Outside Lands Sells Out at 225,000 Tickets — Founder on Why the Festival Can't Be Franchised
San Francisco's Outside Lands festival will hold its 18th edition August 7-9, 2026 in Golden Gate Park, run by independent promoter Another Planet Entertainment (APE), co-founded with Superfly. This year's headliners — Charli xcx, The Strokes and Rüfüs du Sol — helped the festival sell out again, moving 225,000 tickets. Co-founder Allen Scott told industry outlet IQ the festival can't be franchised elsewhere: "it's all about San Francisco."
Event details
- Dates: Friday, August 7 – Sunday, August 9, 2026
- Venue: Golden Gate Park, San Francisco
- Promoters: Another Planet Entertainment, Superfly
- Price: three-day GA around $539 USD; GA+ around $799 USD
- Tickets sold: 225,000, sold out
Production costs up 75% since 2021 — upsell tiers subsidize GA pricing
Scott says production costs have risen 75% since 2021, calling the budget to stage the festival "well into the eight figures" in US dollars. Inflation is hitting festivals nationwide, he said, but California — and Golden Gate Park specifically — carries especially steep venue costs; California is the second most expensive state to live in in the US.
To offset that, APE has added premium ticket tiers like GA+ in recent years, using VIP revenue to help keep general admission pricing down. This year's three-day GA runs about $539 (€468), with GA+ at about $799 (€693).
Local character extends to the festival's layout: more than 140 acts are spread across stages named after local landmarks rather than sponsor brands (all but one). The grounds host 100-plus local restaurants, 30-plus regional wineries, 20-plus breweries and local cannabis vendors, with 12 vintage/thrift pop-up shops new this year.
Grass Lands: from profit center to cost center
Outside Lands' cannabis area, Grass Lands, is reportedly the first — and possibly only — large festival zone offering legal on-site cannabis sales and consumption. It operates under heavy regulation: no alcohol is permitted in the zone, and the sales and consumption areas must be shielded from view of other festivalgoers, with the team using the park's natural terrain to create that separation. Scott calls it "a home run" but says it remains difficult to execute.
The economics have shifted, too. Early on, sponsorship money was abundant — "kind of like the Wild West," in Scott's words — but sponsorship has tightened considerably in recent years, turning Grass Lands from a revenue source into a cost the promoters absorb. The team still treats it as a signature element of the festival rather than a moneymaker.
The 2026 lineup and booking philosophy
With single promoters now running multiple festivals, Scott says building a lineup that feels exclusive to one event is increasingly hard. APE's priority is booking for the Bay Area's famously varied tastes. This year leans on Charli xcx, who rarely plays the market and is riding high cultural momentum, alongside The Strokes and Rüfüs du Sol for genre breadth; the electronic stage footprint has also grown in recent years in response to demand. The 2026 bill spans rock, pop, electronic, alternative and hip-hop, including acts named in the report:
- Charli xcx
- The Strokes
- Rüfüs du Sol
- Turnstile
- Baby Keem
- Djo
- Dijon
- Empire of the Sun
- PinkPantheress
- Glorilla
- Ethel Cain
- Disco Lines
These are the acts listed in the report; the full 140-act bill is posted on the festival's official site. The LGBTQ-focused Dolores stage is curated in partnership with three San Francisco queer party promoters, each taking a day, featuring local artists, drag DJs and performance artists — past editions have featured the xx's Romy guest-DJing and Trixie Mattel in attendance.
Independent promoter, satellite shows paused
Scott describes APE as the largest independent festival promoter in the US, choosing to focus deeply on the California market amid industry consolidation. In past years, Outside Lands weekends have been bookended by city-approved standalone concerts featuring acts like Dead & Company, Zach Bryan, and System of a Down & Deftones — paused this year after the team couldn't line up the right acts.
The team has renewed its agreement with the park and city government for nine years, and plans three concerts around one of the weekends bordering Outside Lands next year, in a more focused single-stage format with four to five acts.