San Francisco Bay Area contains zero towns.
Oakland [ ˈoʊklənd ] is the largest city and the county seat of Alameda County , California , United States . A major West Coast port city , Oakland is the largest city in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area , the third largest city overall in the San Francisco Bay Area , the eighth largest city in California , and the 45th largest city in the United States , with a population of 419,267 . San Francisco Bay Area . The region encompasses the major cities and metropolitan areas of San Jose , San Francisco , and Oakland , along with smaller urban and rural areas . The Bay Area 's nine counties are Alameda , Contra Costa , Marin , Napa , San Francisco , San Mateo , Santa Clara , Solano , and Sonoma . Home to approximately 7.68 million people , the nine-county Bay Area contains many cities , towns , airports , and associated regional , state , and national parks , connected by a network of roads , highways , railroads , bridges , tunnels and commuter rail .