Lightning TrackerSan Francisco storms: live alerts, hail & tornado history
Live watches and warnings for San Francisco, CA, the 48-hour thunderstorm outlook, and every hail, damaging-wind and tornado report within 25 miles since 2016.
Live alerts for San Francisco, CA
Checking the National Weather Service…
Storm outlook, next 48 hours
Loading forecast…
Severe weather in San Francisco by the numbers
Severe storms are occasional in San Francisco: since 2016, spotters and emergency managers have filed 79 severe-weather reports within 25 miles of the city — 51 hail reports, 28 damaging-wind reports and 0 tornado reports. On average that is 3.9 days a year with at least one report.
Storm season here peaks in January, March, December, when 66% of all reports were filed.
In the last 12 months there were 0 hail reports, 7 wind reports and 0 tornado reports around San Francisco.
Latest storm reports near San Francisco
| Date | Report | Where |
|---|---|---|
| Feb 17, 2026 | Damaging wind | 20 mi NE · Contra Costa Co. |
| Dec 25, 2025 | Damaging wind | 8 mi SW |
| Dec 24, 2025 | Damaging wind | 15 mi S |
| Mar 12, 2025 | Damaging wind | 11 mi S |
| Feb 4, 2025 | Damaging wind | 19 mi NW |
| Dec 14, 2024 | Damaging wind | 5 mi W |
| Apr 5, 2024 | Damaging wind | 20 mi NE |
| Mar 30, 2024 | Hail 0.25″ | 19 mi SE |
| Mar 1, 2024 | Damaging wind | 1 mi NW |
| Feb 4, 2024 | Damaging wind | 20 mi SE |
One line per day and type — the closest report that day. Distance and direction from the city centre. The latest SPC reports are preliminary until NOAA finalises them.
Storm reports by year
Storm season in San Francisco
All hail, wind and tornado reports within 25 miles, 2016–2026, by month.
Hail in San Francisco
San Francisco averages 2.7 days a year with hail reported nearby. The biggest stone on record since 2016 was 0.50 inches — about the size of a marble — reported 2 miles from the city centre on Nov 29, 2018. Hail of 1 inch (quarter size) or larger is what makes a thunderstorm severe; see the hail size chart.
Tornadoes near San Francisco
No tornadoes have been reported within 25 miles of San Francisco since 2016.
Storm alerts for San Francisco on your iPhone
Lightning Tracker shows storm risk around you, live severe-weather alerts and how close the storm is — free on the App Store.
Storm trackers near San Francisco
Questions about storms in San Francisco
Does San Francisco get a lot of severe storms?
San Francisco averages 3.9 days a year with at least one hail, damaging-wind or tornado report within 25 miles, based on NOAA Storm Prediction Center reports 2016–2025.
When is storm season in San Francisco?
Most severe-weather reports around San Francisco come in January, March, December.
What is the biggest hail recorded near San Francisco?
0.50 inches (marble size) on Nov 29, 2018, 2 miles from the city centre.
Have tornadoes hit near San Francisco?
No tornado reports within 25 miles since 2016.
How do I get storm alerts for San Francisco?
The live panel on this page shows every active National Weather Service watch and warning for San Francisco, CA. For alerts on your phone, Lightning Tracker for iPhone shows storm risk and warnings for your location.
How this page works: storm reports are NOAA Storm Prediction Center local storm reports (final database 2016–2025, preliminary daily reports after that) within 25 miles of San Francisco, CA. They are reports of hail, damaging wind and tornadoes — not lightning strike counts, which no free public dataset provides at city level. Live alerts come from the National Weather Service API, the outlook from Open-Meteo forecast models. Updated Oct 6, 2026.