Sign Regulations in Nashville, TN (2026)
6 verified sign regulations for Nashville, Tennessee, sourced directly from the municipal code and official government pages.
Verified from official government sources
Political Signs
Metro Nashville bans posting political campaign signs on telephone and light poles across the general services district, and bars posting them on or within 200 feet of any polling place.
Nashville Political Sign Placement Rules
Some RestrictionsMetropolitan Code of Laws § 1.12.020
It is unlawful for any person to post, affix or display any posters, signs or pictures advertising the candidacy of anyone for public office on any telephone or light poles within the general services district.
Garage Sale Signs
Metro Nashville exempts yard-sale signs up to six square feet, one per lot, from sign permits -- but you must post them no sooner than four days before the sale and take them down within two days after.
Garage Sale Sign Rules in Nashville
Light RestrictionsMetropolitan Code of Laws § 17.32.040(Q)
Temporary signs which do not exceed six square feet in area, are limited to one per lot, which are erected no sooner than four days before any yard sale event, and are removed within two days after the event;
Holiday Displays
Metro Nashville's sign code exempts holiday lights and decorations entirely from sign regulation, with no permit, size cap, or seasonal timing limit: unlike election or event signs, which carry explicit day windows.
Holiday Light and Decoration Signs in Nashville
Few RestrictionsMetropolitan Code of Laws § 17.32.040(D)
The following on-premises signs are exempt from the operation of these sign regulations provided they are not placed or constructed to be in violation of Section 17.20.180, Visibility, or so as to create a hazard of any kind through the obstruction of vision by motorists and pedestrians. A.Within nonresidential districts, signs that are displayed for the safe direction of the public on the p...
Digital Billboards
Digital billboards in Metro Nashville must sit at least 2,000 feet apart along the roadway, are confined to CL, CS, CF, IWD, IR and IG zoning districts, and each message must hold static for eight seconds before changing.
Digital Billboard Rules in Nashville
Significant RestrictionsMetropolitan Code of Laws § 17.32.050(G)(4)
Free-standing and wall-mounted digital display billboards, including the conversion of existing billboards to digital billboards, less than two thousand feet apart. The spacing distance shall be measured along the roadway that the billboard is located and shall be measured from billboard to billboard regardless of the side of the roadway on which the billboard is located, the billboard's orient...
Window Signs
Metro Nashville exempts temporary storefront window displays from sign permitting only if they're unaffixed to the glass, non-illuminated, and cover no more than 25% of the window's total surface area.
Nashville Window Sign Coverage Limit
Some RestrictionsMetropolitan Code of Laws § 17.32.040(L)
Temporary displays and signs behind storefront windows which are not affixed permanently to the glass, nor intended for permanent display, and non-illuminated, provided that such temporary signs do not cover more than twenty-five percent of the total surface area of the storefront window;
Freeway-Facing Signs
Businesses fronting a controlled-access highway in Metro Nashville may add one extra ground sign per 1,000 feet of highway frontage, spaced at least 1,000 feet apart, under the Metro zoning sign code.
Freeway-Facing Sign Rules in Nashville
Some RestrictionsMetropolitan Code of Laws § 17.32.130(D), Note 3
In addition to the number of ground signs permitted by Table 17.32.130D. [formerly 8.13], properties directly abutting a controlled access highway may install an additional on-premise ground sign along the frontage of that highway at the rate of one sign per one thousand feet of highway frontage. Such signs shall be spaced a minimum of one thousand feet apart. A sign oriented to a controlled ac...