Guide
Shop sign types and what each one costs you to make
Updated
Sign quotes vary far more by construction than by size. Knowing what you are actually asking for is most of the way to a comparable price.
The four families
- Flat fascia panel
- A printed or vinyl-applied panel, usually aluminium composite or acrylic, fixed across the fascia. Cheapest to make, quickest to install, easiest to replace when the business rebrands. It reads as a budget sign on a period frontage and as a perfectly good sign on a modern unit.
- Built-up or 3D letters
- Individual fabricated letters fixed to the fascia or to a backing, in acrylic, aluminium or stainless steel. Priced per letter as much as by area, so a long trading name costs more than a short one at the same height. This is the family that carries halo lighting and face lighting.
- Projecting or hanging sign
- A double-sided sign at right angles to the wall, which is how customers actually see you walking down a street. Small in area, disproportionately valuable, and tightly limited by the deemed consent conditions on projection, height and area. See the consent guide.
- Window graphics and vinyl
- Cut vinyl, printed graphics, frosted or contra-vision film on the glass. The cheapest square metre of branding you can buy, and worth doing well because it is what people read at three metres. Note that advertisements displayed inside a building are treated differently from those on the outside, so the rules differ from a fascia sign.
What makes each one expensive
- Letter count and letter height on built-up letters. Each letter is a made object. A twelve-letter name costs more than a five-letter name in the same style.
- Return depth and material. Stainless returns cost more than aluminium; deep returns cost more than shallow.
- Illumination. Adding light adds components, wiring, a supply and a future maintenance visit. See the illumination guide.
- Fabricated trays versus flat panels. A tray sign is a made box with a folded edge, not a sheet with print on it.
- Colour matching and finish. A brand colour matched in paint on aluminium is a different job from the nearest standard vinyl.
- Drawings and visuals. Some sign makers include a scale drawing and a photo visual; some charge for them, and some quote from a phone call and then vary the price.
Choosing for the frontage you actually have
- Photograph the frontage square on and measure the fascia. Width, height, and the height of the bottom of the first floor window, because that is a consent limit.
- Look at what is already approved on the street. On a conservation area high street, the signs that exist are a good map of what the council accepts.
- Decide illuminated or not early. It changes the price, the electrical scope and, in a conservation area, whether you need to apply at all.
- Get the projecting sign priced alongside the fascia. It is usually the highest-value square metre on the building and it is easy to forget until the scaffold has gone.
- Ask for a scale drawing before you accept. A sign that looks right in a visual and wrong on the wall is a very expensive misunderstanding.
Comparing quotes fairly
| What to check | Why it changes the price |
|---|---|
| Construction and material named | Composite panel, fabricated tray and built-up letters are different products |
| Installation and access included | Access equipment, licences and out-of-hours working can rival the sign |
| Electrical work included | A supply, isolator and certification are a separate trade |
| Removal and making good | Old sign disposal and fascia repair are frequently excluded |
| Consent responsibility | Applying for express consent is work somebody has to do and pay for |
We do not publish shop sign prices. The same brief produces genuinely different quotes depending on construction, access and the building, and a published range would flatter the wrong supplier. Get three quotes for one written specification instead.