Your San Francisco City Hall Civil Ceremony Guide

No matter how you do it, you’ll LOVE getting married at San Francisco City Hall. This blog will look at what it’s like to have a San Francisco City Hall Civil Ceremony. Where do you start, and what do you need to do?

The first thing you must do to plan a wedding is set your date. (We’re going to assume you’ve already met the love of your life, and one or both of you are sporting engagement rings). San Francisco City Hall will only let you sign up for their services 90 days before the day you want to get married. It’s not a big deal; you stay up until midnight on the 91st day before your desired wedding date, and as soon as the clock hits your date, you refresh the page and book your marriage license and civil ceremony marriage appointment. These are TWO different appointments that you’ll need to pay for. The marriage license is $116, and the civil ceremony is $98 as of July 11, 2022. You can book both of these appointments right here: https://sfgov.org/countyclerk/

If either or both of those appointments are sold out, we can help you work around that, but that’s a different blog post.

A typical itinerary would have you meet your photographer for about forty-five minutes of couples photography, followed by a 15-30-minute check-in period for your wedding ceremony. Some days, it’s swift; others, the office is backed up, and you must wait a little longer to get married. You’ll want your witness (one or two friends or family members) to be with you for the check-in. If you are eloping and don’t have guests, your photographer is pleased to sign as your witness.

The two of you will step into the Rotunda, the open-sided circular room at the top of the Grand Staircase on the second floor. You may be joined by your wedding photographer and wedding videographer, and five guests. We’ll give you some quick instructions on where to stand, how to place the rings on each other’s fingers, and how long that very important kiss should be, (GO for it, if you want to!!) in addition to a few other instructions to make your ceremony go smoothly.

Next, you’ll have your short and sweet civil marriage ceremony, and we’ll take wedding portraits with you and your guests. Generally speaking, I wouldn’t have more than fifteen adults, as moving big groups around the building is hard. That’s a guide, and you’re welcome to discuss that with us.

Now, you’ll notice that this couple has a lot of delighted wedding guests with them, and you’ve probably heard that SF City Hall only allows you to have five guests at your wedding. So how is this possible? City Hall is a public building, and they can’t stop people from entering it. So, while it’s true that only a few people can come with you into the rotunda for the wedding ceremony, it’s OK to meet other friends and family members directly after for group photography in the building. We will give you and your guests posing guidance and cues and prompt you to keep things fun, eas,y and natural during your wedding photography session.

The very end of every San Francisco City Hall wedding should be a Grand Exit with the beautiful golden SF City Hall doors! You can include your friends and family or keep it just the two of you—it’s your choice. Congratulations, you’re married! Our next blog post will cover fun things to do after your San Francisco City Hall wedding, so look for that soon!