Short answer: An edge-lit sign is a clear cast acrylic panel, usually 1/4 in. thick, with the design engraved into one face. It stands in an LED base that shines light up through the bottom edge; the light travels inside the sheet and escapes only where it's engraved. Match the panel thickness to the slot in your base.

How edge lighting works

Clear acrylic carries light the way an optical fiber does. Light that enters the bottom edge bounces off the inside of the two faces and keeps traveling up the panel, so the clear areas stay nearly dark. Wherever we've engraved, the rough frosted surface scatters the light out toward your eye, and the design glows. The full explanation, with tips for brighter results, is in how edge-lit acrylic signs work.

It's why these work so well for bar and restaurant logos, night lights, gifts, retail displays, and awards with a little extra drama.

What size and thickness to choose

The panel's thickness has to match the slot in the LED base. Most bases take 1/4 in. (often listed as 5 or 6 mm) or 3/16 in. sheet; a few take 3/8 in. Measure the slot or check the base's listing, and tell us the number.

  • Small night lights and gifts: 5 × 7 in. panels, 3/16 or 1/4 in.
  • Desk and counter signs: 8 × 10 to 10 × 12 in., 1/4 in.
  • Large displays: up to about 24 in. tall. Light fades with distance from the edge, so taller panels need a brighter base or thicker sheet.

Use cast acrylic. It engraves to a whiter, finer frost than extruded, which means a brighter, more even glow.

Tip: the bottom edge is where the light goes in. Leave it straight, flat, and wide enough to sit fully in the slot, and keep the artwork at least 1/2 in. above the top of the base.

How we make it

We laser-cut the panel, which leaves glossy, clear edges that let light in efficiently, and engrave the design on the back face so it reads correctly from the front. The outline can be any shape (a logo silhouette, an arch, a heart) as long as there's a straight tab at the bottom for the base.

Engraving depth and density control brightness. Solid filled areas glow strongly; fine line engraving gives a delicate, drawn look. Mixing both adds depth to portraits and detailed logos.

Designing the artwork

  • Think in light, not ink. Everything engraved will glow; everything else will be clear. A dark-on-white logo may need to be inverted.
  • Use vector art for logos and text. Photos can be engraved as grayscale, but they need high contrast to read when lit. Our guide to converting an image to SVG helps.
  • Brightness falls off with height. Put the most important text or the logo in the lower two thirds of the panel.
  • Color comes from the LEDs, not the acrylic. Single-color, warm white, and RGB color-changing bases all work with the same clear panel.
  • Avoid fluorescent or tinted sheet for edge-lit art: the whole panel glows and the engraving gets lost. Fluorescent is a different effect, covered in why fluorescent acrylic edges glow.

Bases and mounting

We cut and engrave panels to fit the base you choose: tell us the slot width and length. For wall-hung edge-lit signs, the LEDs go in a channel along the top or bottom edge and the panel mounts with standoffs, which is a more involved build; describe it and we'll help work it out.

Have your design ready? Upload it for an instant price.

Questions

Why is my edge-lit sign dim at the top?

Light is used up as it escapes through the engraving, so less reaches the top. Keep panels shorter, use a brighter base, or engrave less solid area near the bottom.

Is 5 mm the same as 3/16 in. for an LED base?

Close but not the same: 3/16 in. is about 4.8 mm and 1/4 in. is about 6 mm. Real sheet thickness varies a little too, so measure your slot and tell us.

Can the glow be different colors?

Yes. The color comes from the LEDs in the base, so an RGB base can change it. You can't light separate parts of one panel in different colors from a single base strip.