When you find trash bins in Angel Pine, knock them over and use a camera or a sniper scope to see beta versions of GTA: Vice City maps in the garbage.

At the train station in Los Santos, look up when standing at the mouth of the train tunnel to see a billboard that makes a reference to the game's competitor "True Crime: Streets of LA". The billboard says, "Get rid of old rubbish fast! True Grime: Street Cleaners". It can be found in other billboards around San Andreas too.

The name of the mission "Body Harvest" is likely a reference to the Nintendo 64 game of the same name, produced by Rockstar North when they were DMA Design. It is arguably Rockstar's first free roaming 3D adventure, setting the precedent for GTA III to follow. The use of the Combine Harvester is likely also a reference to Body Harvest, as a part in the game involves the use of a combine harvester to run over zombies.

At one point during development, the Combine Harvester had a green body color, no step bars into the driver cab, and a less detailed combine head.

Rockstar had the idea to include several playable characters in Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas, like in Grand Theft Auto V, but the feature was omitted due to the technical limitations of the time.

The Gasso station in Dillimore has a label that says "Max Pane - Bullet Proof Glass", an obvious reference to the Max Payne series.

The Rifle lacks the cocking animation. Instead, a cocking sound is played and the shooter just stands still until it's ready to fire again.

Claude is seen wearing the exact same clothes that he wears in GTA3, which is odd as it is presumed that 8-Ball got him whatever clothes that he had in the GTA3 mission "Give Me Liberty".

Girlfriend models can be used as criminals during the Vigilante mission.

During the mission, "Air Raid", Zero says, "Great kid, don't get cocky!". This is a reference to the same quote said by Han Solo in Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope.