San Francisco Business Times

What San Francisco Business Times does

San Francisco Business Times is the Bay Area local edition of The Business Journals, a multi-city business news network operated by American City Business Journals, Inc. (ACBJ), a privately held North Carolina corporation headquartered at 120 W. Morehead St., Charlotte. The network spans 45+ city-specific mastheads across the United States — including San Francisco, Atlanta, New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, Boston, Dallas, Houston, and Seattle — each delivering localized coverage of commercial real estate, banking, technology, health care, and residential real estate to an audience whose average reader has a net worth of approximately $2.2M and whose average reader-business generates roughly $228M in gross sales.

The platform is architected as a multi-site digital publishing network with city-specific subdomains, mobile applications on iOS and Android, email newsletters, and a unified Book of Lists database that ranks thousands of companies across hundreds of categories by market. Underlying technology includes cookies, pixels, localStorage, web beacons, SDKs, identity-resolution integrations, Google Analytics, and AI/ML tooling used for personalization, marketing automation, chatbot-based customer support, transcription, and fraud detection. Sub-brands extend the editorial surface into startups (American Inno), women in business (BizWomen), private-company valuation (BizEquity), national cross-market coverage (The National Observer), and adjacent verticals such as Hemmings (automotive) and Portfolio.com.

Revenue is generated through four diversified streams: recurring digital subscriptions to premium content and digital editions (with city-level pricing in the $70–$220/year range), display and targeted advertising (including list rentals and data co-ops), live events and awards sponsorships (40 Under 40, Best Places to Work, Pacesetter Awards), and Book of Lists data products including the Book of Lists Unlimited premium tier. Go-to-market is primarily self-serve for individual subscribers and direct-sales-led for enterprise advertisers and event sponsors. The single named leadership contact in the data set is Felicia Brown, Events Director. The parent operating entity, American City Business Journals, Inc., operates as a privately held company with no public listing, no disclosed venture or private-equity investment, and centralized ownership of all regional publications.

Name

San Francisco Business Times

Legal name

American City Business Journals, Inc.

Website

https://bizjournals.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2011

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

San Francisco Business Times is the Bay Area edition of The Business Journals, a privately held American City Business Journals network of 45+ city-specific business news sites serving executives, entrepreneurs, and B2B advertisers via subscriptions, Book of Lists data products, events, and targeted advertising.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Business News Media

NAICS

Newspaper Publishers (51311), Periodical Publishers (51312), Newspaper, Periodical, Book, and Directory Publishers (5131)

SIC

Newspapers: Publishing Or Publishing & Printing (2711), Periodicals: Publishing Or Publishing & Printing (2721)

akta.pro primary industry

Business, Financial & Trade News Publishers (MPAJADAC)

akta.pro secondary industries

Local & Regional Newspapers (Print & Digital) (MPAJADAB), Consumer News & Digital Newsrooms (Web/App-First) (MPAJADAD), News, Politics & Current Affairs Magazines (MPAJAEAO)

Keywords

• Business news
• Local journalism
• Business events
• Data products
• Digital media

Headquarters

HQ city

New York

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Digital Commerce or Content

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

1. Subscription Revenue: Digital subscriptions providing access to premium content, subscriber-only articles, digital editions, and Book of Lists Unlimited data. Subscription pricing varies by market with promotional offers available.
2. Advertising: Display advertising, targeted advertising, and marketing solutions. The platform serves advertising based on user data and behavior. List rental and data co-ops enable other businesses to send direct marketing.
3. Events and Sponsorships: Live events including awards ceremonies (40 Under 40, Best Places to Work, Pacesetter Awards), conferences, and networking events with sponsorship opportunities
4. Book of Lists Products: Data products containing ranked business lists used for sales prospecting, business research, and fundraising. Available as individual lists or unlimited access subscriptions

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

San Francisco Business Times is a regional business news publication covering the San Francisco Bay Area, operating as part of the 45-city American City Business Journals network. It delivers local business journalism, data products, and events to business professionals and decision-makers through digital, print, newsletter, and event channels.

Product overview

The Business Journals operates as a multi-city business news platform organized as a platform-plus-modules architecture. The core product is the main The Business Journals news platform (thewordmark/product), which aggregates local business journalism across 45+ U.S. markets including San Francisco Business Times. Supporting products include Book of Lists (a ranked business list database) and Book of Lists Unlimited (premium data access), Events (conferences and awards), Digital Edition, and Newsletter Subscriptions. Specialized sub-brands include American Inno (innovation/startup coverage), BizWomen (women's business content), and The National Observer (national newsletters). Additional modules include BizSpotlight (press release distribution) and Public Records access. The platform is owned by American City Business Journals (ACBJ).

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• American Inno: Innovation and startup news coverage across Business Journals markets
• Bizwomen
• The List
• Book of Lists
• BizEquity

Named customers1 record

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

AI capability3 records

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Six partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• Google AnalyticscoreTechnology or IntegrationGoogle Analytics is used for advertising privacy terms and tracking technologies. The platform utilizes Google for analytics and measurement purposes, with opt-out options available.
• Meta (Facebook & Instagram)coreTechnology or IntegrationSocial media company integration for platform engagement, social sign-on facilitation, content sharing, and targeted advertising. Personal information may be received from Meta platforms when users interact with The Business Journals content.
• LinkedIncoreTechnology or IntegrationSocial media integration for platform engagement and content distribution. Personal information may be received from LinkedIn when users interact with The Business Journals content.
• TikTokcoreTechnology or IntegrationSocial media company integration for platform engagement and content distribution.
• Identity Resolution PartnerscoreTechnology or IntegrationThird-party partners used to deliver targeted advertising, identify different devices and browsers, and for marketing purposes. These partners create probabilistic and deterministic identifiers using personal information.
• Third-Party Advertising NetworkscoreTechnology or IntegrationAdvertising networks that serve targeted advertisements based on user behavior and personal information collected across websites and mobile applications.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Axios: Digital-first business and politics news publisher with newsletters, subscriptions, and events. Comparable mix of subscription, advertising, and live events revenue; overlaps in target audience of business professionals.
• Crain's New York Business: Regional business news publication serving a major U.S. metro (New York). Strongest direct peer given the parallel regional business news model, subscription offering, and events business.
• Bisnow: Digital-first commercial real estate news outlet with newsletters, events, and subscriptions. Comparable through its niche business/industry focus, multi-city footprint, and event-driven monetization.

Broad incumbents

• The Wall Street Journal: Premier national business news publication with paid subscriptions and advertising. Comparable through its subscription business model and B2B audience, though it competes at the national rather than regional level.
• Politico: Subscription-driven news organization with strong professional/policy audience and monetization through events and subscriptions. Comparable model combining niche business-adjacent journalism with paid subscriptions and high-margin events.
• Crain Communications (parent brands): Private publisher of B2B and regional business titles (including Crain's New York, Chicago Business, Ad Age, Pensions & Investments). Comparable through portfolio of business publications with subscription and advertising revenue.
• Bloomberg: Global business and financial news platform with subscription and advertising revenue. Directly comparable as a premium business news destination for executives and professionals, though far larger and broader in scope.
• Forbes: Major business news and rankings brand with subscriptions, advertising, and list-style content (e.g., Forbes 30 Under 30). Comparable through its business journalism focus and monetizable rankings and events.

Emerging players

• The Information: Subscriber-supported tech and business news outlet. Comparable as a paid business news destination for executives, especially in technology, addressing a partially overlapping audience.

Others

• LinkedIn (News vertical): Free business content distribution platform reaching the same executive and business professional audience. Increasingly a substitute for traditional business news among the same reader persona, and a key distribution channel for ACBJ content.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/bizjournals
• Facebookfacebook.com/bizjournals
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/bizjournals
• Instagraminstagram.com/americancitybusinessjrnls

Compliance4 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Subsidiaries9 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about San Francisco Business Times