Neon signs offer your business an incredibly eye-catching way to advertise your brand to your customers. You can use them indoors and outside to take advantage of the dramatic effect. However, no neon sign will last forever. Eventually, you must take your neon sign for repairs.
You can expect to pay as much as $50 to $500 to repair a neon sign. That is because the cost is based on the severity and type of the required repair. The severity of the issue will also determine how long the repair will take. As such, neon sign repairs are only worth it under certain conditions.
Neon signs break down for a variety of reasons. And understanding them can help prevent them. Therefore, by reading further, you will also learn about these factors and how they affect your repair costs.

The Cost to Repair and Maintain a Neon Sign
Nothing invites customers to a business like the warm glow of a neon sign, but the light will not shine forever. The signs can break down, becoming one of the most expensive and time-consuming repair jobs your business will ever face.
Neon signs are delicate and fragile. Light tubes filled with low-pressure gas, these devices can crack under the slightest pressure. They require regular maintenance to achieve their nominal 8 to 15-year lifespans.
Average Neon Sign Repair Costs
However, not every neon sign has the same quality construction. They may not even have the same quality among their components. For instance, the average neon sign transformer is around 5 to 7 years, while larger or higher-quality ones can last up to 15 years.
Luckily, most problems are fixable. As long as it fits certain requirements, we can repair any neo sign. You can even do the repairs yourself in some cases. It all comes down to what is wrong with your sign which can vary in severity and cause. Even the local weather and environment play a role.
As such, no one can tell you how much you will pay to repair your sign until a specialist inspects it. We can only give you the average cost for the more common repairs:
- Broken or damaged tubes – $50 to $200 – most common issue, could be from age, accident, or weather damage, cost based on size and location of the break
- Loose electrical connections – $50 to $200 – age and weather damage but also improper installation
- Broken or burned-out transformer – $100 to $500 – improper installation, weather damage, or age
- High-voltage short – $350 – age or improper installation
Should You Repair or Replace Your Neon Sign?
As you can see, most neon sign malfunctions are repairable. However, a new replacement neon sign may only cost between $100 to $300, depending on its complexity and size. Therefore, how much your sign t is worth repairing comes down to the severity of the issue and what caused it.
For instance, a small break may only set you back $50 to $60, depending on if your unit uses neon or argon gas. On the other hand, large breaks may ruin the glass completely, forcing you to replace the whole structure.
Material cost would be another concern. Higher-quality materials cost more, but the problem might be easier to recognize. As such, you might be able to do it yourself and skip the $350 service call fee. You would have to cover the $400 for the replacement tubes and gas.
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Shipping Costs for Neon Sign Repairs
Some sign repair shops will let you ship your signs for them for repairs. Others will not. As a result, you will want to ask the shop about it before you send anything to them. If they allow you to ship in your sign, you can expect to pay around $30 to $50 for the service.
Please note that you must personally deliver your sign to the shop if the shop does not offer shipping or on-site repairs. Therefore, you should add the appropriate fuel and time costs to the repair price as well.
The Factors that Determine the Cost of Neon Sign Repair
As mentioned before, neon signs malfunction due to age, weather damage, accident, or incorrect installation. As such, you can extend the life of your sign and reduce your overall repair costs. For instance, you can use surge protectors to reduce the chance of shorts and transformer failure. You can also avoid overtightening the internal components.
You can also avoid leaving your sign outside during freezing temperatures if possible. Cold weather can freeze the gas inside the tubes into a liquid. This liquidation can prevent the sign from working. Luckily, you can just repressurize the gas to fix the issues, but you can reduce the stress on the glass by avoiding it entirely.
Conclusion
Neon signs can add class and atmosphere to your business establishment, provided they remain working. However, you can repair them in most cases. Your repair costs will depend on the severity of the issue and its causes, but you can reduce those costs with the right precautions.
Jim James is a published author and expert on the outdoors and survivalism. Through avid research and hands-on experience, he has gained expertise on a wide variety of topics. His time spent at college taught him to become really good at figuring out answers to common problems. Often through extensive trial and error, Jim has continued to learn and increase his knowledge of a vast array of topics related to firearms, hunting, fishing, medical topics, cooking, games/gaming, and other subjects too numerous to name.
Jim has been teaching people a wide variety of survivalism topics for over five years and has a lifetime of experience fishing, camping, general survivalism, and anything in nature. In fact, while growing up, he often spent more time on the water than on land! He has degrees in History, Anthropology, and Music from the University of Southern Mississippi. He extensively studied Southern History, nutrition, geopolitics, the Cold War, and nuclear policy strategies and safety as well as numerous other topics related to the content on survivalfreedom.com.