Order political campaign yard signs 6 to 12 weeks before Election Day, default to 18x24 inch corrugated plastic unless your budget calls for something bigger, and plan on a second order once you see where your first batch actually gets placed. That's the short version. The long version depends on the size of your race, your district, and how many corners your volunteers are willing to stake.
Conquer Printing prints yard signs, A-frame signs, banners, and flags out of our shop in North Highlands for campaigns across the Greater Sacramento Area. Every cycle we see the same split: campaigns that order in July or August get the sizes and quantities they actually planned for, and campaigns that wait until October end up paying rush pricing for whatever stock is still on the shelf.
How many yard signs do you actually need
There's no single number that works for every race. A city council seat with 8,000 registered voters calls for a very different order than a countywide ballot measure. Political consultants commonly use a rough guideline of one sign for every 25 to 30 registered voters in the target area, then add a 10 to 20 percent buffer for theft, wind, and the signs that quietly disappear under a pile of yard clippings by week three.
Rough starting points we've seen work:
- A small local race under 10,000 voters: 100 to 300 signs for the first order.
- A county supervisor, school board, or state assembly race: 300 to 1,000 or more.
- A ballot measure campaign: fewer total signs, concentrated at high-traffic intersections instead of spread thin across a whole district.
Two smaller print runs beat one oversized order sitting in a garage. Order what your volunteers can realistically place in the first two weeks, watch where signs actually vanish from, and reorder into that gap.
What campaign yard signs cost
Signage pricing is a quantity game more than anything else. The per-sign cost drops fast once you clear a few hundred units, and stakes, single-sided versus double-sided printing, and rush timing all move the total. Rather than guess, build your exact order on our quote calculator and you'll see live pricing for signs, stakes, and any A-frame or banner add-ons before you commit to anything. There's no minimum order, so it prices out fine whether you need 40 signs for a school board race or 1,000 for a countywide push.
Choosing the right format for your campaign
A yard sign isn't the only tool worth considering, and the right format depends on where your voters actually are.
| Format | Best for | Placement | Watch-out |
|---|---|---|---|
| 18x24 corrugated yard sign | Lawns, medians, intersections, high-volume distribution | Staked into the ground on private property or permitted public strips | Stolen or knocked down more than any other format |
| A-frame sign | Sidewalks, storefronts, farmers markets, canvassing tables | Freestanding, brought in each night | Someone has to move it daily, which is a real ask for a volunteer crew |
| Retractable banner | Campaign HQ, rallies, indoor forums | Portable stand, indoor or covered outdoor | Not built for open-weather placement |
| Double-sided flag | High-traffic roadsides, canvassing events, parades | Staked, catches the eye by moving in the wind | Better for short bursts than months-long placement |
Most campaigns run yard signs as the backbone and layer in A-frames or a banner for events and campaign HQ. You can browse the full lineup, including business cards, flyers, and door hangers for door-to-door canvassing, on our marketing materials page.
When to order so you don't pay rush fees
For the November 3, 2026 general election, plan to have your first batch of signs in hand by early September. That leaves 8 to 9 weeks of yard time before Election Day and enough runway to reorder if your campaign gains momentum or your signs start walking off faster than expected. Our standard turnaround is 7 to 10 business days, and rush production, 5 days or less for roughly 20% more, can bail out a campaign that got a late start. It won't save one that waits until the week before the election, so treat early September as the real deadline, not October.
Where you can, and can't, put a sign
California bars political signs from the right-of-way of state highways and from being visible within 660 feet of a landscaped freeway. Caltrans is authorized to pull unauthorized signs in those zones and bill the campaign for removal. Outside of that, most cities and counties in the Sacramento region allow signs on private property with the owner's permission and on some public rights-of-way, but exact rules shift by jurisdiction and sometimes by election cycle. Check with your local city clerk or campaign attorney before volunteers start staking medians and street corners. We print the signs. We don't file the paperwork, and neither should you skip it.
When a yard sign isn't the right call
Yard signs are cheap and get seen, but they carry almost no information beyond a name and a slogan. If your ballot measure needs an actual explanation, a corrugated sign at 60 miles an hour won't do that work. Door hangers or a simple flyer left on porches communicate far more than a sign ever will, and they're worth budgeting for alongside your signage, not instead of it. We'd steer a complicated ballot measure campaign toward pairing signs with door-to-door print pieces rather than betting everything on lawn visibility.
Common Questions
How many yard signs do I need for a local campaign?
A common starting rule is one sign for every 25 to 30 registered voters in your target area, adjusted up or down based on how concentrated your race is. Small local races typically start with 100 to 300 signs, county-level races often run 300 to 1,000 or more. Add a 10 to 20 percent buffer for theft and damage, and plan to reorder rather than printing your entire budget in a single batch.
How much do political yard signs cost in Sacramento?
Cost depends heavily on quantity, sign size, and whether you're printing one side or two. Larger orders bring the per-sign price down significantly compared to small runs. The fastest way to get an accurate number for your race is to build your order on our quote calculator, which shows live pricing before you submit anything.
When should I order my campaign yard signs?
Order 6 to 12 weeks before Election Day. For the November 3, 2026 general election, that means having signs in hand by early September at the latest. Waiting until October means competing with every other campaign for rush production slots, and rush pricing runs about 20% higher than standard turnaround.
Can I put a campaign yard sign anywhere in Sacramento?
Not anywhere. California law keeps political signs out of state highway rights-of-way and away from landscaped freeways within 660 feet, and Caltrans can remove violating signs and bill the campaign. Beyond that, rules for private property and local public right-of-way vary by city and county, so confirm placement rules with your local clerk's office before your team starts staking corners.
What size yard sign should I use for a political campaign?
18x24 inch corrugated plastic is the standard size for most campaigns and works well for lawns, medians, and intersections. Larger formats make sense for high-visibility spots like busy corners or campaign headquarters, while smaller signs cost less and let you cover more locations for the same budget.
Bottom line
Order early, size your first batch to what your volunteers can actually place, and hold some budget in reserve for a second run once you know where signs are disappearing from. If your campaign is also tabling at community events or farmers markets, a branded canopy from our vendor booth packages pairs well with your signage for the same coordinated look. Start with a free quote at conquerprinting.com/quote, or contact us if you'd rather talk through quantities and timing with a person first.