Channel Letter Pricing: Per Square Foot, Per Letter or Per Inch?

Short answer: per square foot, with a separate rate for the LEDs, is the easiest method to keep consistent and to explain to customers. Per letter and per inch of letter height both work, but they need more adjustments to stay fair.

Every shop has its own habit here. Here is how the three common methods compare.

Per letter

You set a price for each letter at a given height, such as 24 inch letters at a fixed price each.

• Good: easy for customers to follow. "Twelve letters at this price."
• Watch out: a wide "W" and a narrow "I" cost you very different amounts in material and LEDs. Logos and shapes do not fit the model at all, so you end up pricing them some other way.

Per inch of letter height

A variation: a rate per inch of height, per letter. A 24 inch letter costs 24 times the rate.

• Good: scales with size, and is common in the trade, so customers comparing quotes may recognize it.
• Watch out: it still ignores width, stroke thickness and the font. Condensed and extended fonts at the same height are priced the same.

Per square foot

You price the area the sign covers, with a rate for each material and construction, and add the lighting separately.

• Good: works the same for letters, logos and shapes. It follows the real material cost, and the customer can see why a bigger sign costs more.
• Watch out: decide what you measure. The usual choice is the bounding box of the whole sign or of each line. Whatever you pick, use it every time.

Keep the LEDs as their own line

Lit letters are two costs: the letters, and the light inside them. Front-lit, halo-lit and front and halo lit letters all use LEDs differently, so pricing the light inside the letter rate hides a big part of the job.

A separate LED rate gives you:

• one letter rate per material, whatever the lighting
• a clear jump in price when a customer chooses lit over unlit
• room to charge more for front and halo lit, which lights both ways

A worked example

Example numbers only:

Mounting and extras

Price mounting as its own choice: letters straight on the wall with studs, or on a rail. Then add add-ons like power adapters and cable with a starting quantity filled in, so the estimate is close to the real job before anyone talks.

Put your method in front of customers

Whichever method you settle on, write it down once. In Sign Designer you set a rate per square foot for each material, an LED rate, and your add-ons. Customers design the sign and see an instant estimate built from those rates, and you confirm the final price when you invoice.