Alternatives to neon signs for commercial, design and home use
You want – or let’s be honest: need – illuminated advertising signage for your business, but you don’t want a neon sign? Maybe neon just isn’t your thing? We get it – even though neon has shed its old-fashioned connections with red-light districts and shady bars in recent years, the glowing glass tubes still have strong cultural associations and a very distinct look. Wanting a more contemporary alternative to neon’s industrial chic is completely justified!
So are there any modern, high-quality alternatives to neon that are both versatile in usage and customisable in design? You already know this question is rhetorical, because of course there are. The (very) short answer is: LED.
While this doesn’t sound very sexy at first, don’t be fooled: the application possibilities for LED lighting in advertising are endless. LED technology has been around since the 1960s, but people didn’t really start getting creative with it until (roughly) the 1990s. That’s not a super long time, and yet the diversity in LED signage today is remarkable.
We want to introduce you to some LED-based neon light alternatives and their typical use cases!
What alternatives to neon signs can be used in advertising?
LED signage options that are perfect for commercial use.
Lightboxes
This is really a no-brainer. Because look around you: lightboxes are literally everywhere. Illuminated advertising is supposed to attract customers by drawing their attention and communicating a specific message about your business. Lightboxes are really good at this and they’re relatively low cost, so win-win!
Lightboxes are available as front-facing, one-sided and projecting, double-sided variants. The latter is a true signage staple: mounted at 90° to the facade, it alerts passers-by to shops or restaurants on their way. This makes them an essential tool for businesses that rely on walk-in customers, such as retail and gastronomy locales.
Benefits & use cases of lightboxes
Especially front-facing lightboxes can fulfil some of the same functions as neon signs, for example as displays above storefronts or entrances. As previously mentioned, the acquisition cost is comparatively low, but they’re also cost-effective when it comes to energy consumption.
Lightboxes are ideal for smaller and/or very detailed and intricate designs. Neon has clear size restrictions, as the manually bent glass tubes can’t be formed into tiny shapes or elements. On lightboxes on the other hand, the design is applied either by printed foil on the acrylic diffuser (for our "classic" product variant with illuminated background surface) or cut out of the case material ("modern" lightbox with glowing logo). Both are possible in very fine details down to a few millimetres.
On the other end of the spectrum, lightbox design can be very minimal and straightforward. If you want your signage to transmit your message straight to the point, this is probably the medium for you!
Check out our gallery below for some best-practice lightbox inspiration and visit our Lightboxes page for more information on this signage power player.
Lit Letters
Bold and beautiful, 3D letters with LED light are an ever-popular alternative to neon signs. They come in different types and variations: front-lit, back-lit, side-lit or fully lit (meaning front and sides). This makes them somewhat more customisable than glass neon tubes, which are notorious for their 360° glow.
Benefits & use cases of Lit Letters
The most glaring difference between neon and letters is the illuminated surface: Neon signs consist of thin glass tubes, which means that larger designs for example can only be rendered as outlines of the original design. 3D letters and logos, on the other hand, have a fully illuminated surface and thus in some cases can stay truer to the original artwork.
Additionally, lit letters are generally a bit more customisable in terms of colours, thanks to a wide range of available acrylics and translucent foils. Neon colours are the result of chemical processes for which the glass tubes have to be specially treated, and thus the colour palette is much more limited.
Below you can admire some inspirational letters projects and our Letters page will enlighten you (pun intended) about our products.
What alternatives to neon signs can be used for interior design?
These signage options can replace glass neon in your design concept – which doesn’t mean that they can’t be used for advertising or branding purposes as well (the line is often blurred anyways)!
LED Neon
You knew this was coming, didn’t you? When we say “neon”, we usually mean glass neon, i.e. neon signs created from handcrafted glass tubes filled with noble gas.
LED neon, sometimes also called "faux neon," is – as the name might suggest – an LED-based, contemporary version of the "classic" glass neon tubes. It’s a perfect alternative if the vintage neon look doesn’t fit your style or your interior design concept, and you’re looking for something more modern.
Benefits & use cases of LED Neon
We’ve explained the main differences between LED neon and glass neon in one of our previous blog posts, so we’re not going to get into the details here again.
LED neon can be pretty much used in the same context as glass neon. It’s designed to emulate the typical neon look, and thus the tube diameters and colour palette are similar. In terms of colours, one of the pronounced advantages of LED neon is the RGB multi-colour option, which allows you to generate a random or specific colour from the RGB spectrum, giving the LED version somewhat of an edge over its traditional almost-twin.
We’ve compiled some pictures below on how to light up any place or space (or maybe your home?) with bright LEDs. Check those out or learn more about our Neon products on the dedicated product page.
How to use neon light alternatives together with neon signs
This one is probably going to blow your mind, but you can actually combine neon with other products to achieve a very unique look and effect. Shocking, we know!
Some recent best-practice cases that can serve as inspiration:
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Mani in Pasta mounted a bright yellow neon sign on top of a very clean-looking, front-facing lightbox with a glowing white logo on a black case. Opposites attract and make for a very suspenseful combo!
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Katchi chose to add a delicate white neon to their bold, blue 3D logo for their Berlin ice-cream parlour, boosting their brand identity with a subtle vintage touch.
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Foto Meyer opted for a beautiful projecting mirror box containing a neon camera icon. Okay, this is technically not a product hybrid, but it’s a neon that’s used like a lightbox, so we’ll count it.
- Same goes for Ping Ping, a now defunct restaurant in Leipzig – points for creative use of a highly customised encased neon!
If we did our job right, this article gave you some even better ideas – so let’s hear 'em!