# Iowa license plate: Standard

> The Iowa standard license plate: format LLL999, for example GQM854, documented since 2026, car, van, truck, and bus.

Page: https://vehiclesdb.com/license-plates/united-states--iowa/standard · Markdown version of the HTML page, which is canonical. Site map: https://vehiclesdb.com/llms.txt · Terms of use: https://vehiclesdb.com/legal/terms

Part of [Iowa license plates](https://vehiclesdb.com/license-plates/united-states--iowa) (6 registration series).

![Iowa (United States) license plate, Standard (documented since 2026)](https://vehiclesdb.com/plates/us-ia/us-ia-standard/iowa-license-plate-standard.svg)

| Fact | Value |
|---|---|
| Format | `LLL999` (L is any letter, 9 any digit) |
| Years | ~2026 → today (documented from 2026; the format is likely older) |
| Class | standard |
| Issued for | car, van, truck, bus |
| Plate size | 12 × 6 in |
| Checking a registration | The format above is broad: a registration that fits it has the right shape, which does not show that this series issued it. |
| Series id | `us-ia-standard` (https://vehiclesdb.com/license-plates/united-states--iowa/standard) |

Sources:

- [Iowa Code § 321.166(1)(a)-(b): metal, the six-by-twelve CEILING, departmental sizes for small vehicles, the small-trailer regular-plate option; (2) the alphabetical-or-numerical-or-combination grammar, the abbreviable state name, the MANDATORY county name with its Pearl Harbor / purple heart / collegiate / fire fighter / medal of honor exceptions, the 'special' truck legend and the rulemaking authority; (3) four-inch character height and five-eighths-inch stroke ceilings and the dealer 'D'; (4) the 100-foot daylight readability rule; (5) marked contrast and the distinctively-different-colour rule for new series with its collegiate carve-out; (6) the DV prefix; (7) year and month of expiration; (8) small-trailer plates; (9) design consistency and emblem space for special plates; (10) no issuance fee on a special-plate redesign](https://www.legis.iowa.gov/docs/code/321.166.pdf)
- [Iowa Admin. Code r. 761-401.3(1): the two-character minimum; 401.3(2): the five-character maximum for plates with a processed emblem and for § 321.34(13) plates. ARC 8937C, IAB 2/19/25, effective 3/26/25](https://www.legis.iowa.gov/docs/iac/chapter/761.401.pdf)

## Other standard plates here

- [Disabled veteran](https://vehiclesdb.com/license-plates/united-states--iowa/disabled-veteran) (documented since 2026)
- [Special truck](https://vehiclesdb.com/license-plates/united-states--iowa/special-truck) (documented since 2026)

## Use it

- Plate image (SVG): https://vehiclesdb.com/plates/us-ia/us-ia-standard.svg
- Make it with your own text: https://vehiclesdb.com/license-plate-generator/iowa?series=us-ia-standard
- API: `GET https://vehiclesdb.com/api/v1/plates/us-ia` returns this series as the entry with `"id": "us-ia-standard"` (https://vehiclesdb.com/api)

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Open data, CC BY 4.0: reuse it with a visible credit to VehiclesDB and a link (https://vehiclesdb.com/legal/attribution). Plate images show sample serials and are not open data (https://vehiclesdb.com/legal/image-license). Dataset commit db0ec0a: https://github.com/vehiclesdb/vehiclesdb