Channel Letters
Lit letters carry most Dallas storefronts, from Lower Greenville to the strip centers off LBJ. The city counts the larger words on each facade, so the layout is planned before the lettering is.
Explore channel lettersDallas, Texas · Commercial signs
Dallas Sign Company for Custom Commercial Signs
A new storefront in Bishop Arts, a logo on a Stemmons Corridor warehouse, a lobby sign in an Uptown tower: every Dallas sign answers to the zoning district it stands in. We design to those rules, handle the city permit and install the finished sign, fabricated at our Carrollton facility just up I-35E.
Does Signs Express make and install signs in Dallas?
Yes. Signs Express designs, permits, fabricates and installs commercial signs for Dallas businesses, from channel letters and storefront signs to building, monument and lobby signs, each drawn to the zoning rules for its address and built at our Carrollton facility. Recent Dallas work includes lit letters for A Mart Food Market on Forest Lane and a halo-lit sign for Sanjiva Medical Spa on West Lovers Lane.
Commercial Dallas
Where Dallas does business, and what its signs have to do.
Dallas is not one commercial market. Downtown and Uptown are towers, lobbies and street-level retail. Deep Ellum, Bishop Arts and Lower Greenville are older brick storefronts where the sign has to suit the building as much as the brand. The Stemmons Corridor along I-35E and the Design District mix showrooms, offices and warehouses.
Along LBJ Freeway, the Dallas North Tollway and North Central Expressway, office parks and retail centers compete for drivers at highway speed, which is where monument signs and large building letters earn their place. Medical and institutional campuses, such as the Southwestern Medical District, need identification and directional signs across several buildings.
The practical result: a Dallas sign is designed around its zoning district first. The same storefront letters can be straightforward on one block and need a closer look on the next if the site sits in a special provision sign district, a historic or conservation district or a planned development.
Recent projects show the range. In Lake Highlands, a former ALDI on Forest Lane reopened as A Mart Food Market under lit letters and a logo cabinet. In the Design District, a halo-lit logo welcomes guests to Auréa House. Sanjiva Medical Spa on West Lovers Lane, Addison Park Smiles on Trinity Mills Road and TrustUp on Dallas Parkway round out the list, each a different sign for a different street.
Sign types
What Dallas businesses ask us for.
Permits
Sign permits in Dallas
The City of Dallas handles sign permits through its Permitting and Inspections sign team, and applications are filed online through the DallasNow portal. The sign contractor must be registered before a permit is issued, and electrical signs must be installed by a registered electrical or sign electrical contractor.
Most sign rules are in Chapter 51A, Article VII of the Dallas Development Code, and the provisions that apply depend on the zoning district. Overlays such as Special Provision Sign Districts, historic districts, conservation districts and planned developments can add requirements and, in some cases, an extra review.
The city states that a permit is required for new signs and re-faces when the sign is illuminated or has electrical components, among other triggers, and that retrofitting a sign to LED is not normal maintenance. An approved Certificate of Occupancy for the business on the sign is required before the sign permit can be approved.
In the general zoning districts, the city's summary limits attached signs, new and existing combined, to eight words over four inches tall per facade, per occupant, and the prescreen checklist asks for the height and length of each word.
Requirements depend on the sign, the site and its zoning. We confirm the current rules for your address before design and handle the application for you.
- City of Dallas: Permitting and Inspections, Signs
- City of Dallas: sign permit online submittal prescreen items (PDF)
- Dallas Development Code, Chapter 51A, Article VII, Sign Regulations (American Legal)
Sources reviewed 2026-09
How our permitting service worksFrom the portfolio
Work from across Dallas Fort Worth.
A selection of Signs Express installations. Project locations are listed on each project page once confirmed.
Nearby
Nearby service areas
Richardson
The Telecom Corridor, CityLine and Richardson's retail streets ask different things of a sign.
Carrollton
Carrollton is home.
Plano
Plano writes separate rules for freestanding signs along its major corridors, from the Dallas North Tollway to Preston Road.
Arlington
Arlington draws event crowds to its entertainment district and steady traffic to I-20, I-30 and SH 360, and the city has created an incentive program to retire older, non-conforming pole signs.
Free project review
Planning a sign in Dallas?
Send the address and a photo of the building. We will check the zoning and any sign district for the site, then recommend a sign that fits the code, the building and your brand.
- A photo of the building or site, even from a phone
- Your logo or brand files, if you have them
- The city where the sign will be installed
- Landlord sign criteria, if the space is leased
Straight answers
Signs in Dallas: common questions.
Something else on your mind? Call (469) 901-3108 or send the details through the quote form.
What Dallas signs has Signs Express installed recently?
Recent Dallas projects include lit channel letters and a logo cabinet for A Mart Food Market on Forest Lane, a halo-lit sign for Sanjiva Medical Spa on West Lovers Lane, a halo-lit logo for Auréa House in the Design District, a sign panel for Addison Park Smiles on Trinity Mills Road and storefront letters for TrustUp on Dallas Parkway. Each one has its own page in our project gallery.
Do I need a permit to replace the face of my sign in Dallas?
Often, yes. The City of Dallas says a permit is required for new signs and re-faces when the sign is illuminated or has electrical components, along with other triggers such as size, height and location. Routine maintenance with no change of wording is generally exempt, but the city specifically notes that retrofitting a sign to LED is not treated as normal maintenance.
Why does a Dallas sign drawing list every word and its height?
Because Dallas regulates attached signs partly by word count. In the general zoning districts, the city limits attached signs to eight words over four inches tall per facade, per occupant, counting existing signs, and its prescreen checklist asks for the height and length of each word. Taglines and service lists usually move into smaller lettering so the name can stay large.
Does my business need a Certificate of Occupancy before the sign permit?
In Dallas, yes. The city requires an approved Certificate of Occupancy for the occupant advertising on the sign before a sign permit can be approved, and the prescreen checklist says the name on the CO must match the name on the sign. If you are opening a new location, start the CO early so it does not hold up the sign.
What is a special provision sign district?
It is an area of Dallas with sign rules written for that district, layered over the base zoning. The Dallas Development Code includes districts such as the West End Historic Sign District. Historic districts, conservation districts and planned developments can add their own requirements too, so we check the zoning map for your address before design starts.
Who can do the electrical work on a lit sign in Dallas?
Dallas requires electrical signs to be installed by a registered electrical or sign electrical contractor, and Texas requires a licensed electrical sign contractor for the work. Signs Express holds Texas Electrical Sign Contractor #18921, so the sign and its electrical connection stay with one company.
How close is your shop to Dallas?
Our head office and manufacturing facility is on I-35E in Carrollton, just north of Dallas. Signs are fabricated there, then delivered and installed across the city, from Oak Cliff to Far North Dallas.
What should I send for a Dallas sign quote?
The address, a photo of the building or site, your logo files and whether the space is leased. For a shopping center or office building, include the landlord's sign criteria. With the address we can check the zoning district and any sign district before we price the job.
Start with the space. End with a landmark.
Your next landmark starts here.
Tell us about your Dallas property and what you need people to see. We will handle the survey, approvals, fabrication and installation.