All guides

Questions to ask before you rent a billboard

Updated November 14, 2026

The owner of a board wants to rent it, and is usually happy to answer. These are the questions that most often change a deal.

About the price

1. What is the exact price a month, and is anything added on top: production, printing, installation, taxes?
2. Is this the lowest price you will take for this term? What would a longer term, or paying up front, get me?

About the traffic

3. Where does the daily traffic number come from, what year is it from, and which direction of traffic can see this board?

About the board

4. Is the board lit at night, and for how many hours?
5. Is anything blocking the view now, or likely to, such as trees, buildings or road work?
6. Can I see a recent photo of the board in daylight and at night?
7. Who else advertises on this board or on boards nearby?

If it is a digital board

Ask how many advertisers share the screen, how long your ad shows each time and how many times an hour. Ask for a report of when your ad actually ran, and what happens if the screen goes down.

About leaving

8. What happens at the end of the term? Does the price go up, and does it renew on its own?
9. If I change my mind, what is the way out, and what does it cost?
10. How much does it cost to change the ad later, and how long does it take?

In the contract

• The exact dates, in writing.
• The total price, line by line.
• How and when to tell them in writing that you do not want to renew.
• What you get if the board is dark, damaged or blocked.
• Who owns the finished ad design and the files.

The paid Board Report picks the questions for your kind of board, fixed or digital, and keeps them with your numbers.

OutdoorROI is not an advertising agency and does not sell billboards, so we gain nothing from a board being rented. We give you a way to check a price and track a result. We cannot promise sales. The traffic number comes from the board owner or your own count, and we have not checked it.