Front-Lit Channel Letters, Custom 304 Stainless Steel Sign Letters

Front-lit channel letters, also called face-lit or front-illuminated LED channel letters, are the sign on most storefronts and shopping centers. Each letter is a hollow shape with a translucent acrylic face, and LEDs inside light the whole face at night. Of all the lit styles, this is the easiest to read from the road after dark, because every stroke glows evenly.

We build the sides of each letter, called returns, from 304 stainless steel. Most of the industry uses aluminum; stainless is heavier and stiffer, so long returns keep their shape, and it does not rust through. Returns are painted black, white or your brand color, or left brushed. Common depths are 3 in and 5 in, and the depth for your sign is set on the drawing.

The standard face is 3 mm white acrylic. For brand colors we use colored acrylic or a vinyl overlay on the white face. A 1 in trim cap holds the face and laps about 1/4 in onto it, which gives each letter a thin outline in the cap color. Inside, 12 V LED modules sit about every 3 in along the stroke.

Plan the lit color. White faces pass the most light; deep blues and greens hold back more of it and look darker at night. Send your brand color codes with your logo, and the drawing lists the face colors next to a lit preview for your approval.

By day you see colored faces framed by the returns. At night the faces glow and the returns fall into shadow, so the letter shapes are what people read.

• Outdoor: IP65 LED modules and a hard-wired outdoor power supply that a licensed electrician connects.
• Indoor: a plug-in 100-240 V adapter.
• Light color: white 6500 K, neutral white 4000 K or warm white 3000 K.
• Options: raceway mounting, dusk-to-dawn photocell, timer.
• Sizes: 4 in to 60 in tall in the price estimator; the drawing sets the exact height.
• Fire code: standard acrylic is not flame-retardant; if your fire marshal asks, we swap it for flame-retardant polycarbonate (PC).

The letters mount flush to the wall with the full-size paper template and hardware that come with the sign; standoffs only if you ask for them. The power supply and LED modules are UL / cUL listed components. Installation, sign permits and the electrician's connection are not included.

Send your logo or text and the wall size. We email a free drawing with a lit preview and an exact price, and nothing is built until you approve it. The price estimator on this page gives a range from our own recent quotes; the drawing gives the exact price.

Start with distance. Think about where most people are when they first see the sign, a parking lot, the far side of the street or a passing car, and use the letter height calculator to set the letter height. The drawing then checks that the letters fit your wall and any size limit in your lease.

Next, colors. Pick the face color for your brand and the return color for the wall. White faces give the most light; deep blues and greens look darker at night, so check them in the lit preview. Dark returns frame white faces clearly on a light wall; returns painted to match the wall make the lit faces the only thing people notice at night.

If your landlord wants as few holes as possible in the building, choose the raceway. If you prefer a face with no visible rim, look at our trimless letters. Outdoors, add a photocell or timer; some energy codes, such as California's, require automatic switching. Send a photo of the wall, its width and height, and your logo file.