How Many Sign Companies Are in the US?

The Census counts sign businesses under an industry code, "Sign Manufacturing" (NAICS 339950): businesses whose main products are signs, from electric and neon signs and channel letters to vinyl, banners and displays. In 2023 that code had 5,895 locations with paid staff, 75,898 employees and an annual payroll of USD 4.44 billion.

Most are small shops:

The Census counts locations, so a company with three shops counts three times. Its Economic Census, which also counts companies, found 5,661 sign companies running 5,830 locations in 2022: about 1.03 locations per company. Nearly every sign company is a single shop.

Four limits to keep in mind. One-person shops with no employees aren't counted. Shops the Census files under another code are missed: sign shops classed as printing or graphic design, and installers filed as construction or electrical contractors; franchise print-and-sign stores often sit there. 2023 is the newest year published. So treat 5,895 as the floor.

Because each counts something different. RevenueBase, a company that sells contact lists, shows 7,662 "signage manufacturers" in the US and 3,756 "address, commercial & residential signs suppliers", built by matching business descriptions in its own database. Its previews lead with big national sign brands, and its signage list mixes in billboard owners, truck lighting and makers of digital screens and visual displays next to sign shops. IBISWorld, an industry research firm, puts "Sign & Banner Shops" at 41,805 businesses in 2025; the free page doesn't say how it counts.

The Census number is the count I trust for a sign shop owner: it's free, you can check it, and it says exactly what it counts. Its limit is the one above: no one-person shops.

California has the most sign businesses with paid staff (612), then Texas (588), Florida (463) and New York (321). Those four hold 1,984 of them, 34%. Vermont has the fewest, 8. Here is every state (Census County Business Patterns, 2023):

The state rows add up to 5,894, one fewer than the US total; the state file has no row for Washington, DC.

Slowly in numbers, faster in sales. The Economic Census counted 5,579 sign companies in 2017 and 5,661 in 2022: 82 more, up 1.5%. Their sales went from USD 12.61 billion to USD 14.48 billion, up 14.8%. That sales figure is not adjusted for inflation.

The Census doesn't publish profit, but it does publish where the money goes. Of every USD 100 in sales in 2022, sign makers spent USD 40.96 on materials and supplies, USD 28.39 on payroll and USD 5.76 on benefits. That leaves USD 24.89 for rent, equipment, other costs, taxes and the owner's pay, before any profit.

Advertising was the smallest line: USD 0.55 of every USD 100, USD 79.7 million across the whole industry. Sign makers as a whole spend very little to reach new customers, so the free listing on Google Maps is worth getting right. A plan for it is in a sign shop marketing plan.

Thousands nationwide, but a buyer only sees the first few map results in their own town. When I pulled the Google Maps results for "sign shop" in 20 US towns, a typical town showed 8 sign businesses in its top 10, next to a few businesses that don't make signs at all.

So your competition is the handful of sign shops in your area, not 5,895 of them. What moved sign shops up that map, reviews first, is on Google Business Profile for sign companies. For commercial searches such as "channel letter signs" the map shows even fewer, which is why SEO tips for commercial sign companies start with the normal results. The method is in the full sign company study.