ABOUT BACKLIT BAR SIGNS
Backlit bar signs that set the mood behind the bar.
As a professional sign factory, we build custom backlit bar signs to your design: each piece with its own light source and circuit, fabricated to shape with LEDs inside and an opal acrylic back-panel toward the wall, for a warm halo, ready for indoor or outdoor use, UL Listed and backed by a 3-year limited warranty.
Once you approve the shop drawings, we start production. Production usually runs about 15 business days, and DHL door-to-door shipping then takes about a week, for a total of about 4 weeks from drawing approval to delivery.
What are backlit bar signs?
Backlit bar signs are custom illuminated signs for bars and lounges, and each separate piece has its own light source and its own circuit, made as a hollow metal sign shell (called a channel in the U.S.), rather than cut from solid metal. The face is laser cut, and the returns (the side walls) are fabricated to your shape and laser welded to the face into one hollow piece. The metal sign shell is open toward the wall, and that opening is closed with an opal acrylic back-panel that lets the light through. The Luxury model mounts flush against the wall by default and can also mount off the wall, while the Common model always mounts off the wall. Whenever a sign mounts off the wall, we supply stainless steel tube spacers. In both models, the low-voltage LEDs inside shine through the back-panel onto the wall, where the light forms a warm halo in the shape of the sign. Lights off, it reads as a crisp metal sign. Lights on, the shape glows on the wall in a warm halo. What sets backlit bar signs apart is the mood: bars, pubs, lounges, breweries, and cocktail bars all use one, and the back-bar brand wall is the most common spot, where a warm glow sets the tone over the bottles. 3000K warm white suits the cozy feel, while RGB or RGBW adds a color accent, and a sign headed for the storefront or patio is built weatherproof. Letters, logos, and shapes can all be built as backlit bar signs. The same build makes LED backlit logo signs, LED backlit letters, and, with deeper returns, 3D LED backlit signs.
Common applications and related pages
A bar’s sign is its face on the street and the backdrop to every photo inside, so almost any hospitality space can use one. It works out front on the street and inside behind the bar alike. Here are a few typical industries, and you can see all the industries we serve.
A well-made bar sign sets the mood inside and stands out on the street. Signs do bring customers: in a national survey, 76% of consumers had walked into a store they had never visited before because of its signage (per FedEx Office)1.
What we need for your custom project
- Design file
- A vector file works best. A high-resolution raster or an AI-generated flat image is enough for a quote. Skip software auto-tracing: it loses much of the detail, so send the high-resolution raster as it is.
- Property sign rules
- Before any design work starts, check the sign rules with your landlord or property manager: the allowed size range, any finish or color requirements, light color temperature limits, and the required mounting method. If the property has written sign criteria, send them to us, and both the quote and the shop drawings will follow them.
- Sizes
- Stay within the sign size range your property allows, then size the letters to the viewing distance: as a rule of thumb, a letter stays readable up to about 120 times its height, so a 1 in (25 mm) letter reads clearly within about 10 ft (3 m). For a street-facing bar sign, size up: in a national shopper study, 90.9% agreed a sign’s letters should be big enough to read from a car going by (per BrandSpark)3.
- Wall
- Send a photo of the wall where the sign will hang, back bar or storefront. Wall color and texture affect how bright the reflected halo reads (especially on the Common model), so the photo helps us plan the mounting method and advise on the light color temperature.
- Power
- By default, we use Mean Well power supplies. They accept 90 V to 264 V AC input. If the power available at your site is different or unusual, tell us before production, so we can match the right power supply for you.
- Indoor or outdoor
- Describe exactly where the sign will be installed: indoors behind the bar, outdoors on the storefront or patio, or on a coastal site, which also steers the metal (304 inland, 316 on the coast). For an outdoor sign in an extreme climate (high heat, heavy rain, cold, or dust), tell us before we lock the production details.
- Finish
- Choose from a full range:
- Mirror polished
- Brushed
- Vibration finish
- Painted or powder-coated color, in gloss, semi-gloss, or matte (tell us the exact color and we color-match to Pantone, RAL, Sherwin-Williams (SW), or Matthews Paint (MP) swatches)
- Plated metal colors (gold, black titanium, copper, and more)
- Special effects such as wood grain, antique, and marble look
- Light color
- White: 3000K warm white, 4000K natural white, or 6000K white
- Red, yellow, blue, or green
- Color-changing: RGB, or RGBW (RGB plus a dedicated white channel)
- Another single color or a specific color temperature: tell us, and we set it up for you.
Light colors are approximate and are not matched to color swatches.
Choosing your model: Luxury or Common
Backlit bar signs come in two models, the Luxury model and the Common model, and they differ in how the halo forms. On the Luxury model the acrylic back-panel is partly exposed outside the metal sign shell, and the light leaves from that exposed edge straight onto the wall, which is why it mounts flush against the wall by default and gives a brighter, wider halo. On the Common model the back-panel sits fully inside the metal sign shell, the halo forms by reflection off the wall, and the sign has to stand off the wall for that to happen. The right pick depends on where the sign will hang. See the point-by-point comparison in Compare below.
Luxury model
- Opal acrylic back-panel partly exposed, with a stronger halo
- Mounts flush against the wall by default, or off the wall on stainless steel tube spacers
- Suits premium storefronts and brand walls
View Luxury Model Common model- Opal acrylic back-panel hidden inside the metal sign shell
- Must mount off the wall, on 13/16 in (20 mm) stainless steel tube spacers by default
- Suits storefronts, large signs, curved walls, and outdoor sites
View Common Model Installation and electrical
Installation
- Installation is arranged on your side: we recommend a professional sign installer, with an electrician making the final electrical connection (you can find both on Yelp or Google Maps). Professional installation gives the sign a longer life, a better look on the wall, and safer, more reliable wiring. The job covers drilling the wall, setting stud bolts, routing wires, placing the power supply, and low-voltage wiring.
- We supply a 1:1 mounting template, the wiring diagram, the installation instructions, and the mounting hardware, such as stud bolts and a Mean Well power supply.
- If the wall can’t take many holes, we can mount all the pieces on a metal backer box at the factory, so the sign goes up as one piece.
- The Common model must mount off the wall for the reflected halo to form, so we include stainless steel tube spacers, 13/16 in (20 mm) long by default, which also hide the studs and wiring. If you want a different off-wall distance, tell us in advance. The Luxury model mounts flush against the wall by default, and when it mounts off the wall, it uses the same stainless steel tube spacers.
Power supply
- The power supply usually sits behind the wall or above the ceiling, in a spot that sheds heat and stays accessible for service.
- For U.S. projects, we plan a 12V DC low-voltage system with a UL Listed Mean Well power supply before production. The wiring must follow our wiring diagram exactly, so each letter’s load matches its power supply, and the sign must never be connected to a supply that does not match the power supply’s input.
Outdoor planning
- 304 stainless steel by default. For a coastal or near-coast site, tell us: the metal sign shells and all the mounting hardware are then made in marine-grade 316 stainless steel.
- Outdoor signs use waterproof LEDs by default. For rainy regions we upgrade them to IP67 and plan drainage holes at the bottom of the metal sign shells, plus edge detailing that keeps the halo outline clean.
Backlit bar signs FAQ notes
- What light color gives a bar the best mood?
- 3000K warm white best suits a bar’s cozy feel and flatters wood and leather, for a soft, inviting glow. If you want a color accent or a look that changes with the night or an event, adjustable RGB or RGBW is the pick. Tell us your space and we will suggest the light color.
- Can the sign hang on the back-bar wall or over the bottles?
- Yes. The back-bar wall is the most common spot. For a flush look with a brighter, wider halo, choose the Luxury model: it mounts flush against the wall by default. For a softer reflected glow, choose the Common model, mounted off the wall on stainless steel tube spacers. Send a photo of the wall and the mounting spot and we will plan the install and the wiring.
- Will it hold up over a busy bar with heat, moisture, and cleaning?
- Yes. The metal sign shell is durable and easy to wipe down, and for a damp spot near a sink or ice well we add waterproofing. A storefront or patio sign is built in 304 stainless steel by default, or in marine-grade 316, mounting hardware included, on coastal or high-salt sites, and the LEDs are waterproof, with drainage holes at the bottom of the metal sign shells. Tell us where it hangs and we set the metal and the protection to match.
- Can you match my bar’s logo and exact brand colors?
- Yes. Letters, logos, and shapes can all be built as metal sign shells, and we color-match against physical Pantone, RAL, SW, and MP swatches, with the exact values set in the shop drawings.
- Luxury or Common for a bar sign?
- For an interior back-bar brand wall, we suggest the Luxury model: it mounts flush against the wall by default, with a brighter, wider halo. For a storefront, a patio, large letters, or a curved wall, the Common model is the usual pick. Tell us where it hangs and we will advise.
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