Sign making spans manufacturing, display installation and advertising-related services. The available U.S. evidence combines a 2023 establishment count, historical 2002–2005 manufacturing shipment tables, May 2023 occupation data and 2024–2034 labor projections, so the figures describe different populations and periods.
Key Sign Making Statistics
The most quotable figures across the available U.S. sign making data are:
- 5,895 employer establishments were classified as sign manufacturing in the United States in 2023.
- Sign manufacturing covered signs and related displays of all materials except printed paper and paperboard signs in the 2023 NAICS definition.
- Sign lettering and painting were classified under Other Services Related to Advertising rather than sign manufacturing in the 2023 Census classification.
- U.S. sign-manufacturing product shipments totaled $9,639,042 thousand in 2005.
- Electric-sign shipments totaled $3,113,410 thousand in the United States in 2005.
- Nonelectric signs and displays shipped $3,669,474 thousand in the United States in 2005.
- Advertising-specialty shipments totaled $1,056,492 thousand in the United States in 2005.
- Other, unclassified sign-manufacturing shipments totaled $1,799,666 thousand in the United States in 2005.
- 175,790 merchandise displayers and window trimmers were employed nationally in May 2023.
- The May 2023 national mean hourly wage for merchandise displayers and window trimmers was $18.77.
- The May 2023 national median hourly wage for merchandise displayers and window trimmers was $17.42.
- The May 2023 national mean annual wage for merchandise displayers and window trimmers was $39,040.
- California employed 17,620 merchandise displayers and window trimmers in May 2023.
- Building material and supplies dealers employed 48,380 merchandise displayers and window trimmers in May 2023.
- Delaware’s May 2023 location quotient for merchandise displayers and window trimmers was 1.77.
- BLS counted 193,000 merchandise displayers and window trimmers in the United States in 2024.
- BLS projects 6,200 additional jobs and 3% employment growth for the occupation from 2024 to 2034.
Contents
- Key Sign Making Statistics
- U.S. sign making industry scale and business definitions
- Sign manufacturing shipment trends and product mix
- Sign making employment, wages and workforce geography
- Sign display occupations and industry concentration
- Sign making labor outlook and historical industry context
U.S. Sign Making Industry Scale and Business Definitions
The Census Bureau’s 2023 County Business Patterns profile counted 5,895 employer establishments in NAICS 339950, Sign Manufacturing, in the United States. This is an establishment measure, not a count of individual businesses, locations without employees or informal sign makers. 339950: Sign Manufacturing – Census Bureau Profile
The classification boundary matters when interpreting sign making statistics. Census defines NAICS 339950 as establishments manufacturing signs and related displays of all materials except printed paper and paperboard signs, notices and displays.
Sign lettering and painting are classified separately in NAICS 541890, Other Services Related to Advertising. Consequently, the 5,895-establishment figure does not represent every service provider that designs, letters, paints, installs or maintains signs.
Sign Manufacturing Shipment Trends and Product Mix
The Census Annual Survey of Manufactures reported U.S. sign-manufacturing product shipments of $8,675,941 thousand in 2002, $8,989,061 thousand in 2003, $8,899,268 thousand in 2004 and $9,639,042 thousand in 2005. These are historical dollar figures and are not inflation-adjusted or current market-size estimates. Value of Product Shipments: 2005
| Product category | 2002 shipments ($ thousand) | 2005 shipments ($ thousand) |
|---|---|---|
| Electric signs | 2,577,789 | 3,113,410 |
| Nonelectric signs and displays | 3,158,754 | 3,669,474 |
| Advertising specialties | 1,288,411 | 1,056,492 |
| Other sign-manufacturing categories | 1,650,986 | 1,799,666 |
The electric-sign series was $2,577,789 thousand in 2002, $2,665,243 thousand in 2003, $2,801,239 thousand in 2004 and $3,113,410 thousand in 2005. The nonelectric category, which includes counter, floor and point-of-purchase displays, was $3,158,754 thousand in 2002, $3,227,337 thousand in 2003, $3,343,336 thousand in 2004 and $3,669,474 thousand in 2005.
Advertising-specialty shipments were $1,288,411 thousand in 2002, $1,251,504 thousand in 2003, $1,017,692 thousand in 2004 and $1,056,492 thousand in 2005. The residual category for other sign-manufacturing shipments was $1,650,986 thousand in 2002, $1,844,977 thousand in 2003, $1,737,001 thousand in 2004 and $1,799,666 thousand in 2005.
The ASM scope includes primary and secondary products and interplant transfers. Shipment values therefore should not be read as retail sales, sign-shop revenue or a direct measure of customer spending.
Sign Making Employment, Wages and Workforce Geography
The closest broad BLS occupation measure is merchandise displayers and window trimmers, a related occupation that plans and erects commercial displays but does not consist exclusively of sign makers. In May 2023, the occupation included 175,790 employed workers nationally. Occupational Employment and Wages, May 2023: Merchandise Displayers and Window Trimmers
| May 2023 U.S. wage measure | Amount |
|---|---|
| 10th-percentile hourly wage | $14.08 |
| Median hourly wage | $17.42 |
| Mean hourly wage | $18.77 |
| 90th-percentile hourly wage | $24.63 |
| Mean annual wage | $39,040 |
State employment totals show where this related occupation was measured most heavily. California had 17,620 workers, Texas had 15,600, Florida had 12,390, New York had 9,020 and Ohio had 8,610 in May 2023.
State mean annual wages varied within the same May 2023 occupation measure. Louisiana reported $49,970, Washington $46,460, New York $45,700, Massachusetts $45,340 and Maine $44,910.
These state figures are occupation estimates rather than sign-manufacturing establishment counts. State estimates may also have sampling error, and the occupation includes display work outside sign production.
Sign Display Occupations and Industry Concentration
The BLS industry table places merchandise displayers and window trimmers across retail, wholesale, advertising and manufacturing settings. Building material and supplies dealers employed 48,380 workers in the occupation in May 2023, while merchant wholesalers of nondurable goods employed 41,900.
Other measured industries included advertising, public relations and related services with 14,210 workers, general merchandise retailers with 11,540 and beverage manufacturing with 9,040. These figures describe occupation-by-industry employment, not employment inside NAICS 339950 sign manufacturing.
Location quotients provide a different view of geography. A value above 1 means that the occupation represented a larger share of employment in the state than nationally; it is not a sign-industry market share.
| State | May 2023 location quotient |
|---|---|
| Delaware | 1.77 |
| Alaska | 1.67 |
| Arkansas | 1.64 |
| Idaho | 1.58 |
| Nevada | 1.50 |
The concentration measures can help describe where related display skills are relatively common, but they should not be used to infer the number of sign shops or the size of a state’s sign-manufacturing market. Occupational Employment and Wages, May 2023: Merchandise Displayers and Window Trimmers
Sign Making Labor Outlook and Historical Industry Context
BLS counted an estimated 193,000 merchandise displayers and window trimmers in the United States in 2024. The estimate remains a related-occupation measure rather than a census of sign makers or sign-manufacturing establishments. Data for Occupations Not Covered in Detail
The May 2024 median annual wage for this occupation was $37,350. BLS projects 6,200 additional jobs and 3% employment growth from 2024 to 2034; both figures are forecasts, not observed changes in sign-making employment.
Historical Census ASM industry statistics provide an additional, narrower context, but the source table’s original labels must be retained. The table recorded 216,819 thousand dollars for total value added in sign manufacturing in 2005, 225,464 thousand dollars for the corresponding industry statistic in 2004, 163,253 thousand dollars in 2003 and 243,713 thousand dollars in 2002.
Those 2002–2005 industry-statistic figures are not current market-size measures. The Census source identifies them as table industry statistics, so they should be read with the source table’s original column labels rather than converted into a modern revenue or value-added estimate. Statistics for Industry Groups and Industries: 2005