Davidson County, NC Sign Regulations: Digital Billboards (2026)
Key Facts
- Max sign area
- 400 sq ft per face
- Allowed placement
- NC, US or Interstate route frontage only
- Minimum spacing
- 500 ft radius, 300 ft absolute minimum
- Residential buffer
- 100 feet minimum
- Height limit
- 35 ft (50 ft on interstates)
- Message hold time
- 5 seconds minimum, no scrolling
- Land lease minimum
- 0.25 acres
Summary
In unincorporated Davidson County, off-site outdoor advertising signs (billboards) are capped at 400 square feet per face and may only go up on parcels fronting NC, US or Interstate routes, spaced at least 500 feet apart with a 100-foot buffer from residential zoning. Electronic Changeable Face displays must hold each message five full seconds and cannot scroll, flash or animate.
Electronic Changeable Face signs must continuously show one message for a minimum of five (5) seconds. Electronic Changeable Face signs shall not dim, flash, fade, or scroll messages; it shall have no moving, rotating, or flashing elements; no animation, video, audio pyrotechnic components, or similar technology. ... Outdoor advertising signs, where allowed as a permitted principal use, shall be limited to a maximum area of 400 square feet per sign. Outdoor advertising signs shall be limited in placement to parcels adjacent to NC, US and Interstate routes. There shall be a minimum radius between any two outdoor advertising signs of 500 linear feet. No two signs shall be spaced less than 300 feet apart. Where erected, outdoor advertising signs shall not be located within 100 feet or any residentially zoned property.
Full Breakdown
5(K): where the district table permits them as a principal use, they cannot exceed 400 square feet per sign face, must sit on a parcel with at least a quarter-acre land lease, and can only be placed adjacent to NC, US or Interstate routes. Two outdoor advertising signs must clear a 500-foot radius from each other, with 300 feet as the absolute minimum spacing, and no sign may stand within 100 feet of residentially zoned property. 13 are met, and every billboard must still meet the base zoning district's setback line.
5(F)'s Traffic Safety Precautions: an Electronic Changeable Face sign (defined in Article IX as a display using LEDs, fiber optics or similar technology to change its message) must show one message for a minimum of five seconds before switching, and is barred from dimming, flashing, fading or scrolling text, and from any moving, rotating or flashing element, animation, video, audio or pyrotechnic component. Illumination is further restricted so no light source is directly visible from a public right-of-way, adjacent residential district, or neighboring property, and animated or apparently-moving installations are prohibited outright. The Zoning Administrator in the Planning and Zoning Department administers sign permitting and enforcement countywide.
Violations & Fines
A billboard erected or operated outside these limits, oversized, too close to another sign or to residential property, or with a digital face that scrolls or flashes, is a zoning violation under Section VIII.5. After notice under Section 8.02 and five days without correction, the county issues a citation and civil penalty: $25 for a first violation, $50 for a second, $100 for a third, and $200 for the fourth and each violation after that. Unpaid penalties become a lien on the property, collected like unpaid taxes under N.C.G.S. § 153A-140.2.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can a digital billboard in unincorporated Davidson County scroll or fade between ads?
How big can an off-site outdoor advertising sign be in the county?
How far apart must two billboards be in unincorporated Davidson County?
What penalty applies for an illegal digital billboard?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Davidson County
Compare Davidson County to another location·View the North Carolina sign regulations overview
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