Friday, Nov. 8, 2024
Are vinyl license plates legal in Colorado?
Vinyl stickers imitating license plates are not legal in Colorado. Only license plates issued by the Division of Motor Vehicles are permitted. Plates are required on the front and rear, with exceptions for vehicles such as motorcycles and trailers.
State-issued plates must be securely fastened, clearly legible and free of foreign material. If the DMV issued a validating sticker, it must be placed on the rear license plate, with the month at the bottom left corner and the year at the bottom right. Violation of these rules is a class B traffic infraction.
Colorado allows digital license plates instead of metal plates provided the registration number and expiration date are visible from 100 feet away in sunlight.
Vinyl license plates are allowed in California through a pilot program, but only on the front of vehicles. Rear plates must be metal.
This fact brief is responsive to conversations such as this one.
Sources
- Colorado Legal Resources Colorado Revised Statutes 42-3-202
- Colorado Legal Resources Colorado Revised Statutes 42-3-201
- Motor Vehicle Digital License Plates Colorado General Assembly
- State of California Department of Motor Vehicles DMV highlights new laws in 2023
About fact briefs
Fact briefs are bite-sized, well-sourced explanations that offer clear "yes" or "no" answers to questions, confusions, and unsupported claims circulating online. They rely on publicly available data and documents, often from the original source. Fact briefs are written and published by Gigafact contributor publications.
See all fact briefs
The Colorado Sun is a journalist-founded, award-winning and nonprofit news outlet based in Denver that strives to cover all of Colorado so that our state — our community — can better understand itself. In this way, we believe we can contribute to a more vibrant, informed and whole Colorado. We are committed to fact-based, in-depth and nonpartisan journalism. We cover everything from politics and culture to the outdoor industry and education. Our goal is to produce the best possible journalism. We do that with the help of you, our readers, and community backers. We launched on Sept. 10, 2018.
Learn MoreLatest Fact Briefs
Is it anyone’s job to clean up trash along Colorado highways?
Friday, Apr. 25, 2025
Does Colorado have one of the highest densities of veterans in the US?
Monday, Apr. 21, 2025
Are carpool lanes in Denver actually enforced?
Friday, Apr. 18, 2025