Tacoma, WA Sign Regulations: Digital Billboards (2026)
Key Facts
- Digital billboards
- Prohibited citywide
- Digital billboard defined
- >72 sq ft, off-premises
- On-site message signs
- Allowed, capped at 30 sq ft
- Message-change speed
- 12-second minimum interval
- Governing code
- TMC § 13.06.090.I.3
Summary
Tacoma bans off-premises digital billboards outright as a prohibited sign type, while allowing smaller on-site electronic message signs under separate brightness, size, and curfew standards.
Prohibited signs. The following commercial signs are prohibited, except as may be otherwise provided by this chapter: ... (12) Digital Billboards.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: rev 4946110; v22 updated 2026-07-28).
Full Breakdown
Tacoma's sign code defines a 'digital billboard' as an off-premises sign larger than 72 square feet that uses digital technology to change its message electronically, and TMC § 13.06.090I.3.c lists Digital Billboards outright among the city's prohibited commercial sign types: they cannot be permitted anywhere in the city, in any zoning district. That ban is separate from Tacoma's rules for on-premises 'electronic changing message center' signs, which are allowed but capped at 30 square feet (or 75% of the otherwise-allowed sign area), 15 feet in height, a 12-second minimum message-change interval, and a nighttime operating curfew.
Violations & Fines
Erecting an off-premises digital billboard anywhere in Tacoma violates the prohibited-signs list at § 13.06.090I.3.c; Planning and Development Services can deny the permit or order the sign removed as an illegal sign.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can a business put up a digital billboard in Tacoma?
Are electronic message signs on a business's own property allowed?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Tacoma
Compare Tacoma to another location·View the Washington sign regulations overview
See something wrong?
Help us keep this page accurate. If you notice an error or outdated information, let us know.
Digital Billboards in Nearby Cities
How other cities in this county handle digital billboards.