How I Found the Best Preschool in San Francisco: 10 Steps that Helped Me Decide

If you’re searching for the best preschool in San Francisco and feeling overwhelmed, you’re not alone. Even with my background in early education and preschool marketing, I still had questions and doubts about whether I was making the right choice when it came time to find the right program for my own daughter. San Francisco has a lot of amazing preschool options and navigating them can be overwhelming. Waitlists fill up quickly. With so many program types from language immersion, Montessori, play-based, to forest schools, how do you know what’s right for your child?

Here are the 10 steps I took to choose the best preschool for my daughter. I hope this list helps simplify the process and guide you in finding the right preschool for your own child.

Step 1: Create a Must-Have vs. Nice-to-Have Checklist

Before diving into online research or booking school tours, I recommend taking some time as a family to sit down and clarify your priorities. Talk about what matters most to you in choosing a school. For our family, that meant discussing our daily routines, work schedules, our daughter’s personality, and our long-term hopes for her kindergarten experience. Having that conversation early on helped us narrow down our options much more quickly.

Here’s an example of what our checklist looked like, along with the key categories we considered:

• Location: Ideally walking distance or a short drive with easy street parking for quick drop-offs
• Commute Time: Under 10 minutes if possible
• Schedule: Full-time only; drop-off before 8am was a plus
• Language: Preference for Mandarin immersion
• Philosophy: Open to Montessori, Reggio Emilia, and play-based approaches
• Meals Provided: Nice to have, but not a dealbreaker
• Closures: Minimal holidays and summer closures (important for working parents!)
• Outdoor Space: Large outdoor play area or walking distance to a park the kids regularly visit
• Tuition:We had a set budget but stayed open to schools that offered strong value, especially if they included enrichment, extended hours, or an early drop-off option.

💡 Search Tip: I created a simple Google Sheet to track what I was looking for in a preschool and which schools met those criteria. I also used it to keep track of visit dates, school contacts, application deadlines, and pros and cons. This was especially helpful since I was touring several preschools in San Francisco.

🎓 Thinking About Kindergarten?

You might feel it’s too early to think about kindergarten, but getting a sense of what comes next can really help guide your preschool search. Some programs offer support for families applying to private elementary schools, while others have most students transition into public school. Understanding the typical paths families take after preschool, whether public, private, or a mix, can help you choose a program that feels aligned with your values, priorities, and long-term plans.

If there’s even a small chance you might explore private school, it can be helpful to ask preschools questions like:

• Do you help families with private school applications?
• Do you have relationships with local K–8 schools?
• Where do your graduates typically go?

This can also help you plan ahead, especially since the San Francisco Unified School District (SFUSD) uses a lottery system that doesn’t guarantee placement at your preferred school, but you do have some priority for your attendance area (or neighborhood) school. Because of that uncertainty, some families choose to explore both public and private options, depending on what’s financially feasible to them, in case their top SFUSD choices don’t work out.

Step 2: Start Your Search Early

The earlier you start, the more options you’ll have. If you’re aiming for a preschool start in the fall, it’s best to begin your search the previous fall or winter, about a year ahead or less. Keep in mind these general timelines, though every school is different:

• Most tours happen between August and March
• Decisions are often made by April
• Popular programs may start accepting inquiries more than a year in advance

💡 Search Tip: Don’t wait until January to start looking. Begin narrowing down schools in September or October so you have plenty of time to schedule tours without needing to take too much time off work or arrange childcare. Since some schools have waitlists, getting on them early can give you better priority.

Step 3: Research Online and Tap Into the Local Parent Network

When researching schools, I used a mix of online tools and feedback from local parent groups to build my list of top schools to consider and tour:

Online Search Tips:

• Google: Search specifically for what you want, like “Mandarin immersion preschool San Francisco” or “best Montessori preschool near me.” When you find a school, be sure to check out their Google Business Profile reviews, which tend to be more credible since they’re tied to a person’s Google account.
• Winnie.com: Think of it as Yelp for early education. You can filter by schedule, meals, language, availability, and read reviews. I primarily used Winnie to search nearby schools and request info directly through the site, which made the process much easier.

Facebook Groups:
Even if you don’t use Facebook often, it’s worth joining parenting groups like “MSM Childcare Connect” to get real parent feedback on local preschools. Referrals are invaluable and give you insider info you won’t find elsewhere.

Here’s how I used Facebook parenting groups effectively:

• I posted questions like, “Has anyone attended [School Name]? What was your experience?” or “I’m deciding between these three schools [School Names] – does anyone have firsthand experience?” and received incredibly helpful, honest feedback from parents who had been through it themselves.
• I also used the Facebook group search function to look up school names and review past parent discussions and comments about the schools.

💡 Search Tip: When you post questions about a school in parenting groups, don’t hesitate to ask if anyone is willing to chat privately. I connected with a parent this way who shared honest, personal feedback over the phone, insights I couldn’t find online, that helped me feel confident about my choice.

Step 4: Schedule Tours and Get Organized

Some San Francisco schools only offer tours during specific months or require an application before scheduling a tour. A few may also charge a small fee to apply or attend. Many schools require that you tour first before submitting an application.

Some schools offer virtual tours post-pandemic, and while most tours are scheduled on weekdays, a few may have weekend options. If possible with your schedule, I suggest touring in person to get the best impression of the school. It’s best to do the tour during a regular school day so you can see the students and teachers in action and get a true feel for the school’s culture.

💡 Search Tip: To stay organized during your preschool search, keep everything in a spreadsheet. Track who you contacted and when, tour dates and times, your notes and first impressions, as well as application deadlines and any follow-up tasks.

👉 Pro Tip: Ask each school for their yearly calendar and list of closure dates. Some preschools have more frequent breaks for holidays, staff development days, or seasonal closures and some switch to shorter “camp-style” hours during the summer. If you work full-time or rely on consistent care, knowing this in advance can help you decide if the program aligns with your schedule or if you’ll need backup care.

Step 5: Observe Everything During Your Tour

When touring a preschool, it’s important to observe the small details—not just listen to the director’s talking points. From the moment you arrive to the time you leave, pay attention to everything happening around you. For example: How is parking? Is the entrance area crowded? Is there good security to enter the building?

• Teacher interactions:
    Are they warm, engaged, and respectful?
• Staff retention:
    How long have teachers been there?
• Diversity:
    Are there inclusive visuals and materials?
• Cleanliness and safety:
    Is the environment tidy and secure?
• Child engagement:
    Are the kids curious, playful, and connected?

Keep in mind that during the tour, preschools are also “interviewing” you to get a feel of what type of parent you are and whether you’ll be a good fit for their community. It’s important to make a positive impression, as this can influence their admission decisions.

Step 6: Reflect on Each Visit

After each tour, I updated my tracker and added a simple Plus and Delta for each school so I could easily review my notes later.

• ✅ Plus: What stood out in a positive way, like warm teacher interactions, inviting classrooms, or a large outdoor play area. 
• ⚠️ Delta: Anything that didn’t feel quite right or raised questions, such as concerns about staff turnover, lack of diversity, or limited parking nearby for drop-off and pick-up.

Step 7: Talk to Other Families

Some of my best insights about preschools came from casual conversations with parents I met in places like:

• Other parents at the park
• Music or library classes
• Parent groups
• Friends of friends who had kids enrolled

Questions I asked parents included:

• What do you love about the school?
• What would you change?
• Would you choose it again?

💡 Search Tip: It’s always a good idea to ask around if anyone knows parents whose kids have attended the school you’re considering, or if friends have children enrolled there. Personal referrals are often the most reliable way to learn about a school and frequently become the deciding factor for many families.

Step 8: Narrow It Down

Once we had narrowed down our list to our top San Francisco preschools, we made it a point as a family to sit down together and carefully review everything we had gathered in our spreadsheet. We also revisited our original checklist to see if the schools still aligned with our family’s core priorities.

Step 9: Submit Applications 

Early and Follow Up

Once you’ve toured and narrowed down your list, the next important step is submitting your applications early to increase your chances. Most San Francisco preschools follow a similar admissions timeline:

• Applications open: September–October
• Deadlines: January–March
• Decisions shared: Spring for fall start

💡 Tip: Some full-time or year-round preschools offer rolling admissions, so it’s a good idea to reach out early to understand how their enrollment works. After submitting your application, don’t hesitate to follow up to confirm receipt and ask if there are any next steps needed from you. 

Step 10: Trust Your Gut and Make Your Decision

Eventually, the time will come to make your final decision, and your instincts truly matter. Our family chose a Mandarin immersion preschool that offered full-time care and enrichment programs within walking distance because those were our top priorities. My daughter is thriving, and I’m so glad we found a preschool that matched what mattered most to us. Every family’s needs are different, but taking the time to look closely really helped us feel confident in our choice.

Trust what you observed during your tours. Consider the teachers, the classrooms, and how you felt the moment you walked in. You’ve done the research, gathered the feedback, and reflected on your family’s needs. Now, it’s time to choose the preschool that feels best for your child and your family.

Most of the time, no matter which school you choose, your child will thrive and love their experience. Kids are incredibly adaptable, and what matters most is that you’ve found a place that feels right for your family.

A Great Local Preschool to Explore: L’Academy

For families still searching, I recommend L’Academy to those in San Francisco looking for high-quality language immersion and dependable full-time care.

L’Academy offers:

• Spanish and Mandarin immersion programs
• Play-based curriculum inspired by Montessori and Reggio-Emilia
• Warm, bilingual teachers
• Full-time, year-round care for infants through Pre-K
• 6 Locations in San Francisco’s Hayes Valley, Mission/Noe, Potrero Hill, Nob Hill, Lower Nob Hill/CPMC, and SoMa

👉 [Learn More about L’Academy in SF]