Pasadena, CA Sign Regulations: Window Signs (2026)
Key Facts
- Window coverage cap
- 25% of window area, permanent plus temporary combined
- Promotional window signs
- 1 per window, same 25% cap, Table 4-22
- Permit needed
- Temporary Sign Permit for promotional window signs
- Duration
- Up to 3 periods per year, 30 days each
- Material rule
- Only interior window signs may use nonrigid paper
Summary
Pasadena limits how much of a storefront window can be covered by signage. Municipal Code Section 17.48.120(B) caps combined permanent and temporary window signs at 25 percent of any window, and promotional window signs displayed under a Temporary Sign Permit carry the identical 25 percent cap under Table 4-22.
B.Number and size allowed. Temporary signs are allowed in addition to permanent signs allowed for the property. However, combinations of permanent and temporary window signs shall not cover more than 25 percent of any window.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: Code of Ordinances: Supplement 79 Update 2).
Full Breakdown
48's temporary-sign standards set the operative coverage limit for window advertising. 110(I)(4). Table 4-22 (Temporary Signs) repeats the same 25-percent-of-window-area limit specifically for promotional window signs, which are allowed at one sign per window in the CD, CG, CL, CO, and IG commercial and industrial districts and require a Temporary Sign Permit issued by the Planning & Community Development Department before installation. A promotional window sign may run up to three separate periods per calendar year, 30 days each, under that permit. 170 defines a "window sign" broadly, and extends the definition to interior signage, counting an interior sign that faces a window within three feet of it as a window sign for coverage-calculation purposes.
100(F) requires window signs to be constructed of durable, rigid material, the only exception in the chapter for nonrigid paper signage being interior window signs. Businesses papering an entire storefront window with sale banners or product graphics, even temporarily, risk exceeding the 25 percent threshold once permanent signage already on the glass is counted toward the same limit.
Violations & Fines
Exceeding the 25 percent window coverage limit is enforced as a Zoning Code violation, prosecutable as a misdemeanor under Pasadena Municipal Code Section 1.24.020 with a fine up to $1,000 and up to six months in city jail, or charged instead as an infraction with escalating fines of $100, $200, and $500 for repeat violations within a year. Promotional signs installed without the required Temporary Sign Permit are additionally subject to removal as illegal signs under Section 17.48.160.
Frequently Asked Questions
How much of my storefront window can I cover with signs?
Do I need a permit for a temporary sale sign in my window?
Does an interior poster facing the street count as a window sign?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Pasadena
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