How Much Does a Billboard Cost?

How much does a billboard cost?

There’s no denying it. Billboard advertising can be insanely effective.

Just think about it: one minute you’re enjoying a quiet car ride with your kids to the grocery store and the next, they’re chanting to go to McDonald’s because of the flashy new billboard on the freeway. Because of this, it’s safe to assume that billboard rentals probably come with a hefty price tag.

In this post, we will provide you a quick rundown of how much billboard advertising costs. While the exact prices may vary, this post will help you calculate an estimate.

Why do Brands Invest Millions in Billboard Ads?

Using billboards instantly generates brand awareness about said products and services. Sure, it might have minimal impact at first sight, but imagine seeing the same billboard day after day. Eventually (most probably in a couple of days), your brain will start to register the brand, causing it to seep into your subconscious thus leading to brand engagement.

So your target audience isn’t just looking at a huge billboard. They’re actually in the process of making a connecting with your brand and that’s exactly why outdoor advertising still works.

Additionally, using billboards is one of the most effective forms of OOH advertising. Out-of-home advertising is a means of reaching out to consumers when they’re out an about, outside their homes.

So, How Much Does a Billboard Cost?

Let’s cut to the chase. Billboard advertising can roughly cost your brand around $1,500 to $4,000. But of course, this range is best suited for most small or mid-sized cities. In reality, prices can fluctuate and exceed high than $14,000 if we’re talking about bigger cities like NYC.

Not to mention, factors such as demographics, value, and overall exposure play an integral role in determining the price of billboards. For instance, a billboard in a high traffic area in San Francisco can cost you around $15,000.

Consequently, the prices can fall as low as $250 in rural areas.

Factors That Impact Billboard Advertising Cost

To make things easier, advertising agencies measure the effectiveness of a brand using a standard out-of-home rating, popularly referred as OOH ratings. This standard of measurement is based on three primary factors including:

Circulation

This is basically the overall volume of traffic that’ll pass by the billboard. However, this figure does not provide an accurate representation of the number of people that will actually see your ad.

The circulation figure can be retrieved from the transport authorities.

Demographics

You obviously have a particular target audience in mind when you’re thinking of running a billboard. Demographics is a breakdown of people that pass by a particular billboard on the basis of gender, income level and age.

So if the demographics consist of folks with a higher income level, you can expect a high number in terms of billboard rental.

Impressions

Now, this is perhaps the most important factor of all. Impressions are based on the number of people that see the ad based on the billboard’s overall size and visibility. These details are typically derived from geo-positioning or on the basis of circulation.

Other factors that might tip the costs of billboard advertisements include:

Size of the Billboard

Consider this a general rule of thumb: the bigger the advertising space, the higher the cost of rent.

Needless to say, a bigger billboard is bound to improve visibility, increase brand recall and boost the number of impressions. Plus, bigger sized boards require more material, doubling production costs for printing and then placement. So to answer your question “how much does a billboard cost?”, pay attention to all these factors.

Visibility

While the location of the billboard plays a key factor in driving more views, it’s clearly not enough. For instance, visibility can be affected by a number of factors including the height of the billboard and where it’s been placed.

Additionally, you must also look into how well-lit the billboard is when it gets dark.

Traditional Billboard Ads vs. Digital Billboard

Alternatively, you can also choose to go big with a digital billboard.

As opposed to conventional print billboards, digital ones can run multiple advertisements and can also feature running text and pictures. Despite its higher costs, a digital billboard is more eye-catchy and dynamic in nature. Plus, you can always go back and make creative changes after collecting information about how the ad has been received by the audience.

This is something that would be too time-consuming and expensive with a conventional billboard.

Wrapping it Up: How Much Does a Billboard Cost?

So you see, there are many factors that determine the overall cost of the billboard.

Is there something you’d like to add? Tell us about it in the comment section below!