St. Louis County, MO Sign Regulations: Digital Billboards (2026)
Key Facts
- Max size
- 800 sq ft per facing
- Max height
- 35 ft above street grade
- Spacing
- 1,400 ft apart, same side
- Allowed districts
- C-8, M-3, MXD only
- Flashing mode
- Banned; fixed/traveling LED allowed
Summary
St. Louis County has no separate digital-billboard category: LED and static advertising signs share the same 800-square-foot, 35-foot-high cap under Section 1003.168B, spaced at least 1,400 feet apart, and permitted only in "C-8," "M-3," and "MXD" planned districts.
Advertising signs shall not exceed eight hundred (800) square feet in outline area, nor extend more than thirty-five (35) feet above the elevation of the adjacent street. An advertising sign shall not be located closer than one thousand four hundred (1,400) feet on the same side of the highway as any other advertising sign or building to which an advertising sign is attached, nor within fifty (50) feet of any "PS" Park and Scenic or any "R" Residence District zoned property or any "NU" Non-Urban zoned property, nor within ten (10) feet of any side or rear property line. A group of not more than three (3) advertising signs shall be permitted on one (1) structure, except that where a structure is located perpendicular to the street right-of-way, two (2) sign facings shall be permitted in each direction.
(3) No outdoor advertising sign shall be located within fifty (50) feet of any roadway right-of-way line, except that where existing buildings on immediately adjacent tracts (on both sides) are located closer to the roadway right-of-way than fifty (50) feet an advertising sign may be placed within the average setback of the existing buildings on each side of the advertising sign. Where a building on an adjacent tract exists on one (1) side only, located closer to the roadway right-of-way than fifty (50) feet, an advertising sign may be placed within the average setback of the existing building and the fifty-foot setback required by these regulations.
(4)
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: Code of Ordinances: Supplement 85 | Traffic: Supplement 80).
Full Breakdown
Advertising signs -- the county's term for billboards -- may be electronic under the general sign code's exemption for "electronic message center" displays from the ban on intermittent lighting, but the dimensional standards in Section 1003.168B apply regardless of whether the face is a static panel or an LED screen: 800 square feet maximum outline area per facing, a 35-foot height cap above the adjacent street, at least 1,400 feet of separation from the next billboard on the same side of a highway, and a location restricted to the "C-8" Planned Commercial, "M-3" Planned Industrial, or "MXD" Mixed Use Development District. Elsewhere in the county, off-premise billboards -- digital or otherwise -- are simply prohibited.
Violations & Fines
A billboard installed without a Transportation and Public Works permit, or found unsafe, can be dismantled and removed by the county with the cost billed to the property owner.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I put a digital billboard on my commercial property in unincorporated St. Louis County?
Can a billboard's digital display flash or scroll?
How far apart must digital billboards be spaced?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in St. Louis County
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