Dreamforce 2026: what to see, sessions to attend and tips for attendees

If you've been to Dreamforce before, you already know the first rule: don't try to do everything.

There are too many sessions, too many people to meet and far too many things happening across San Francisco. Dreamforce 2026 runs September 15–17 at Moscone Center, with the event also streaming on Salesforce+. Salesforce currently lists 1,600+ breakout sessions, 50+ keynotes, 150+ hands-on trainings and 240+ community roundtables.

So the trick isn't building the busiest schedule possible. It's figuring out what you actually want to get out of the three days.

Here are a few things we'd put on the list.

Dreamforce 2026 at a glance

If you're still building your agenda, Salesforce's Trail Maps are a useful place to start. You can filter the programme by role, industry or topic, including a dedicated path for marketers.

And don't underestimate the hands-on side of Dreamforce. Salesforce says there are 150+ hands-on trainings, plus 11,000+ product experts available to help attendees go deeper and solve specific challenges. That's a lot more useful than sitting through another session that tells you AI is the future. We know. The future has been very chatty lately.

Start with Marc Benioff's opening keynote

This one is an easy call.

Marc Benioff, Chair and CEO of Salesforce, will open Dreamforce 2026 with special guests on September 15. The official programme also lists a Marc Benioff fireside chat on September 16.

Last year, the opening keynote centred on the Agentic Enterprise, with Salesforce putting Agentforce 360, data and AI at the centre of the conversation. It's a useful bit of context for this year's programme, which continues to focus heavily on AI, agents and data.

It'll be interesting to see where that conversation goes this year.

Dreamforce 2026 sessions you shouldn't miss

AI is obviously going to be everywhere at Dreamforce. I know, as if we haven't had enough of it already, right?an

The interesting part of Dreamforce isn't hearing that AI is changing everything. We know that already. The useful stuff is seeing what companies are actually doing with it. Otherwise, you may as well save yourself the walk between sessions and ask your chatbot.

A few of the current Can't-Miss Sessions stand out. You can also browse Salesforce's full Dreamforce Trail Maps by role, industry or topic before building your agenda.

• Build Your AI Roadmap: 5 Strategic Steps to Success
• Data 360: Your Trusted Foundation for Agentforce
• Architecting Agentforce: The 5 Design Pillars to AI Success

Salesforce's current Dreamforce programme lists these among its Can't-Miss Sessions.

• AI-Powered C-Suite Insights at Salesforce
• Salesforce Transforms Sales with Data, Analytics, and AI

If you're attending as a marketer, I'd especially pay attention to the sessions that get into data, customer engagement and how AI actually fits into existing workflows. Those are the areas where the current programme gets most practical.

View the entire session list here.

Don't overlook the people outside Salesforce

One of the best things about Dreamforce is that the speaker lineup isn't limited to Salesforce executives.

This year's announced speakers include Renée Richardson Gosline, Senior Lecturer at MIT Sloan School of Management; Swan Sit, former Nike and Estée Lauder executive; Tony Robbins; Matthew McConaughey; Sterling K. Brown; and Sheryl Lee Ralph. Salesforce has also been highlighting more big names around the 2026 event, including Reese Witherspoon, Kumail Nanjiani, Sundar Pichai and Bozoma Saint John.

And yes, there are some pretty big names in that lineup. Matthew McConaughey, Reese Witherspoon, Sterling K. Brown, or even will.i.am aren't exactly the people you'd expect to find on a typical enterprise-tech conference agenda. That's part of the Dreamforce appeal: alongside the AI experts and Salesforce leaders, you get conversations coming from technology, business, culture, entertainment and marketing.

Not all of them are there to talk about Salesforce products, and that's exactly why they're worth paying attention to. Frankly, after three days of product talk, a good outside perspective can feel like finding an actual vegetable at an airport food court.

If you're spending three days at an event, it's useful to step outside the product ecosystem every now and then and hear how other people are thinking about technology, leadership, creativity and work.

View the entire list here.

Who should attend Dreamforce?

Salesforce says everyone is welcome, whether you're new to Salesforce or a long-time user. The event brings together people across industries and lines of business, so there isn't one “right” Dreamforce attendee.

For marketers, the Trail Maps are especially useful because you can build a route around the Marketer role rather than trying to work through the entire programme.

Make time for Campground

Don't make the mistake of treating the main stage as the whole event.

Campground is one of the places where you can explore Salesforce products, demos and customer stories while talking to peers and partners. There's also a dedicated experience for getting hands-on with Agentforce and Slack, including one-to-one sessions with product experts.

And if you want something a little more theatrical, check out the Agentic Theater. Salesforce describes it as a place for TED-style talks from influential voices in AI, focused on how humans and agents are changing what's possible across industries. Short, focused and easier to squeeze into a packed agenda than another 50-minute keynote.

This is the sort of thing worth leaving gaps in your schedule for. Trust me, not every minute of Dreamforce needs to be colour-coded in your calendar like you're planning a moon landing.

You might go in looking for one answer and end up finding something completely different.

And yes, leave some room for the fun stuff

Dreamforce has never been a “sit in conference rooms for three days” kind of event.

There are community experiences, networking, the Dreamforce Welcome Reception, and Dreamfest as part of the conference experience. Headliners for Dreamfest include P!NK and Imagine Dragons! Don’t miss an amazing concert to raise money for UCSF Benioff Children’s Hospital. Salesforce includes the Welcome Reception and Dreamfest in the full conference pass.

There's also Trailblazer Bootcamp before the main event, running September 12–14. It's three days of intensive, hands-on learning led by product experts, with a certification voucher included with the Bootcamp experience. If you're serious about getting something tangible out of the trip, that's worth knowing about before you book the rest of your weekend.

There is also Dreampitch, which Salesforce describes as a Shark Tank-style competition for entrepreneurs.

One piece of advice from people who've been before

Don't schedule yourself into oblivion. We've all done it. We've all regretted it by about 2:30pm on day one.

Salesforce itself tells attendees to finalise their agenda and leave room for surprises. Its Trail Maps are also a useful starting point if you want to narrow down sessions and experiences by role, industry or topic.

The useful Dreamforce moments aren't always the ones you planned six weeks ago. Sometimes it's the conversation after a session, the person you meet in a queue, the customer story you stumble across, or a product demo that makes you rethink something you're working on.

And if you're sharing from the event, don't wait until you're back home.

Dreamforce moves fast. A good takeaway from a session, a photo from the show floor or a quick thought about something you just heard is much more interesting while everyone else is experiencing the same thing.

That's part of what makes a huge event like Dreamforce work: the event doesn't just happen around you. You get to add to it.

So build your agenda. Pick your must-see sessions. Leave some gaps. And if you're watching remotely, Salesforce+ will stream the event, including keynotes and expert-led sessions.

And wear comfortable shoes.

You’ll thank us later.

Register for Dreamforce 2026 today!