Blog · October 14, 2026 · California
Using the San Bruno Plat Map
Lots in San Bruno trace back to recorded plats filed with the county.
Main page: San Mateo County, CA GIS & Parcel Viewer (official map link, county facts and neighboring maps).
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If a legal description for land in San Bruno cites a lot number, you'll need the San Bruno plat map to make sense of it. In this San Bruno guide: where plats are filed, plat versus tax map, and the details that matter to buyers.
Tracking down the San Bruno plat map
For a lot in San Bruno, the deed usually cites the plat; that makes the request quick.
Getting to the right map
Your first stop is the San Mateo County parcel viewer; it maps each assessed parcel in the county, Colma included. For acreage around Colma, put in a street address, an owner's name or a parcel number, and the matching parcel lights up. For property near Brisbane, a pop-up or side panel normally shows the owner of record, acreage on the tax roll, the parcel number and in many cases the last transfer.
How land is described here
California uses the Public Land Survey System, which means a tract near Millbrae is described by section, township and range. Each section is nominally a mile square, about 640 acres, with 36 sections to a township, though real sections near Pacifica vary in size. Write down the legal description for the tract near Burlingame when you talk to a surveyor.
San Mateo County in a few facts
Redwood City is the county seat, where most land records are kept. You'll also find Millbrae, Pacifica, South San Francisco, and Colma, each with its own cluster of lots. About 726,353 people live in San Mateo County (Census Bureau estimate, 2023) across some 449 square miles. Places such as Don Edwards San Francisco Bay National Wildlife Refuge are easy to spot when you zoom out from Burlingame.
City limits and county records
San Bruno lies within San Mateo County, California, which means parcel data comes from the county. For acreage around South San Francisco, the municipality handles matters such as zoning, permits and utilities for lots inside the boundary, but the county runs assessment and recording. Land beyond the city limits out by Pacifica generally answers to county rules instead.
A word on accuracy
Acreage on the record is a tax-roll number; only a licensed surveyor establishes the real lines for a parcel near Millbrae. For land near Brisbane, owner names and values update on a schedule, so a deed recorded last month might lag behind.
Two different maps
If the tax map and plat differ near Pacifica, the recorded plat and a survey control.
Where the recorded documents are
When the details count, request the recorded deed through the County Recorder; the parcel map near Millbrae only summarizes it. Inherited tracts around South San Francisco may go back through a long string of deeds, so a title company is worth hiring on a real sale.
Offices that can help
Anything recorded against property around Colma are with the County Recorder, usually searchable by name or document number. Zoning, permits and septic questions near Burlingame need the planning or permitting office, town or county, depending on location.
Lots, blocks and easements
Around Pacifica, the sheet usually includes lot and block numbers, dimensions and bearings, street rights-of-way and easements.
Getting a copy
For a tract near Millbrae, many recorder offices offer an online index, while others require a visit or a request; copy fees are usually small.
Next door to San Mateo County
San Mateo County meets Alameda County, San Francisco County, Santa Clara County, and Santa Cruz County, all with their own assessor records. Ground near Colma that runs to the line may show up across two assessors' files, so look at the neighboring map too. If the land is near Burlingame, the Platbookmapper state page links every neighboring county map for California.
Amended plats
An amended plat may change lots around Pacifica, search the index for replats of the same subdivision; street vacations near Brisbane show up in the records too.
Taking the map into the field
The parcel map usually runs in a mobile browser, handy when you're parked on a road near Brisbane, though signal can drop in rural spots. A printout of the tract near Colma helps when you meet an owner or agent.
When there's no plat
Rural land near Burlingame that was never subdivided is often described by metes and bounds or survey description; the deed and any recorded survey describe it instead.
San Bruno: common questions
How do I get a copy of a plat in San Bruno?
It depends, but recorded plats near Burlingame are filed with the County Recorder; use the plat reference from the deed or parcel record.
Are old plats online in San Bruno?
If the land is near Brisbane, the County Recorder can say what's available.
Is a plat map a survey around Burlingame?
In most cases, the plat near Millbrae is recorded, while the GIS layer is an approximation.
What is a lot and block description near Colma?
For a tract near South San Francisco, the description sends you to a specific recorded plat, so pull that plat for dimensions.
How do I save a parcel from the viewer for land near Burlingame?
Some viewers offer PDF export, and it's worth keeping the parcel ID visible for land near South San Francisco.
Open the official San Mateo County, CA parcel map See it in the Platbookmapper directory
Not a survey. County GIS and tax parcel maps are assessment and planning layers. They are not a substitute for a recorded plat, deed, or licensed survey, especially for fences, setbacks, or boundary disputes.