Wyoming Specialty License Plates: Full List

Wyoming specialty plates let a driver replace the standard flag design with one that raises money for a cause, a school or a military group, and the state publishes every approved design. Each plate is authorized by the Legislature or approved by WYDOT Motor Vehicle Services, printed by the state and issued through the county treasurer. The price is normally a flat specialty charge added to registration, so the design you pick rarely changes the paperwork, only the amount you pay and the wait for the metal.

Wyoming specialty plates are not sold through a separate office or a separate website. The treasurer counter that handles a standard registration also takes the request, collects the money and orders the plate. What changes is the application, the timing and the fee. A few designs are stocked locally, most are printed to order, and the two newest carry a probation clause. The sections below list every license plate option, the added fee and the stages that put the plate on the car.

How to Order Wyoming Specialty Plates

The order starts with the design, not the counter. Wyoming does not assign specialty plates automatically, and a treasurer cannot issue a design that was never requested on the application. Decide on the plate first, confirm the vehicle class is eligible, then bring the request to the county office with the registration paperwork. Drivers who arrive without a chosen design usually leave with the standard plate and a second trip ahead.

Choose the Design Before You Register

Read the state list before you go, because a few designs are limited by vehicle class. Passenger cars and light trucks can carry most specialty plates, while motorcycles, trailers and multipurpose vehicles are restricted to a smaller set. Military designs usually require proof of service or a family connection named on the registration. Picking a second choice in advance saves a return visit when a design is out of stock.

File the Application at the County Treasurer

The county treasurer registers the vehicle, collects the specialty charge and orders the plate. Bring the title or the renewal notice, proof of insurance and payment for tax and registration, then state the design you want. The treasurer records the request on the plate application, which also covers a new plate, a duplicate and a transfer. WYDOT publishes the catalogue of approved designs and the current rules for each one.

Wait for State Printing

Specialty plates are produced by the state rather than stamped at the county counter, so they arrive in the mail after the registration is active. The office normally hands over a temporary or standard plate so the vehicle can be driven while the order is in production. More detail sits on the personalized plates page. Ask for the estimated arrival date when you pay, and keep the registration certificate in the car, because it proves the vehicle is legal before the specialty metal appears.

What to Bring to the Counter

Counters turn people away for missing paper more often than for missing money. A first registration needs the title work finished at the clerk before the treasurer can do anything with the plate request, and an out-of-state title adds a VIN inspection to the list. Gather the documents together and check the name on each one matches the name that will appear on the registration.

• Signed title or Manufacturer’s Certificate of Origin.
• An insurance card that lists the vehicle identification number.
• Photo identification for the registered owner.
• VIN inspection slip when the title comes from another state.
• Payment for sales tax, title work and the specialty fee.

A renewal is simpler, because the county already holds the vehicle record. The renewal notice, the insurance card and the specialty charge are usually enough, and the plate number stays the same from one period to the next. Owners who moved within Wyoming should update the address before the notice is printed, since a renewal mailed to the old house delays the sticker and the plate order that follows it.

The Full List of Wyoming Specialty Plates

The catalogue is shorter than the number of designs on the road suggests, because several plates come in more than one version. The table below groups the main specialty plates by the program they support and shows the added fee that applies on top of normal registration. Designs marked with the standard rate use the base specialty charge, while the Veteran and Search and Rescue plates carry their own amounts.

The same list appears on the state site with the artwork for each design, which matters when two plates share a name or when a redesign has replaced an older look. Street Rod and Custom plates sit outside this catalogue, since WYDOT handles those classes directly and the plates are permanent in most cases. A driver who wants one of them should ask the state office rather than the county counter.

Legislature Approved Designs

A specialty plate usually begins as a bill. The Legislature approves the design, the beneficiary and the fee structure, then hands administration to WYDOT. That origin covers why some plates exist in law with a purpose written into the statute, while others depend on a sponsoring organization. It also covers the probation language on the newest designs, because a plate that sells too few units costs the state more to print than it returns.

Military and Service Plates

Wyoming issues more military plates than any other category, and most are open only to the group named on the face. A Purple Heart plate goes to a recipient of that decoration, a Gold Star Family plate goes to the family of a service member who died in the line of duty, and a National Guard plate goes to a current or former member. The county checks eligibility before the order is placed.

• Veteran plate at the higher rate, open to honorably discharged service members.
• Disabled veteran plates that waive registration fees on one vehicle when the service-connected threshold is met.
• Purple Heart, Gold Star Family and Pearl Harbor Survivor designs for specific groups.
• National Guard plate for current and former members of the Wyoming guard.
• Firefighter and EMT plates for certified members of those services.

Cause and Community Plates

The remaining designs raise money for programs that range from wildlife management to organ donation. A Wildlife Conservation plate sends its extra charge to the program named on the face, a Donate Life plate promotes organ and tissue registration, and a Tribal plate recognizes the nations tied to the state’s history. The University of Wyoming plate supports the university, and the Pioneer plate marks long residency.

What a Wyoming Specialty Plate Costs

The specialty charge is only one line on the bill. Registration, county ad valorem tax, sales tax on a first title and any add-on option all arrive at the same counter, and the treasurer collects them in one transaction. Understanding the parts makes it easier to predict the total before you stand in line, especially in a county that levies a local sales tax on top of the state rate.

Read the rows together rather than one at a time. A passenger car with a standard specialty design pays the specialty charge, the registration fee and the county ad valorem in the same visit, so the specialty line is often the smallest part of the total. The rodeo license plate guide covers that part. The county figure drops each year under the service rate schedule, which starts at 60% of factory price in year one and falls to 15% by year six.

The Base Fee and the Registration Fee

Two separate charges share the counter. The specialty fee pays for the design and, in some cases, the donation written into the program, while the registration fee pays for the plate class and state record keeping. They are not interchangeable, and a driver who transfers a specialty plate to a second vehicle still owes registration on it. Motorcycles and trailers carry their own registration classes and their own annual amounts.

The Embossed Option

An embossed specialty plate carries raised characters instead of flat printed ones, and the state charges a one-time amount for the change. The option is ordered with the plate rather than added afterward, because the metal has to be pressed at the state shop. Drivers who prefer the older look ask for it at the counter when the application is filed.

Why the Total Varies by County

Sales and use tax is 5% to the state plus up to 2% in counties that levy a local option, so two identical vehicles titled in different counties can produce different bills. Ad valorem follows a statewide formula but is collected by the county, which is why that line is larger than the specialty line in a first-year transaction. The specialty charge itself does not change with vehicle value.

New Designs and the 1,000 Plate Probation

Two designs joined the catalogue in January, and both came with a condition. The Legislature set a target of 1,000 plates sold by 2032 for each new design, with production ending if the number falls short. The clause is unusual in Wyoming plate law, and it changes the way a buyer should think about ordering early, because a design stays on the list only through steady sales across the whole state.

The Rodeo Plate

The Rodeo plate carries a historic image of Steamboat, the bucking horse that also appears on the standard Wyoming plate, and it raises money for rodeo programs. Rodeo is the official state sport, and the design links that tradition to the university and community college teams that compete under the state flag. The plate sits at the standard specialty rate, the same as most older designs.

The Search and Rescue Plate

The Search and Rescue plate uses a winter rescue design and supports the volunteer teams that answer calls in the mountains and on the high plains. It costs more in the first year than any other specialty plate, then drops to a much smaller renewal amount. The gap reflects the donation built into the first purchase, so a driver who keeps the plate for several years pays far less after the initial order.

What the Probation Clause Means

If a design misses the 1,000 plate target by 2032, the state can stop producing it and the plate becomes a collector’s item rather than a current option. Existing registrations are not automatically cancelled, but replacements and new orders stop. Buyers who want the design should order it while it is in the catalogue.

Renewing, Replacing and Transferring a Specialty Plate

A specialty plate is renewed with the registration, not on a separate schedule. The treasurer mails a notice before the registration month, the owner pays the specialty charge and the registration fee together, and a new sticker arrives for the rear plate. Problems appear when the owner moves, sells the vehicle or damages the plate, because each of those events has its own procedure and its own cost.

Renewal at the County Treasurer

Renewal keeps the same plate number and design, so no new application is needed. Pay the notice before the month ends to avoid a citation, since Wyoming does not offer a grace period once the month closes. Compare it with the Search and Rescue plate page before filing. Counties that accept online renewal list the service on their own pages, and the sticker then arrives by mail. The specialty charge appears on every renewal for the standard designs.

• Check the address on the renewal notice before paying.
• Confirm the design still appears in the current catalogue.
• Pay the specialty charge and the registration fee on the same notice.
• Place the new sticker on the rear plate as soon as it arrives.

Replacement and Duplicate Plates

A damaged or stolen plate is replaced through the county, and the cost depends on whether the number changes. A new number is cheaper because the state issues stock metal, while a duplicate that keeps the existing number has to be printed to match the record. A duplicate order usually takes four to six weeks. The table below shows the usual charges.

These amounts sit outside the specialty fee, and a replacement does not reset the registration period. A driver who needs a duplicate specialty plate should say so clearly, because the clerk may otherwise issue a standard plate with a new number and cancel the specialty record by mistake. Keep the old plate until the replacement arrives, then destroy it so it cannot be used on another vehicle.

Transferring a Plate to Another Vehicle

A specialty plate can follow the owner to a replacement vehicle when the class matches. The county treasurer moves the number and the design to the new registration, and the owner pays the registration fee for that vehicle. The specialty charge is not normally collected twice within the same period. Selling without moving the plate leaves the design tied to the old record. The right specialty plate is usually the one whose program the owner would support anyway, since the fee is modest and the design stays on the car for years. Check the vehicle class first, confirm the design is still in the catalogue, then order it at the treasurer counter.

Frequently Asked Questions

The list below answers what the designs cost and which ones a county can issue.

How many Wyoming specialty plates can I choose from?

The state catalogue lists roughly fifteen designs at the standard rate, plus the Veteran and Search and Rescue plates with their own fees, and the Street Rod and Custom classes handled directly by WYDOT. Artwork for each one appears on the state site, and the count grows whenever the Legislature adds a design. County offices may not stock every option, but they can order any design that is currently approved.

Does a specialty plate cost more every year?

Yes for the standard designs, which add the specialty charge to each registration period for as long as the plate stays on the vehicle. The Search and Rescue plate is different, because its first-year amount is higher and the renewal is smaller. The embossed option and the Prestige plate fee are charged once rather than every year, so they do not repeat with the registration.

Can I keep my specialty plate when I move to another county?

Moving within Wyoming does not cancel the plate, but the county prefix no longer matches the new address. The treasurer in the new county updates the registration and can order a replacement with the correct prefix. The design and the serial stay the same, and the specialty charge is not normally collected again in the same period. Report the address change before the renewal notice is printed.

What happens if a specialty plate design is discontinued?

The state stops issuing new plates for that design, and the plate cannot be ordered as a replacement. An existing registration usually stays valid until it expires, and the owner then moves to a standard plate or another specialty design. The new Rodeo and Search and Rescue plates carry a specific version of this risk, since each must reach 1,000 plates by 2032 to remain in production.

Do specialty plates require a front and rear plate in Wyoming?

Passenger cars and light trucks need two plates, one on each bumper, and the specialty design is printed for both. Motorcycles, trailers, multipurpose vehicles and antique or street rod vehicles carry a single rear plate. Plates must sit horizontally at least 12 inches above the ground, stay free of covers and foreign material, and keep the validation sticker visible on the rear plate.