Outdoor Sign Letters for Buildings and Shop Fronts, Cut to Measure

Otypo's letters for outside signs are individual flat cut letters, words, numbers or logos cut to your design, in materials rated for outdoor use: Natural aluminium (1.5 mm), Aluminium Dibond and Brushed Aluminium Dibond (3 mm), brass (1.5 or 3 mm), Okoumé wood (18 mm), printed or transparent plexiglass (3 to 8 mm), Thin PVC (1.3 mm) and expanded PVC, also called Foamex (3 to 19 mm). They come in any size from 7 cm to 4 m. Outside, you fix them on snap-on spacers about 1.5 cm off the wall (paper mounting template included) or with Ultra Adhesive, even on render and brick. Every order is made within 24 working hours, with tiered pricing by size.

Letters for Outside Signs, Cut to Your Design

Exterior letters can spell out a company name on a façade or an entrance wall. They also work on an access gate, as a building name or as unit numbers. You can type your text in the online editor and check the live preview, or import your logo. You then order online with no quote and no trade account. This means outdoor business sign letters can be tested on screen first: you try fonts, sizes and materials, then order exactly what you approved.

The 3D effect of these exterior sign letters comes from two things. The first is the thickness of the material, up to 19 mm in expanded PVC and 18 mm in Okoumé. The second is the snap-on spacers, which hold each letter off the wall so it casts a soft shadow. For large outdoor letter signs, a single piece can reach 4,000 × 2,400 mm. To compare every material and finish, browse our full range of cut-out letters and shapes.

There is one honest limit. We make flat cut letters that are fixed to a wall or surface. We don't make illuminated letters, built-up box letters or free-standing giant letters.

Which Materials Can Go Outside? Weatherproof Letters by Material

Weatherproof letters start with the right material. We don't make a blanket promise. Instead, here is the editor's own indoor/outdoor rating for each material, including the ones that must stay inside. "Rated for indoor and outdoor use" is the label we stand by, with no years or guarantees attached.

• Natural aluminium (1.5 mm): indoor + outdoor. Fixing: snap-on spacers or Ultra Adhesive.
• Aluminium Dibond (3 mm): indoor + outdoor. Fixing: snap-on spacers or Ultra Adhesive.
• Brushed Aluminium Dibond (3 mm): indoor + outdoor. Fixing: snap-on spacers or Ultra Adhesive.
• Polished glossy brass / Raw matt brass (1.5 or 3 mm): indoor + outdoor, resists UV and weather, and may develop a natural patina over time. Fixing: snap-on spacers or Ultra Adhesive.
• Okoumé wood (18 mm): indoor + outdoor. Fixing: snap-on spacers or Ultra Adhesive.
• Standard / Black expanded PVC (Foamex) (3–19 mm / 19 mm): indoor / outdoor. Fixing: snap-on spacers or Ultra Adhesive.
• Premium Douglas fir (19 mm): indoor / sheltered outdoor only.
• Mirror Aluminium Dibond (3 mm): indoor only.
• Hevea wood · Plywood (18 mm · 3 mm): indoor use only.
• Mirror plexiglass (3 mm): indoor only.
• Printed / Transparent plexiglass (3–8 mm): indoor + outdoor (for a very exposed façade, aluminium is often preferable).
• Thin PVC (1.3 mm): indoor + outdoor.

Metal Letters for Outside: Aluminium, Dibond and Brass

Natural aluminium (1.5 mm) comes in eight colours: anodised, brushed, gold, black, bronze-coloured, blue, red and green. It is the one to choose for black metal letters outdoors. Aluminium Dibond (3 mm) can be printed in any colour you choose. Its rigid composite core makes it ideal for large metal letters for outside. Brushed Aluminium Dibond (3 mm) comes in silver or gold. All three are rated for indoor and outdoor use, so they work well as metal letters on an outside wall.

Brass also goes outside, in Polished glossy brass or Raw matt brass. Both may develop a natural patina over time, especially outdoors, and the polished version is slightly more prone to it than the raw matte one. A clear varnish applied after fitting keeps the original tone, although the patina is often sought after. Looking for stainless steel letters? Our cut-out letters don't come in stainless steel. However, Brushed Aluminium Dibond gives the same brushed-metal look, and polished brass gives a bright gold shine. Please note that Mirror Aluminium Dibond is indoor only. If you prefer a flat plate to individual letters, see our aluminium signs.

Outdoor Wood Letters: Okoumé, and Douglas Fir Under Shelter

Okoumé (18 mm) is the only wood we rate for indoor and outdoor use. Its thickness gives outdoor wooden sign letters real depth on an outside wall. Premium Douglas fir (19 mm) is rated for sheltered outdoor use only, for example under a deep porch, while Okoumé has a warm brown tone. Hevea and Plywood are indoor only. Each wood keeps the natural colour of its species. We don't promise a lifespan.

Plastic Outdoor Letters: Expanded PVC (Foamex) and Acrylic

For plastic outdoor letters, expanded PVC (Foamex) is the reliable answer. Standard expanded PVC comes in 3, 5, 8 or 19 mm, printed in the colour of your choice. Black expanded PVC comes in 19 mm. Both are rated indoor/outdoor, and both are light and easy to mount.

If you searched for outdoor acrylic letters, here is the honest answer. Printed and transparent acrylic (plexiglass) letters are rated for indoor and outdoor use. For a very exposed façade, aluminium is often preferable. Mirror plexiglass is indoor only, while Thin PVC (1.3 mm) is also rated for indoor and outdoor use. If you need a flat panel rather than letters, look at our outdoor PVC signs.

Building & Exterior Lettering

Building lettering can name a head office, a school, a clinic, a warehouse or an apartment block. It can also mark an outdoor entrance or number the units on a business park. Exterior letters for buildings need rigidity and presence:

• Aluminium Dibond and Brushed Aluminium Dibond handle large formats well.
• Natural aluminium suits crisp metal lettering for buildings.
• Brass lifts a premium entrance.
• Okoumé matches a timber façade.

All our building sign letters are flat cut and fixed to the wall. Built-up box letters are a different kind of fabrication, often illuminated, and we don't offer them. For a façade-wide panel rather than individual letters, see our large signs. For a number on a plate by the front door, our house number signs are a better fit. You can also browse finished façades and entrances in our work.

Planning permission

Some building and shop-front signs need advertisement consent. Check with your local planning authority (Planning Portal) before you order.

Fixing Letters to an Outside Wall: Snap-On Spacers or Ultra Adhesive

For outdoor wall letters, two fixings do the job:

• Snap-on spacers are the reference outdoors. They hold each letter about 1.5 cm off the wall, giving a shadow effect with an invisible fixing. The fixings come already mounted on the back. Drilling is required, and each piece must be at least 20 × 20 mm.
• Ultra Adhesive is a high-performance double-sided foam that needs no drilling and holds on render and brick. It works indoors and outdoors.

A paper mounting template comes included with the spacers. It sets out the alignment and spacing of the whole composition at full size, so a long name stays straight.

What about outdoor magnetic sign letters? Magnetic fixing only works on a steel surface, such as a steel door or partition, not on a masonry wall. It is repositionable and handy for temporary use, rather than for a permanent façade sign. The "no fixing" option, designed for thick letters resting on a shelf, doesn't belong outside either.

How Big Should Outdoor Letters Be?

Letters run from 7 cm high up to 4,000 × 2,400 mm per piece. (Plywood stops at 2,000 × 1,200 mm, but it stays indoors anyway.) There is no single rule. The further away people read it, the taller the letters should be, and a wide façade needs a name that fills it. From a distance, a thick material such as 18 mm Okoumé or 19 mm expanded PVC shows more relief. For large exterior letters, an SVG file keeps the edges clean at scale.

Your Logo Outside: Files and Proof

We can cut your logo to its own silhouette for the façade. We accept AI, EPS, SVG, PDF, JPG and PNG files, so you don't need a scaled vector file. For large formats, SVG is still best. Once your order is confirmed, you receive a proof by email within 24 business hours to check before cutting. The editor also offers a wide choice of fonts, including script styles.

Price and Production

We use tiered pricing by size. The price depends on the surface area, the material and the fixing, and it updates live in the editor as you design. There is no quote to request. Every order is made within 24 working hours. Delivery options and costs are shown at checkout.

You may also like :

• acrylic letters
• flat cut letters
• metal letters for signs
• name signs
• shop sign letters
• 3D letters for walls
• 3D wall logo
• wooden letters for walls
• brass letters
• PVC letters