Custom Neon Sign Process: How Long It Takes

Most people who order a custom neon sign have never ordered one before. You know what you want the sign to say; what you do not know is what happens next — who designs it, how long production takes, whether you approve anything before it is built, and when the box shows up at your door.

This is the process we run every working day in our own workshop. Read it once and you will know what to expect — including the points where a slow reply from you, not our production line, is what delays your sign.

How Long Does a Custom Neon Sign Take to Make?

The honest answer is that it depends on how custom the sign is. A standard design with a small tweak moves through the workshop in a couple of days. A fully custom layout drawn from scratch — a logo, a mascot, a handwritten signature — takes longer, because every letter has to be shaped by hand rather than pulled from a template.

Order Type	Production Time	Total Time to Ship
Standard sign (minor customization)	1–3 days	3–5 business days
Fully custom design	4–7 days	5–10 business days
Bulk / commercial orders (5+ units)	7–14 days	1–3 weeks

One detail is easy to miss: the clock starts when you approve your digital proof, not when you place the order. If a proof sits in your inbox for four days, your sign ships four days later. The fastest way to speed up your own order is to reply to the proof quickly.

Step 1: Send Us Your Idea, Text or Artwork

Every order starts with the same short brief. You do not need design software or a finished file — just clear answers to five questions:

The exact wording or symbol — including capitalisation and punctuation. “let’s stay in” and “Let’s Stay In” are two different signs.
Colour direction — one fixed colour, or something switchable like RGB with a remote or app.
Where it will live — indoor or outdoor, wall-mounted or hanging, above a bar, over a bed, in a shop window.
Roughly how big — a target width in inches or centimetres is enough to start; we confirm final dimensions on the proof.
Any deadline — a wedding date, an opening night, a shoot day. Tell us early and we will flag it on the job sheet.

If you are still deciding on size, spend five minutes with a tape measure first. Our guide to measuring your space for a neon sign covers the three measurements to take and the wall-to-sign ratio that keeps a sign from looking either lost or cramped.

What file formats work best for logos and artwork

Vector files (AI, EPS, SVG, PDF) — the ideal starting point. A vector scales and re-paths without losing the curves the sign will follow.
High-resolution PNG or JPG — workable for most logos, but send the largest version you have. A 200-pixel-wide website header image will not trace cleanly, and a screenshot from a font picker only helps if you also name the font.
A photo of a handwritten signature or sketch — perfectly fine. We redraw it as a vector path and show you the result on the proof.

Step 2: You Get a Digital Proof Before Anything Is Built

Nothing is cut, bent or soldered until you have seen and approved a digital mockup. The proof shows font style, letter spacing, layout, colour and the exact outer dimensions of the finished sign, so you are approving the real thing rather than a rough idea of it.

Proofs go out within 1–2 business days, and revisions are free and unlimited during the design stage — different font, tighter curve, colour moved to another word, a wider layout. This is the cheapest moment to change your mind: changing a drawing costs nothing, while changing a finished sign costs a rebuild.

Four things to check on the proof

Spelling and capitalisation, read letter by letter. It is the most common correction.
The dimensions against your actual wall. Hold a tape measure up at the quoted width — a proof on a phone screen is a poor judge of physical size.
The cable exit point. Tell us where your outlet is and we route the power lead out of the side that reaches it without an extension cord.
Colour under your lighting. Warm white, pink and ice blue read very differently on a dark bar wall than on a bright bedroom wall — our neon sign colour guide shows how each option behaves in real rooms.

Step 3: Locking In Size, Colour and Backing

Size. Two rules of thumb do most of the work: a sign should fill roughly 60–70% of the space it occupies, and take up no more than two-thirds — but no less than one-third — of the wall width. On a 48-inch wall that means 16 to 32 inches wide. Viewing distance matters too: 12–18 inches works at five feet, 24 inches is the minimum at ten feet, and anything read from twenty feet or more wants 36 inches and up. The full neon sign size chart covers letter heights in detail.

Colour. A single fixed colour is the simplest and most reliable option, and what most home and hospitality signs use. RGB or WiFi-controllable signs add flexibility for a small premium and a couple of extra days — worth it if the sign will be reused for different events.

Backing. The acrylic base can be cut to the outline of your design for a clean floating look, or left as a rectangle or circle that reads as a deliberate panel. Backing carries the mounting points, so decide before production rather than after.

Step 4: Inside the Workshop — How Your Sign Is Actually Built

Once the proof is approved, your order joins the production queue. Here is what happens, station by station:

Step	What Happens	Typical Time
1. Design & mockup	Layout, lettering, size and colour confirmed as a digital proof	Same day
2. LED flex cutting	Neon flex cut to the exact path for each letter and symbol	1–2 hours
3. Letter & symbol forming	Flex bent and formed into each character shape	1 day
4. Soldering	Joints and connection points soldered and insulated	Half day
5. Power supply assembly	Transformer / driver wired and mounted	Half day
6. Brightness test	Full sign powered up and checked for even glow	1 hour
7. QC inspection	Multi-point quality checklist completed	1 hour
8. Packaging	Protected packing for safe shipping	Half day

Modern custom neon is built from LED neon flex — silicone- or rubber-coated tubing running on low-voltage 12–24V power, so it is cool to the touch and safe in bedrooms and nurseries. Every sign uses the same components: the flex, an acrylic backing board, an aluminium channel for the frame and mounting rail, sealed connectors, and a matched power supply.

Quality control is not one final glance before the box closes. Solder joints, connector seating and brightness uniformity are checked at each station — a cold solder joint or a poorly seated connector shortens a sign’s life far sooner than the LED flex does. See how custom neon signs are made for the full factory process and QC checklist.

Step 5: What Does a Custom Neon Sign Cost?

Size decides how much tubing, backing and bending labour the sign needs; complexity decides how much design time it takes. Realistic ranges for LED neon by finished size:

Sign Size (W × H)	Typical Price Range	Best For
12″ × 8″ (30 × 20 cm)	$80 – $120	Desk decor, small bedroom accent
16″ × 12″ (40 × 30 cm)	$100 – $160	Bedroom, office, gaming corner
24″ × 16″ (60 × 40 cm)	$140 – $220	Living room, photo backdrop
36″ × 24″ (90 × 60 cm)	$220 – $350	Café, bar, small storefront
48″ × 36″ (120 × 90 cm)	$350 – $550	Storefront, restaurant, large walls
60″+ (150 cm+)	$500 – $1,200+	Exterior signage, hero walls

Complexity then moves the number up in predictable steps. Plain text in a standard font is the baseline. One simple icon such as a heart, star or arrow typically adds 10–25%. A logo with curved outlines and enclosed areas adds 25–50%. Dense layered artwork or a redrawn mascot can add 50–100% or more, because every extra loop and tight curve is additional hand-shaping.

Two optional extras are worth budgeting for: rush production for a three-day turnaround, and double-sided builds at roughly 40–60% more plus a few days. The full custom neon sign cost breakdown includes catalogue examples at each size if you want to sanity-check a quote before you ask for one.

Step 6: Packaging, Shipping and Tracking

Your sign leaves the workshop wrapped in protective foam inside a rigid box, and every order ships with tracking. In practice:

Free standard shipping on most orders, with express delivery available at checkout.
International orders ship via DHL, typically 5–10 business days in transit. Customs fees are the buyer’s responsibility.
Power cable and mounting accessories are included — no separate hardware order.
Shipments are insured, so transit damage is covered rather than argued about.

If your timeline is tight, order early rather than upgrading shipping. Express freight shortens the transit leg by a few days, but the production schedule usually decides whether a sign lands before an event.

Step 7: Unboxing, Testing and Mounting

Before you open anything, look at the box itself. Crushed corners, punctures, water stains or a rattling sound are worth photographing before the tape comes off — that photo makes a damage claim straightforward. Then open on a clean flat surface, cut away from the centre, lift the sign by its backing rather than the tubing, and place it face-up on a soft towel.

Run a quick inspection before mounting: no kinks in the tubing, no scratches or warping on the backing, all letters aligned and attached, mounting brackets present, the cable connector secure, and the transformer free of dents or burn marks.

Then plug it in before you mount it. A single-colour sign should light immediately; for a remote or RGB sign, test on/off, brightness levels and colour modes. Walk around it — the glow should be even with no dark spots or one letter visibly dimmer than its neighbours.

Mounting is genuinely simple. Clean the surface, apply the included adhesive strips or screw the brackets in place, position the sign and press firmly. Our signs run on low-voltage DC, so there is no special wiring: the adapter plugs into any standard outlet. For renters, our guide to installing a neon sign without damaging walls covers the damage-free options. Most customers are looking at a glowing sign within 15 minutes of opening the box.

Step 8: If the Sign Is Going Outdoors, Three Things Change

Outdoor is the one case where the standard process is not enough. An indoor-rated LED neon sign used outside typically fails within 3–12 months — not because the tubing is weak, but because water reaches the power supply and connectors. In more than 70% of the outdoor failures we see, the LED tube itself is still fine.

So for outdoor orders we change three things. First, sealing: IP65 is the minimum for rain and hose spray, and IP67 is the better choice for a sign facing direct rain with no overhead cover. Second, sealed waterproof connectors and an enclosed power supply instead of a standard wall plug. Third, the mounting method: brackets instead of adhesive, a slight downward angle so water does not pool on the face, and a drip loop so water runs off the cable at its low point. Our IP ratings guide explains what each rating number actually protects against.

After Installation: Care, Lifespan and Warranty

A quality LED neon sign is rated for 50,000–100,000 hours of runtime. At 100,000 hours the LEDs have typically dimmed to about 70% of their original brightness — a gradual softening, not a sudden failure. Turned on for eight hours a day, that is well over twenty years of use, which is why LED neon has largely replaced glass for decorative signage.

Keeping it that way is mostly about avoiding heat and dust. Dust gently with a soft dry cloth, use water on a microfibre cloth instead of harsh chemicals, keep the sign away from direct sun and heat sources, and check that weather seals are still intact on outdoor units.

Every sign carries a 1-year warranty covering manufacturing defects, LED failure and power adapter issues, with free replacement or repair for covered defects. Because we manufacture in our own factory rather than reselling, a covered replacement can be produced in about 5–7 business days. The warranty and guarantee guide sets out exactly what is covered and what is not.

What If Something Goes Wrong?

Three things account for almost every problem we see after delivery.

Transit damage. Photograph the box and the sign, then contact us within 48 hours. Shipments are insured and a replacement goes out immediately.
Power adapter failure. The most frequent failure mode on any brand of LED sign, usually showing up in the first three months. Send a photo or short video and we can often ship a replacement adapter without you returning the sign.
A dead segment or flicker. Almost always a solder joint or connector rather than the LED itself. Do not open the sign or attempt a repair during the warranty period — that voids coverage.

Keep the packaging until the first power-on test passes.

FAQ: The Custom Neon Sign Ordering Process

Q: How long does a custom neon sign take? A fully custom design takes 4–7 days in production and 5–10 business days total from proof approval. A standard design with minor customization ships in 3–5 business days.
Q: Do I see the sign before it is made? Yes. You receive a digital proof within 1–2 business days showing font, layout, colour and exact dimensions, and nothing is built until you approve it.
Q: What if I do not like the first design? Revisions are free and unlimited during the design stage. You only approve when you are completely happy with it.
Q: Can I change the size after ordering? Yes, as long as production has not started. We confirm final dimensions with you before manufacturing begins.
Q: Is installation difficult? No. All mounting hardware is included and most customers install their sign in under 15 minutes. No electrician is needed.
Q: Do you ship internationally? Yes, worldwide via DHL, usually 5–10 business days. Customs fees are the buyer’s responsibility.

Ready to start? Send us your wording or artwork and we will have a proof back to you in a day or two — begin with a free custom design consultation, or browse the neon sign collection if you would rather adapt an existing design. Still weighing up materials? LED neon versus glass neon explains why LED is the default choice for custom signage today.