United States license plates
Format, region codes and a plate generator for United States.
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Custom text: real plates never carry this combination.
This image is not a license plate: it must not be fitted to a vehicle and does not mean the combination is available.
How to read the plate
In the US every state issues its own plates, and the region is read from the state name, usually printed at the top; the two-letter code (CA, TX) does not appear on the plate. Each state has its own colours, serial format and slogan: Texas has “The Lone Star State”, New Hampshire “Live Free or Die”, Illinois “Land of Lincoln”. In some states — Alabama, Montana, Nebraska, South Dakota, Wyoming, Idaho — the start of the serial also encodes the county. Besides the standard plates there are hundreds of specialty designs.
Region map
Click a region to see its codes.
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Region codes
56 regions| Region | Code |
|---|---|
| Alaska | |
| Alabama | |
| Arkansas | |
| American Samoa | |
| Arizona | |
| California | |
| Colorado | |
| Connecticut | |
| District of Columbia | |
| Delaware | |
| Florida | |
| Georgia | |
| Guam | |
| Hawaii | |
| Iowa | |
| Idaho | |
| Illinois | |
| Indiana | |
| Kansas | |
| Kentucky | |
| Louisiana | |
| Massachusetts | |
| Maryland | |
| Maine | |
| Michigan | |
| Minnesota | |
| Missouri | |
| Northern Mariana Islands | |
| Mississippi | |
| Montana | |
| North Carolina | |
| North Dakota | |
| Nebraska | |
| New Hampshire | |
| New Jersey | |
| New Mexico | |
| Nevada | |
| New York | |
| Ohio | |
| Oklahoma | |
| Oregon | |
| Pennsylvania | |
| Puerto Rico | |
| Rhode Island | |
| South Carolina | |
| South Dakota | |
| Tennessee | |
| Texas | |
| Utah | |
| Virginia | |
| U.S. Virgin Islands | |
| Vermont | |
| Washington | |
| Wisconsin | |
| West Virginia | |
| Wyoming |
History
States have issued their own plates since the early 20th century, and the common 12 × 6 in size has been in force since 1957. A state changes its base design every 5–10 years, and old plates stay on the road until replaced. Until the 1970s plates were often reissued every year, and many states used to code serials by county — Florida did so until 1977.
