Pinellas County, FL Sign Regulations: Digital Billboards (2026)
Key Facts
- Core rule
- No new digital off-premises signs, limited exceptions
- Minimum dwell time
- 60 seconds (static, no motion/flash)
- Removal ratio to convert/erect a digital sign
- 2 non-FAP structures, 4x sign area
- Setback from residential property
- 500 linear feet for digital face
- Spacing between digital signs, same road
- 2,500 linear feet
- Max sign area / height
- 672 sq ft per face / 50 ft
Summary
Unincorporated Pinellas County bars new off-premises signs, billboards, from adding electronic changeable message displays, with narrow exceptions for legally existing signs converted or removed under a county acceleration program. Where allowed, digital displays must hold a static image for a 60-second minimum dwell time.
(g)Off-premises signs with electronic changeable message displays prohibited with limited exceptions. Other than legally existing off-premises signs which already have an electronic changeable message display, an off-premises sign may not have an electronic message display except as follows:(1)Conversion of existing off-premises signs to electronic changeable message display signs. Legally existing off-premises signs without electronic changeable message displays, located on an FAP roadway, may be converted to off-premises signs with electronic changeable message displays in accordance with the requirements of section 138-3757 except for the restriction that such legally existing off-premises signs be on properties with an industrial future land use designation...(l)Other than as set forth in subsections 138-3757(j) and (k) herein, there shall be no new off-premises signs with electronic changeable message displays erected within unincorporated Pinellas County.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: Code of Ordinances: Supplement 124).
Full Breakdown
Pinellas County Code § 138-3757(g) and (l) govern digital, off-premises billboards on federal-aid primary and interstate roadways in the unincorporated county. Subsection (g) prohibits an off-premises sign from carrying an electronic changeable message display unless it already legally had one, or it qualifies for conversion or new erection under the section's exception program, or it converts to a shortened display time under subsection (k). Subsection (l) then states the bottom line directly: other than the (j) and (k) exceptions, there shall be no new off-premises signs with electronic changeable message displays erected within unincorporated Pinellas County.
The exception program in (j) lets an owner convert an existing sign or erect a new digital one only after physically removing at least two non-federal-aid billboard structures per digital sign face, with combined removed sign area at least four times the new digital face's area. A digital sign under this program must sit at least 500 linear feet from residentially zoned property and 2,500 feet from another digital off-premises sign facing the same direction on the same road, and cannot be within 500 feet of a signalized intersection.
Section 138-3751 separately defines an electronic changeable message sign as a display of static images or text using LEDs, fiber optics or similar technology, and requires a minimum 60-second dwell time, the period a single message must stay static without any flash, scroll, fade or motion, unless a shortened display time is separately authorized. Off-premises signs are otherwise capped at 672 square feet per face and 50 feet in height under § 138-3757(c)-(d).
Violations & Fines
Erecting a new electronic changeable message display on an off-premises sign, or converting an existing sign to one, without qualifying for the § 138-3757(j) or (k) removal-based exception program is prohibited outright under subsection (l) and is enforceable through code enforcement and the county's general penalty in § 1-8, up to a $500 fine per day the unauthorized display remains operating.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can a company put up a new digital billboard in unincorporated Pinellas County?
How long must a digital billboard message stay on screen?
How does a business convert an old billboard to digital?
How close can a digital billboard be to a home?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Pinellas County
Florida rules heatmap·Compare Pinellas County to another location·View the Florida sign regulations overview
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