Sign Regulations in Rapid City, SD (2026)
4 verified sign regulations for Rapid City, South Dakota, sourced directly from the municipal code and official government pages.
Verified from official government sources
Political Signs
Rapid City exempts temporary political signs from its sign building permit as long as they stay off the public right-of-way, sight triangles and parking areas. Rapid City Municipal Code § 17.50.080H.11 caps each sign at 32 square feet and 8 feet in height.
Temporary political sign rules in Rapid City
Some RestrictionsRapid City Municipal Code § 17.50.080H.11
H. Exemptions. ... The following types of signs and activities are exempt from the provisions of § 17.50.080G.: 1 ... ... 1. Temporary political signs are allowed so long as they are not located within the public right of way, a required sight triangle or a required parking stall or parking area. Temporary political signs are limited to 32 total square feet and a maximum height of 8 feet;
Digital Billboards
Rapid City lets an existing off-premises sign convert to digital without a new conditional use permit under § 17.50.090A.3, but § 17.50.080O locks any digital, LED or video billboard face to static copy, bans full motion video, and requires an 8-second minimum hold between messages.
Digital billboard rules in Rapid City
Significant RestrictionsRapid City Municipal Code §§ 17.50.080O, 17.50.090A.3
O. Existing digital, LED or video type signage. Existing off-premises signs and public purpose signs displaying variable messages through the use of internal illumination technology or through light emitting diodes, liquid crystal displays, plasma image displays, or any other similar light emitting technology may only display static messages. Full motion images, graphics or video are prohibited...
Window Signs
Rapid City lets a window sign cover up to 25% of the window area it's displayed in without a sign building permit. Go over that share and the sign drops out of the exemption list in Rapid City Municipal Code § 17.50.080H, and the Building Official can require the full permit process under § 17.50.080G before you install it.
Window sign coverage limit in Rapid City
Some RestrictionsRapid City Municipal Code § 17.50.080H.10
H. Exemptions. ... The following types of signs and activities are exempt from the provisions of § 17.50.080G.: 1 ... ... 0. Window signs covering up to 25% of the area per window;
Freeway-Facing Signs
Off-premises signs in Rapid City are capped at 250 square feet per face and 30 feet in height, but a sign within 100 feet of the Interstate 90 right-of-way that advertises to I-90 traffic can grow to 672 square feet and 40 feet under § 17.50.090B.4.
Freeway-facing billboard size limits in Rapid City
Some RestrictionsRapid City Municipal Code § 17.50.090B.4
B. Size, height and spacing regulations for off-premises signage. Off-premises signs shall be constructed in accordance with the following regulations: ... ... 2. Off-premises signs shall have no more than 2 faces. Each face of an off-premises sign may have a maximum area of 250 square feet, except as provided in subsection B.4. ... ... 3. The maximum height of an off-premises sign is 30 feet, ...