Kansas will soon offer a new license plate style. Here’s how to get one
A popular license plate style will soon be available for Kansas residents to purchase for the first time, the Kansas Department of Revenue says.
Residents may start seeing more vehicles with a black-and-white license plate driving around the Kansas City area, as the state of Kansas will start selling the “blackout” option beginning Tuesday, July 1, according to a press release.
This comes almost a year after state residents voted on a brand new personalized design for 2025, and two years after Kansans voted on the new standard license plate, which some residents have reported not receiving when they renewed their tags.
The new license plate is designed with an all-black background and white lettering. It’s a contrast to the prairie-themed option with the sun peeking over green hills that Kansans overwhelmingly voted for in 2024.
The Kansas Department of Revenue is introducing this plate design in response to interest from Kansans in wanting a blackout-style license plate option for their vehicles, according to a press release
“I’m always happy to listen to my constituents about issues that matter to them,” Kansas Gov. Laura Kelly said in a statement. “By introducing the blackout license plate style, we are giving Kansans more options on the road while still adhering to safe license plate requirements.”
This style of license plate has been rolled out in Iowa, Colorado and Minnesota in recent years, selling hundreds of thousands of the specialized design in each state.
“The blackout plate design has proven to be very popular in surrounding states, and we’ve had many Kansans ask for it to come to Kansas,” KDOR’s division of vehicles director Deann Williams said in a statement. “We’ve heard them loud and clear, and we are very excited to bring this highly requested plate design to Kansas vehicles this year.”
How much does the Kansas blackout-style license plate cost?
The new blackout-style license plate available for Kansas residents can be purchased for standard vehicles and motorcycles. Here’s much it’ll cost:
- $40 for a one-time plate fee
- $45.50 for an optional personalized license plate number
- $50 annual fee
Residents pay the fee when they apply for a license plate.
If you pay the $45.50, you can pick a number with a maximum of seven characters (numbers, letters and spaces) on cars and trucks and no more than five characters on motorcycles. No types of symbols, like exclamation points or question marks, can be used on license plates.
Each plate is issued for five years, and the five-year cycle begins in a year that ends with a zero or five. So if you get a license plate in 2026, you will have to apply for a new one in 2030, even though you have only had the plate for four years.
To get a personalized license plate, you must:
- Be a Kansas resident or a member of the military who is not a Kansas resident and is stationed at a Kansas military base or office.
- Have a Kansas title in your name or the leasing company’s name for the vehicle for which the personalized plate is to be issued.
- Have a vehicle titled as an antique if you’re applying for an antique personalized plate.
- Have a registered car, motorcycle or truck weigh 20,000 pounds or less.
You can apply for a personalized license plate at your local county treasurer’s motor vehicle office. You can fill out and print a form to take with you when you apply. Any combination of characters that have profane, lewd, vulgar or indecent meanings or connotations are not allowed, KDOR says.
This story was originally published May 20, 2025 at 5:00 AM.
