Clear Window Stickers & Decals Not Best Choice For Business Promotion (2025)

Many people come to Websticker looking for custom clear window stickers or window decals. While clear material may be appropriate in a few cases, most of the time we try to talk people out of using it. There are several reasons this is the case, and on jobs where it is used, several important details need to be kept in mind for window stickers to be effective.

The reason putting your design on clear material sounds appealing to many people is that they feel it won’t be “bumper sticker looking” with a lot of white space. The hope is that it will look like a custom paint job of just the graphic. Usually, this is just not the case. Vinyl cut graphics or a basic die cut sticker can accomplish the same desired effect in a much stronger way. And, these alternative stickers won’t necessarily cost more than clear window stickers.

I discussed in a previous post my dislike for clear static stickers on windows. Clear decals with adhesive share some of the same issues and there is also increased risk of air bubbles trapped under the material (which can show). The bigger the clear decals the more risk of air bubbles and problems with applying the decals.

A common problem with printing on clear decal material is that light bleeds through, even with the thickest screen printed inks. A window appears dark from a distance and printed inks on clear stickers that aren’t reflecting light will wash out once applied. White ink is essential when printing on window stickers and decals so that there is more reflected light. But, even with white ink backing all colors, or white ink on it’s own, clear stickers still are not as bold and visible as inks printed on white or yellow vinyl.

If you are looking to get the most value out of a custom window sticker you may want to avoid stickers and decals that can only go on windows. If you order clear stickers with adhesive or static on the face (graphic side), not only are they usually more expensive to custom print, but they also severely limit application options. There are many alternative options for outdoor quality custom stickers.

If you are printing stickers for promotional purposes, optimizing price and maximizing where they can be applied is essential. Adhesive should always be on the back so that custom stickers and decals can be applied anywhere. On a car some people prefer to put stickers on the bumper or car body. Off of the car people often put stickers on water bottles, laptops, sport equipment or many random locations. If you are creating a promotional sticker don’t take those personal preferences and options away. Maximizing impressions and exposure is the goal for any brand sticker marketing.

Even for product companies producing custom Authorized Dealer Stickers for retail locations, not all store entries have windows and many establishments might prefer to stick the decal elsewhere. By only printing decals with adhesive on the back businesses increase their chances of the sticker (and their branding) being applied where the public can see it.

Websticker can help businesses with any product selection and sticker design to optimize value and marketing power.