Look at any modern UK number plate and the characters are always the same shape. That's no accident. Since 1 September 2001, every road-legal plate has had to use one typeface, the Charles Wright 2001 font.
Why one font?
The font was brought in alongside the current registration format to make plates easier to read for:
- people, including witnesses to a crime or collision
- ANPR cameras, which police, councils and car parks use to read plates automatically
Charles Wright characters are tall and narrow with clear, distinct shapes. That makes letters and numbers that could be confused – B and 8, D and 0, S and 5 – easier to tell apart.
The exact sizes
On a car plate, every character is:
- 79mm tall
- 50mm wide (except the number 1 and the letter I)
- drawn with a 14mm stroke
The spacing is fixed too:
- 11mm between characters
- 33mm between the two groups
- at least 11mm clear margin around the edge
Motorcycle plates use the same font at a smaller size – see motorcycle number plate rules.
3D and 4D characters
Raised characters are allowed, but the face of each character still has to be the Charles Wright shape, in solid black. That covers:
- 3D gel characters, which are domed resin
- 4D characters, which are laser-cut acrylic
The rules allow raised characters as long as they meet the British Standard (BS AU 145e) and are a single colour. Two-tone, outlined, carbon-effect or coloured characters aren't allowed. See 3D gel vs 4D number plates.
Fonts that aren't allowed
These will fail an MOT and can mean a fine of up to £1,000:
- italic or slanted fonts
- script, gothic or "fancy" fonts
- fonts with unusually thin or bold strokes
- anything that changes the shape of a character – a curly J, a closed-up C, or a stylised 7
Plates that change the look of the registration are the most common reason the DVLA withdraws personalised registrations. See private number plate rules.
What about classic cars?
Vehicles built before 1 January 1980 and taxed in the historic vehicle class can display traditional black and silver plates. These often use older lettering. Every other vehicle needs Charles Wright characters on white and yellow plates.
And show plates?
A show plate can use a different style because it isn't used on the road. We keep the road font even on show plates, and add a slogan underneath if you want one.
Every road-legal plate from our builder uses the Charles Wright 2001 font at the correct size, and the 3D preview shows the exact characters we'll cut.