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Enter your costs and your target margin to calculate the price of a custom sign. Compare the result with benchmarks that show their sources.
Select the type of sign that you want to price.
Benchmarks with sources
Use these figures to compare your prices with the market. Each figure shows its source and date.
For the full method, read our guide on how to price signs.
US$281
Median price of an LED neon sign
The middle half of prices were US$197 to US$446. A 48-inch sign sold for 1.86 times the price of a 24-inch sign from the same store.
Source: Sign Customiser, 201 US-dollar stores, Sep 2025 to Sep 2026
About 100%
Usual material markup before waste
Bill Dundas, in Signs of the Times, gives 50% to 100% for most materials. A 100% markup gives a 50% gross margin.
Source: SignShop, January 2024
US$75+ an hour
Lowest shop rate in the range
SignCraft says that shop rates are from US$75 an hour to more than twice that. Shops in metro and tourist areas were all in its highest price level.
Source: SignCraft, February 2026
US$75 to US$124
Hourly design rate at 50% of shops
25% of the shops that answered charge US$75 to US$99 an hour. Another 25% charge US$100 to US$124. The survey does not give the number of shops.
Source: Signs of the Times survey, March 2026
10% to 20%
Most frequent net profit band in 2025
34% of the shops that answered were in this band. 22% had 5% to 10%, and 8% had less than 5%.
Source: Signs of the Times survey, March 2026
+20%
Median extra charge for an outdoor sign
57% of 406 stores that sell LED neon charge more for an outdoor or waterproof sign.
Source: Sign Customiser, 137 stores, Sep 2025 to Sep 2026
Several factors influence the final price of a custom sign beyond base material and labour costs.
The type and quality of materials — acrylic, aluminium, LED modules, vinyl — directly impact your base cost.
Design, fabrication and installation time. In US sign manufacturing, payroll was 28.4% of the value of shipments in 2022 (US Census Bureau).
Rent, utilities, insurance, equipment and admin costs. Include them in your shop rate, or add them as a percentage of production cost.
Height, access requirements, electrical work, and structural considerations can significantly affect final pricing.
Multi-sign orders or franchise rollouts often warrant volume discounts on per-unit pricing and improved margins.
Each manual quote takes time away from production, from your customers and from the growth of your business.
Sign Customiser automates your entire sign pricing and ordering process. Your customers configure signs directly on your website, see real-time pricing, and place orders — all without a single manual quote from your team.
Automate Your Sign PricingAdd the material cost and a waste allowance, then apply your material markup. Add the labour hours at a shop rate that includes your overhead and profit. Add the cost of parts or work that you buy from other companies. Then compare the total with the prices of other shops. Our guide on how to price signs gives the full method.
We did not find a reliable average. Trade sources give ranges. SignShop (January 2024) says that material markup is usually about 100% of cost before waste. Bill Dundas, in Signs of the Times, gives 50% to 100% for most materials. A 100% markup gives a 50% gross margin.
SignCraft (February 2026) says that sign shop rates are from US$75 an hour to more than twice that. In the 2026 Signs of the Times survey, 50% of the shops that answered charge US$75 to US$124 an hour for design time. The survey does not give the number of shops that answered.
On 201 Sign Customiser stores that price in US dollars, the median LED neon sign sold for US$281 from 29 September 2025 to 28 September 2026. The middle half of prices were US$197 to US$446. The median sign was approximately 32 inches wide.
Sign shops use spreadsheets, manual calculators and sign estimating software. Sign Customiser calculates the price on your website while the customer designs the sign. For a comparison of estimating tools, read our list of sign estimating software.
Sign Customiser is sign estimating software that calculates the price while the customer designs the sign.