Vehicle Magnets for Business: Sizes, Materials, and What to Know Before You Buy
WHAT ARE VEHICLE MAGNETS FOR BUSINESS?
A vehicle magnet is a flexible magnetic sheet printed with a company name, logo, and contact details that sticks to the painted steel body of a car, van, or truck. It turns a personal or company vehicle into an ad without glue, tape, or a permanent decal, and it comes off whenever you want it off.
WHAT SIZE VEHICLE MAGNET WORKS BEST FOR A WORK VEHICLE?
Most business car magnets are one of three standard sizes: 12×18 inches for a sedan or compact car door, 18×24 inches for a truck or van door, and 24×36 inches for the side panel of a full-size van or box truck.
Size | Typical vehicle | Where it's placed
9×12 or 10×10 in | Compact car, hatchback | Rear door or trunk
12×18 in | Sedan, small SUV | Front doors
18×24 in | Pickup truck, cargo van | Front or rear doors
24×36 in | Full-size van, box truck | Side panel
A magnet that's too small gets lost in the size of the door panel and is hard to read from a distance. A magnet that's too large can overhang door edges, seams, or gaps, which weakens the hold and lets wind get underneath it.
HOW THICK SHOULD A CAR MAGNET BE?
Magnetic sheeting for vehicle signs is commonly sold in 20 mil and 30 mil thickness (a mil is one-thousandth of an inch). The thicker 30 mil holds more securely at highway speed and resists curling at the edges over time. The thinner 20 mil is lighter and less expensive but is more likely to flap, lift at the corners, or peel off at sustained speeds above about 55 mph, especially in cold weather when the material stiffens.
For a vehicle that mostly parks locally, 20 mil is usually fine. For a vehicle that spends real time on the highway, 30 mil is the safer choice.
ARE CAR MAGNETS DURABLE ENOUGH FOR DAILY DRIVING?
Yes, for most commercial and fleet use, as long as they're removed and cleaned on a regular basis. A magnet left in one spot for weeks traps dirt, road salt, and moisture underneath it, which is what causes the paint problems people associate with magnetic signs, not the magnet itself. How long a given magnet holds up depends on climate, sun exposure, how often the vehicle is washed, and how often the sign is lifted and wiped down underneath.
WILL A MAGNET DAMAGE MY CAR'S PAINT?
Not if it's used correctly. The risk isn't the magnet, it's what gets trapped between the magnet and the paint. Grit and moisture sitting under a magnet for an extended time can dull or discolor the clear coat in that spot. The fix is simple: pull the magnet off every week or so, wipe both the back of the magnet and the panel underneath, and let the paint dry before putting it back on.
CAR MAGNETS VS. VEHICLE WRAPS: WHICH IS RIGHT FOR A SMALL BUSINESS?
Feature | Car magnets | Vehicle wraps
Permanence | Temporary, removable in seconds | Semi-permanent, meant to stay for years
Coverage | Doors or a single panel | Partial or full vehicle body
Works on personal vehicles | Yes, take it off outside of work use | Not practical if the car is also driven privately
Works on leased or rented vehicles | Yes | Usually restricted by the lease
Upfront cost | Lower | Higher, more surface area and labor
Best for | Multiple vehicles, seasonal campaigns, drivers who use one car for both business and personal errands | A vehicle that is permanently and exclusively a company vehicle
WHAT SHOULD GO ON A BUSINESS CAR MAGNET?
• Company name and logo, large enough to read at a glance from another lane
• Phone number, in a font size big enough to read while the vehicle is moving
• Website address
• One short line describing the service (for example, "Licensed Plumber" or "Same-Day Delivery")
Keep the layout simple. A magnet with too much text on it reads as clutter at 40 mph and nobody retains any of it.
CAN I PUT MAGNETS ON ANY VEHICLE?
No. Magnetic signs only stick to ferrous metal, meaning steel body panels. They will not hold on aluminum panels (common on some truck hoods and van bodies), fiberglass, plastic bumpers, or a surface that's already wrapped or heavily textured. Check the vehicle's body material before ordering, particularly for newer trucks and vans that increasingly use aluminum panels for weight savings.
HOW MUCH DO CAR MAGNETS COST?
Price depends on size, sheet thickness, quantity, and how much custom artwork work is involved. Larger sizes and thicker 30 mil stock cost more per magnet than smaller, thinner ones, and ordering in higher quantities lowers the price per unit. Because of that spread, a size- and quantity-specific quote is more useful than a single generic price.
Packeze prints vehicle magnets on UV-laminated magnetic sheeting in standard sizes for cars, vans, and trucks, as well as custom sizes and shapes for businesses that need something outside the standard dimensions.