San Francisco, CA Sign Regulations: Digital Billboards (2026)
Key Facts
- General Advertising Signs
- prohibited in C, M, PDR districts
- Video Signs
- prohibited citywide, Sec. 607(e)(2)
- Video Sign covers
- LED, projected, animated images
- Enforcement
- Planning Dept., Sec. 604 & 610
Summary
San Francisco's Planning Code bans digital billboards outright: General Advertising Signs are prohibited in every Commercial, Industrial, and PDR district, and Video Signs -- LED, projected, or animated displays -- are banned even where a sign is otherwise allowed.
(a) General Advertising Signs. No General Advertising Sign shall be permitted in any C, M, or PDR District. ... (e)(2) Notwithstanding the type of Signs permissible under subsection (e), a Video Sign is prohibited.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: 2026 S-96: Codes: last updated to include changes made by legislation through Ordinance 133-26, File No. 260686, approved July 23, 2026, effective August 23, 2026).
Full Breakdown
Planning Code Section 607(a) prohibits any General Advertising Sign in San Francisco's C, M, and PDR Districts -- the citywide zoning categories where signs are generally permitted. Section 607(e)(2) separately bans Video Signs, defined in Section 602 to include LED screens, digital displays, projectors, and any technology that transmits animated or video images onto a building, wall, or other surface. The two bans stack: a billboard-style advertising structure is barred outright, and even a sign that would otherwise be allowed cannot use video or LED display technology. No neighborhood exception restores digital billboards anywhere in the city.
Violations & Fines
The Planning Department administers sign rules through Section 604 permitting and Section 610 administrative penalties. An application for a General Advertising Sign or Video Sign cannot be approved, and an unpermitted sign draws a notice of violation plus administrative penalties.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can a business put up a digital billboard in San Francisco?
What counts as a Video Sign under the code?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in San Francisco
California rules heatmap·Compare San Francisco to another location·View the California sign regulations overview
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