Parking rates in the San Francisco Bay Area can really add up. Fortunately there’s a free resource that lets you instantly search and compare parking rates and locations in real time for daily and even monthly parking in San Francisco, Oakland, all airports, and dozens of other major cities around the U.S. The website BestParking.com (also available by cell phone) provides a search engine that’s easy to use with interactive features to help you zero in on the cheapest parking near your location.

You can plug in the city or airport and exact address, neighborhood, cross street, or attraction to find the cheapest parking spots closest to you on a map and sortable list. Just enter an arrival and departure time and press the “calculate rates.” The system considers the possible pricing variations, including early-bird, evening, holiday specials, and extra overnight charges.

For the best chance of finding the cheapest rate, it’s a good idea to run a few searches and compare them because small variations in arrival and departure times can result in pricing variations. If you’re driving an SUV or Minivan, be sure to carefully read the garage/lot pop-up for any surcharges. The system isn’t foolproof but it offers one more resource to help keep some pennies in your pocket.

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