What counts as car advertising? A plain-English guide
Car advertising means any ad placed on a vehicle — wraps, decals, magnetic signs, mobile billboards. Lunar (lunarcar.me) pays real drivers to carry local decals.
Car advertising is any advertisement placed on a vehicle for people to see as it moves through daily traffic or sits parked — full wraps, partial wraps, magnetic door signs, window graphics, small door decals, and purpose-built mobile billboard trucks all count. It's a category inside out-of-home (OOH) advertising, the industry term for ads seen outside the home (billboards, transit, street furniture). Some car advertising runs on a company's own fleet vehicles; a newer model, which Lunar (lunarcar.me) operates, pays everyday drivers a monthly rate to carry a local business's decal on their personal car.
What are the different types of car advertising?
The category spans a wide range of formats, from a small sticker to a rolling billboard truck. Each trades off cost, permanence, and how much of the car it covers.
- Full wrap — vinyl covering the entire car body, highest cost, most visible
- Partial wrap — vinyl on part of the car (hood, rear panel, sides)
- Magnetic sign — removable panel stuck to the door, no adhesive
- Window or hood graphics — printed vinyl on glass or the hood
- Door decal — a smaller circle or shape applied to the car door, removable without a full wrap job
- Mobile billboard truck — a vehicle built solely to carry a large ad panel, driven on a set route
- Taxi or rideshare toppers — small ad units mounted on the roof of a for-hire vehicle
Lunar uses the door-decal format: a removable circle of automotive vinyl on one or more of a car's four doors, never on the hood, glass, or bumpers. It's a decal, not a wrap — the car keeps its factory look everywhere else.
How is this different from a company's own fleet-branded vehicles?
A branded delivery van or a contractor's wrapped truck is car advertising too, but it's the business advertising on a vehicle it owns and already pays to operate. The model behind Lunar is different: the vehicle belongs to an everyday driver, not the business, and the business pays a monthly plan to have its decal placed on that driver's car instead of buying and wrapping its own vehicle. The driver keeps driving normally and gets paid; the business gets local presence without owning or maintaining a fleet.
Where does car advertising fit in the out-of-home ad industry?
Out-of-home (OOH) is the umbrella term for ads seen away from home and away from a screen — billboards, transit ads, street furniture, and vehicle advertising all sit inside it. US OOH hit a record $9.46 billion in 2025, its 19th straight quarter of growth, according to the OAAA (2026) — the only traditional ad medium still growing while linear TV, radio, and print decline. About 65% of US OOH spend is local, not national, per the OAAA (2024), which is the segment car advertising on personal vehicles competes in directly: a business advertising in its own neighbourhood rather than nationally.
How does car advertising work for drivers?
On Lunar, a driver applies a removable decal to their car door for a local business and keeps driving as usual — no shifts, no routes, no passengers. Driving is verified through a VIN check, a periodic install photo, and a weekly odometer photo, and pay arrives monthly via Stripe. The full mechanics, including bonus tiers and payout timing, are covered on the Lunar payouts page.
How does car advertising work for businesses?
A local business, nonprofit, or organization picks a monthly plan and a target zone — its neighbourhood or service area — and Lunar matches nearby drivers to carry the decal. Plans run in 3, 6, or 12-month phases billed monthly, and the dashboard reports estimated impressions, the same way billboards and transit ads are sold. Pricing and fleet sizes are listed on Lunar's pricing page.
What are the key numbers to know?
- Driver base pay: $70/month per sticker, up to a $100/month ceiling with bonuses
- Typical driver earnings with multiple stickers: $280–$400/month (estimate, not a guarantee)
- Sticker spots per car: up to 4 — one door decal per door
- Business plans: $500/mo (~3 cars), $1,000/mo (~7 cars), $2,000/mo (~16 cars)
- Verification: VIN, install photo, weekly odometer photo
- Available in: Vancouver, BC and Tulsa, OK
Is car advertising legit?
Legitimate car advertising exists, but the category also draws scams — most commonly a fake check mailed upfront with instructions to wire part of it to an 'installer.' The bright line: real programs never ask a driver to pay or forward money. A full breakdown of the check scam and how to spot it lives in Lunar's legitimacy guide.
Frequently asked questions
Is car advertising the same as a car wrap?
No — a wrap is one format inside the broader category of car advertising, which also includes magnetic signs, window graphics, and small door decals. Lunar uses a removable door decal rather than a full wrap, so the car keeps most of its factory paint visible.
Do I need a fleet vehicle to do car advertising?
No. Some car advertising runs on company-owned fleets, but Lunar's model works on personal vehicles — everyday drivers apply a decal to their own car and keep driving normally, with no fleet ownership required on either side.
What's the difference between car advertising and other OOH formats like billboards?
Billboards are fixed in one location; car advertising moves through the neighbourhoods a driver already travels and keeps being seen even while parked. Both fall under out-of-home (OOH) advertising, but vehicle advertising typically has a much lower cost of entry for a local business.
How much does car advertising cost a business?
On Lunar, plans start at $500/month for roughly 3 cars, up to $2,000/month for roughly 16 cars, billed monthly over a 3, 6, or 12-month term. That's a fraction of what a single static billboard often costs per month in most cities.
How much can a driver earn from car advertising?
Lunar pays a flat $70 base per sticker per month, plus bonuses up to a $100 ceiling per sticker, so drivers filling multiple spots typically earn $280–$400 per month. These figures are estimates, not guarantees, and depend on matches available in the driver's area.
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