Types of Texas License Plates
Driving around Austin and the surrounding cities, you might have glimpsed a variety of different license plates. These days, the most common is the familiar, beautifully simple faded-blue background and bold-text design, the modern official plate of our Lone Star State. However, you may also see designs representing hobbies, organizations, or nature, or you might come across an outdated, colorful plate. What exactly are the different types of license plates Texas vehicles can have? Texas license plates fall into three categories: General Issue, Specialty, and Souvenir. Let’s take a moment to look at each.
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General Issue
General issue license plates are the standard license plates provided by the Texas DMV (TxDMV). These are the plates that most vehicles in Texas will have.
The Texas Classic
The Texas Classic is the current official license plate of Texas. Introduced in 2012, the Texas Classic is a light blue color with bold lettering and a star emblem in the upper-left. Smaller text at the bottom says, “The Lone Star State.”
The Texas Classic came out in July 2012. A special feature is two bands of high-visibility security thread in the plate sheeting. This thread makes it easier for law enforcement to verify that plates are authentic. The Texas Classic is the first plate in the country to utilize this measure.
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Lone Star and Panoramic Texas
Before the Texas Classic became the new standard, the “Lone Star Texas” design was the most common license plate seen on the streets. First launched in 2009, Lone Star Texas is notable for its full color, full-plate graphic design.
Texans selected this design in an online e-vote. However, law enforcement wasn’t a big fan of this plate’s utility, and some owners also didn’t like its colorful look.
Lone Star Texas was the first digital general-issue license plate, and the beginning of Texas license plates utilizing a seven-character plate number. The reason for moving from six to seven characters is that Texas’s population growth finally exhausted all possible alphanumeric six-character patterns.
The preceding design, Panoramic Texas, launched in 2000. Its design contains just a little bit of everything most iconically Texas, albeit in a subdued fashion. These plates were the last of the six-character era and the last of the stamped plates.
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Specialty Plates
Specialty Plates are unique license plate designs that cost an extra fee and represent something presumably special to the driver. The fee varies based on which plate design you choose.
A wide variety of specialty plates is available via the TxDMV website. Themes range from military, high schools, and Texas institutions, to hobbies, nature, sports, and even fraternities/sororities. Some support particular charities, to which the purchase fee will generally go.
Specialty plates can showcase a special message or phrase, though that message must first be approved by the TxDMV. Restrictions include no profanity, no gang or drug references, and no number “69” unless used in combination with a vehicle make.
The number of characters allowed varies based on the plate that’s chosen. Personalizing likewise has a fee.
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Souvenir Plates
Souvenir plates aren’t street legal; they’re decoration. A single souvenir plate costs $20, and personalization is available for another $20.
Souvenir plates can be ordered via a form on the TxDMV website. Like specialty plates, they can support causes such as cancer-fighting or charities, or represent organizations, fraternities, universities, hobbies, and more. They can’t be put on your vehicle because they don’t have a real number, and some may not have one at all.
