altars for people they have lost, and an evening procession through the neighborhood. They are run by different groups. This guide says what is confirmed and what is not. Both 2026 dates are now listed: the Festival of Altars and the procession are on the same day, Monday, 2 November 2026.

The Festival of Altars

The Festival of Altars began in San Francisco in 1992 and is produced by the Marigold Project. It is free, open to everyone, family-friendly and alcohol-free, and the organizer describes the site as fully accessible; requests go to the Marigold Project in advance.

For comparison, the 2025 festival was also on 2 November at Potrero del Sol Park. Installation began at 8am, a ceremony was held at noon, and there was entertainment from 5 to 9pm.

Where Is Día de los Muertos at Potrero del Sol Park in 2026?

The 2026 Festival of Altars is at Potrero del Sol Park, also called La Raza Park, on Monday, 2 November 2026, from 4 to 10pm. It is free. Altar creation begins at 10am, a sunset ceremony and land blessing is at 5pm, and La Gente SF performs at 8pm. No vehicles are allowed inside the park.

This is the 34th annual festival. The Marigold Project’s theme this year is “Familia: Entre raíces y el Cielo” (Family: Between Roots and Heaven). ArtyHood is also running a Día de Muertos Mercado, a vendor market, in the same park from 4 to 10pm that day.

Unconfirmed the Marigold Project’s own websites were not working when we checked on 30 October 2026, so we read its event text as quoted on Funcheap’s listing and on ArtyHood’s Mercado page. Funcheap’s header shows 8am to 9pm, while the organizer text it quotes and ArtyHood both say 4 to 10pm. Check the Marigold Project’s Instagram (@marigoldprojectsf) for altar guidelines and last-minute changes.

What to Bring

The Marigold Project asks visitors to bring flowers, 8-inch glass prayer candles and mementos of loved ones for the community altars. If you want to build your own altar, you can, and the Marigold Project says to check its Instagram for the altar guidelines.

Sources: Funcheap listing quoting the Marigold Project and ArtyHood Mercado page, both read 30 October 2026. The Marigold Project’s own websites were not working that day.

The Evening Procession

The procession is organized separately, by the Comité de Rescate Cultural (El Colectivo del Rescate Cultural). For 2026, Calle 24 Latino Cultural District’s community calendar lists the 45th annual procession on Monday, 2 November 2026. It starts at 22nd and Bryant Streets in the Mission at 7pm, and the Danzantes (Aztec dancers) gather there at 6pm. Our event page has the listing details. For comparison, the 2025 procession, the 44th, was on Sunday 2 November from 7 to 9pm from the same corner, with the theme “Nuestros Muertos No Se Venden / Our Dead Are Not for Sale.”

Unconfirmed the route, the end point and street-closure details are not on the listing we checked, so we are not printing them. The organizers publish mainly through social media.

Also on Day of the Dead Weekend

The Community Music Center presents Día de Muertos en la Misión at Mission Dolores Basilica on Sunday, 1 November 2026 at 4pm, with Mariachi CMC and choirs; tickets are $5 to $15.

Going Respectfully

This is a day of remembrance for the people taking part, not a costume event put on for visitors. The altars are memorials to real people. Look, and be quiet around the people tending them.

Nearby: our Mission District guide, and the best burritos in the Mission for afterwards.

Checked against the Marigold Project’s homepage and Festival of Altars page and Calle 24’s events calendar and 2025 procession notice on 21 September 2026, and again on 6 October 2026 (neither has posted 2026 details yet; the Marigold Project’s Festival of Altars page still shows 2 November 2025 at Potrero del Sol Park). We check every week until 2 November.

Re-checked on 15 October 2026: the Marigold Project’s Festival of Altars page still shows the 2025 event only (2 November 2025, Potrero del Sol Park). No 2026 date, time or procession details had been published by the organizer, so this guide keeps the 2026 line as “not yet announced”.

Re-checked on 26 October 2026: the Marigold Project’s website last showed only the 2 November 2025 Festival of Altars (on 27 October 2026 it was not available), so that 2026 line stays “not yet announced”. Calle 24’s community calendar now lists the 2026 procession (Monday, 2 November, 7pm, 22nd and Bryant) and the Community Music Center’s own events page lists the 1 November concert.

Re-checked on 30 October 2026: the 2026 Festival of Altars is now listed for Monday, 2 November at Potrero del Sol Park (Funcheap listing quoting the Marigold Project; ArtyHood Mercado page). The details above replace the earlier “not yet announced” lines.