Areas are approximate, traced Oct 13, 2026 from operators' published maps. The app has the exact boundary. The white line is a sample trip on real streets.
Approximate areas. Check the app. © OpenStreetMap
Can I ride a robotaxi in San Francisco Bay Area?
Waymo has run public driverless rides here since Jun 25, 2024. Zoox runs driverless rides for people let in from its waitlist, which began admitting riders on Nov 18, 2025. Waymo picks up at SFO and SJC.
- Status
- Driverless
- Operators
- Waymo, Zoox
- Book in
- Each operator's own app
- Last checked
Operators in San Francisco Bay Area
- DriverlessReported
- Driverless, waitlist
- Safety driver
- Safety driver
Where the cars go
Waymo treats the Bay Area as one service area: San Francisco, down the Peninsula, to San Jose, Campbell and Cupertino. KQED reported more than 260 square miles in Nov 2025, and Waymo's map now matches a May 2026 figure of over 330. In San Jose it covers the city center, Santana Row, Westfield Valley Fair and the Newhall, College Park and Cory neighborhoods.
Two airports are on the list, with limits. San Jose Mineta International Airport has had pickups since Nov 12, 2025 at Terminal A Stop 9 and outside the Terminal B Rental Car Center. At San Francisco International Airport, a limited number of riders can be picked up or dropped at the Rental Car Center or the Grand Hyatt at SFO, away from the terminal curbs. Zoox's free rides cover most of SoMa, the Mission and the Design District, and a March 2026 expansion toward the Marina, North Beach and Chinatown opened to employees first, with Explorer access there unconfirmed.
What to know in San Francisco Bay Area
San Francisco is where Waymo dropped its waitlist, on Jun 25, 2024. Its freeway rides, which began in Nov 2025, were paused after 7 vehicles entered freeway construction lanes on May 18, 2026. Waymo said on Jul 29, 2026 the Bay Area would follow Phoenix 'in the coming days', but no dated Bay Area restoration is confirmed.
The other names here aren't driverless public services. Zoox can't charge fares under its CPUC pilot permits, so Explorers ride free. Tesla's Bay Area rides have a human driver, and Electrek reported the CPUC saying Tesla holds only a charter-party permit and no AV permit. Uber employees have ridden Lucid Gravity cars with safety drivers since Apr 13, 2026. On price, an Obi study of late-2025 rides found an average Waymo fare of $19.69 versus $17.47 for Uber, $15.47 for Lyft and $8.17 for Tesla.
What a ride costs
- ZooxFree. Explorers ride free in exchange for feedback, and CPUC pilot permits bar fares.
- Average fares, Nov 27, 2025 to Jan 1, 2026Waymo $19.69, UberX $17.47, Lyft $15.47 and Tesla (with a driver) $8.17, across 94,348 rides quoted by the price app Obi.
- Spring 2026Obi's follow-up found average prices up 18% for Waymo, 41% for Tesla, 12% for Lyft and 5% for Uber. Tesla was still about half of Waymo's average.
How to ride in San Francisco Bay Area
Waymo
Book in the Waymo app.
Zoox
Book in the Zoox app, where you join the waitlist first.
In each app, set your pickup and drop-off inside the service area. You see the price before you confirm.
Rules that apply here
- California rules: Under the CPUC, Waymo holds all four autonomous vehicle permits, including Driverless Deployment, which allows fares. Zoox holds only Drivered and Driverless Pilot permits, which don't allow fares. Tesla holds a charter-party carrier permit, not an autonomous vehicle permit. New DMV rules let police issue 'notices of noncompliance' to autonomous vehicles from Jul 1, 2026. (reported)
Timeline
- Waymo resumes freeway rides, starting with Phoenix. LA and the Bay Area are next. Source
- Waymo confirms it has suspended freeway rides in San Francisco, Los Angeles, Phoenix and Miami over construction-zone behavior. Source
- Obi reports Tesla ride prices in SF up 41% and Waymo up 18% versus late 2025. Source
- Uber employees began test rides in Lucid/Nuro robotaxis with safety drivers. Source
- CPUC says Tesla is not operating an autonomous vehicle service. It holds only a charter-party permit. Reported. Source
- Zoox starts employee rides in Austin and Miami and announces a San Francisco service area 4 times larger. Source
- Waymo starts SFO rides for select riders, with pickups at the Rental Car Center. Source
- The Zoox Explorers program begins free rides for waitlisted members of the public in SoMa, Mission and Design District. Source
- Waymo begins freeway rides in SF, LA and Phoenix and serves San Jose airport (SJC). Reported. Source
- Waymo drops its San Francisco waitlist, so anyone can download the app and ride. Source
San Francisco Bay Area robotaxi questions
Can Waymo pick me up at SFO?
Only some riders. Waymo offers SFO access to a limited number of riders, with pickups and drop-offs at the SFO Rental Car Center or the Grand Hyatt at SFO rather than terminal curbs.
Is Tesla's San Francisco service driverless?
Tesla's Bay Area rides have a human driver. In California, Tesla holds only a charter-party carrier permit, not an autonomous vehicle permit.
Is Waymo more expensive than Uber in San Francisco?
Obi's late-2025 Bay Area study found an average Waymo fare of $19.69 against $17.47 for UberX, a 12.7% premium. A follow-up found Waymo's average up 18% by April 2026.
Why are Zoox rides free in San Francisco?
Zoox holds only pilot permits from the CPUC, which bar it from charging fares. Members of the Zoox Explorers program ride free in exchange for feedback.
Does Waymo go to San Jose?
Waymo's Bay Area service covers central San Jose, including Santana Row and Westfield Valley Fair, and it picks up at San Jose Mineta International Airport.
Sources
- Waymo Help Center: Service areas - Waymo Help
- Waymo Help Center: Airport service - Waymo Help
- Waymo: Clear skies and autonomous Waymo rides at SFO, Jan 29, 2026
- KQED: Waymo Expands Service to Bay Area Freeways and San José Airport, Nov 12, 2025
- TechCrunch: Waymo robotaxis are starting to return to freeways, Jul 29, 2026
- Spectrum News: Waymo expands fully autonomous freeway rides in Austin, Sep 24, 2026
- TechCrunch: Waymo opens up San Francisco robotaxi service to everyone, Jun 25, 2024
- ABC7 San Francisco: Waymo announces anyone in SF can now hail driverless car as it retires waitlist, Jun 25, 2024
- TechCrunch: Waymo halts freeway rides after robotaxis struggle in construction zones, May 21, 2026
- SFist: Waymo Temporarily Suspends Freeway Service After Weird Construction Zone Incident Goes Viral, May 22, 2026
- Fox News: Waymo recalls 3,871 robotaxis that drove into freeway construction zones, Jun 23, 2026
- The Robot Report: Zoox offers its first public autonomous rides in San Francisco, Nov 18, 2025
- Axios San Francisco: Zoox expands robotaxi service neighborhoods, Mar 24, 2026
- Electrek: Zoox expands current service area and is bringing its purpose-built robotaxi to two new cities, Mar 24, 2026
- The AutoWire: Zoox robotaxi: CPUC permits, NHTSA exemption, San Francisco, Sep 20, 2026
- TechCrunch: Zoox clears final federal hurdle to launch paid robotaxi service, Jul 30, 2026
- Nuro: Nuro-Lucid-Uber Robotaxi, 2026
- Uber Investor Relations: Uber, Nuro, and Lucid to Bring Robotaxi Service to Houston in 2027, Jun 17, 2026
- EV (CARBA): Nuro Opens Lucid Robotaxi Test Rides to Uber Employees with Safety Drivers, Apr 13, 2026
- Electrek: California regulator confirms Tesla not operating autonomous vehicle service, Mar 25, 2026
- Insurance Journal / Reuters: Tesla Expands Robotaxi Service to Orlando, Tampa (Reuters), Jul 24, 2026
- Not a Tesla App: Tesla launches Robotaxi in the Bay Area with higher fares and strict supervision, Aug 1, 2025
"Reported" means one news report that the operator or a regulator hasn't confirmed yet.
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