What Are Standard Billboard Sizes?

Billboards come in a range of sizes. While you may be most familiar with the ones you see on Sunset Boulevard or driving along the highway, you can choose from a bunch of different billboard dimensions. The size and orientation of the structure generally depends on the surroundings and local restrictions.

With the many different sizes of billboards, marketers are able to optimize ad content in various creative ways. Depending on the product or service you’re looking to advertise, certain billboards might fit your advertising objectives best.

We’ve pulled together a primer on billboard sizes so you know what’s available. This can help you decide how to best convey your message and which is right for your brand.

What is the Standard Size of a Billboard in USA?

Billboards Sizes in USA come in three different sizes:

• 14 feet high and 48 feet wide
• 10 feet high and 40 feet wide
• 10½ feet high and 36 feet wide

Billboards can also have extensions, something to add to the top or side for an extra bit of creative. Think cutouts of people dancing on top of the building or something like that. Extensions might make the sign bigger, but it’s still a billboard.

Did you know: Billboards used to be painted by hand, making them some of the biggest works of art you could find across America.

What Size Is a Billboard in the UK?

Billboards Sizes in the UK come in three different sizes:

• 48 Sheets Billboard Size 6,096mm High  x 4,038mm Wide
• 64 Sheets Billboard Size 8,128mm  High x 3,048mm Wide
• 96 Sheets Billboard Size 12,192mm High x 3,048mm Wide

What Size Is a Standard Billboard in the Europe?

Billboards Sizes in the Europe come in one standard size:

• 48 Sheets Billboard Size 14 feet high and 48 feet wide

What Is a Billboard?

The most common type of billboard you will find on the road is a billboard. This is what you see when you drive along major throughways. They’re the second-biggest size of billboard, behind spectaculars, and many people consider them the most impactful, though it really depends on your creative and your campaign goals.

Billboards often direct people to take immediate action, such as a sign on a highway advertising a fast food restaurant at an upcoming exit. You can also use them for branding or announcing things like sales or openings.

Most billboards are freestanding, and they can be mounted on a frame or sit right off the ground. It’s customary to rent these for a month at a time and can even go as long as a full year or more, depending on the contract.

What Size are 30-Sheet Billboards?

The standard sizes for a 30-sheet billboard is:

• 12 feet, 3 inches high and 24 feet, 6 inches wide
• 10 feet, 5 inches high and 22 feet, 8 inches wide

Did you know: One study found posters generate four times as many impressions per dollar as a radio ad.

What Is a 30 Sheet?

Also commonly called posters, 30 sheets are billboards sized between a billboard and 8 sheets. They still have enough size to stand out to someone driving nearby, but they aren’t erected on highways. You’ll find them in urban areas, often on primary roads but also on secondary ones. They offer a less in-your-face but still attention-grabbing means of communicating with passersby.

Since they’re smaller, 30 sheets are also generally cheaper than billboards, which makes them more attractive to smaller companies with more limited budgets. You can target people by neighborhood with 30 sheets, whereas with a billboard you’re more likely to get people just passing through. A 30 sheet can be digital, too.

What Size is a 48-Sheet Billboard?

The standard sizes for a 48-Sheet Billboards are:

• 10 feet high and 20 feet wide
• 3094 mm high x 6096 mm wide

48-Sheet Billboards are strictly a UK Billboard format and are not found in most other countries.

What Size is a 96-Sheet Billboard?

The standard sizes for a 96-Sheet Billboards are:

• 10 feet high and 40 feet wide
• 3094 mm high x 12192 mm wide

96-Sheet Billboards are strictly a UK Billboard format and are not found in most other countries.

What Size Is a Spectacular Billboard?

Spectacular Billboards come in two main sizes. They’re basically just bigger than standard Billboard Sizes. The two sizes you’ll see the most are:

• 16 feet high and 60 feet wide
• 20 feet high and 60 feet wide

Did you know: Daktronics installed the world’s largest spectacular in Times Square in 2014, offering 25,000 square feet for companies to convey their messages. At the time it went up, space on the billboard was going for $2.5 million for four-week increments.

What Is a Spectacular Billboard?

In addition to standard billboards, you can also purchase spectaculars. This, as the name implies, is a super-sized billboard. They’re rarer, and you will mainly find them in high-traffic, buzzy areas such as Times Square or the Las Vegas Strip.

They often come with bells and whistles, like backlighting, which make them stand out from their surroundings. The board’s size makes it arresting, but the price often limits it to established brands.

What Size Is an 8-Sheet Billboard?

The standard size of an 8-sheet billboard is:

• 6 feet high and 12 feet wide

Did you know: Originally, the term “junior poster” referred to a 6 sheet billboard is the smallest billboard available, which measured 4 feet, 4 inches, by 9 feet, 10 inches. But these days, you don’t hear much about 6 sheets — or some of the other common terms from years ago, such as a 3 sheet (3 feet by 6 feet, usually found outside of shops) or 24 sheet (once the most common size across the United States).

What Is an 8-Sheet?

You may also hear 8 sheets referred to as junior posters. These are the billboards you see when you’re walking around town. They are placed in high-traffic, high-visibility areas, such as near busy corners or popular restaurants or bars. They can be freestanding or mounted on the side of a building.

Posters target pedestrians as well as vehicle drivers. They need to be bold and draw attention quickly, as they’re often competing with other 8 sheets in the area. While they’re smaller than the billboards you see on the side of the road, they can be equally effective.

Rented by the month, they make excellent places to advertise an upcoming concert or film. They can also carry timely advertising, such as information on an upcoming sale. An 8 sheet can be digital, too.

What Size Is a Mobile Billboard?

Mobile Billboards are typically usually the following sizes

• 6’4”H x 11’W
• 10′ H x 22’W

Mobile billboards, are billboards that are hauled around town by a truck and can be a variety of sizes, depending on the size of the flatbed where the billboard sits or the box it encompasses.  Mobile Billboards are typically digital, so therefore they can be easily resized.

Factors in Finding Right Billboard Size

So what is the right size billboard for your campaign? There’s no easy answer to that. Your needs will determine the size. Factors may include:

• Budget
• Creative
• Lighting
• Visibility
• Time constraints
• Target audience
• Whether you want a permanent or rotary billboard

At DASH TWO, we’ve bought billboards of all sizes for our clients, and we understand how to find the right one for you. If you’re looking for how much billboards cost, here’s an article that breaks down pricing. We know the locations and the vendors. Let us assist you with your billboard buy. Contact us today to learn more.

Billboard Ad Sizes World Wide

Below is a Table of Billboard Ad Sizes from the United States, Mexico, Canada, UK, Italy and more.