Birmingham, AL Sign Regulations: Window Signs (2026)

Article VI, Section 9 of the zoning ordinance (Appendix D) lists window signs among the exemptions from the section's general permit requirement. Exempt signs must still meet all other applicable codes and regulations, and the list includes window signs which identify or advertise activities, services, goods, or products available within the building, and which collectively cover 20 percent or less of the window glass surface area. The 20 percent cap is calculated across all window signage on the building's glass, not per window, so several smaller signs in different windows are added together against the same threshold.

The ordinance draws a separate boundary in its definitions: the definition of sign excludes hand-painted window signs of less than 70 square feet, meaning a small hand-painted window sign can fall outside the sign section entirely, independent of the 20-percent test. Signs that push past the 20-percent threshold do not become automatically illegal; they simply lose the exemption and must obtain a permit from the Department of Planning, Engineering and Permits like any other sign, along with the underlying category's size, height, and placement standards.

General requirements that apply to every sign in the city, exempt or not, still bind window displays: they cannot resemble a traffic control device, obstruct a driver's view at a drive or intersection, or use an unshielded light source that shines glare onto the street. Window signs that use intermittent, beacon-style, or spotlighted illumination can also trip the separate illumination bans even while staying under the 20 percent area cap.