Welcome Home Banner Ideas for Every Homecoming

Who gets a welcome home banner

Most people picture a soldier stepping off a bus, and that is a good reason. It is far from the only one. A banner works any time someone has been away long enough to be missed, or is coming home for the first time. The words change with the reason, but the shape stays the same: a name, a warm line and the people who are waiting.

• A deployment: a parent, a spouse, a son or a daughter coming back
• College: a first return after fall semester, or the first day of summer break
• A long trip: a work assignment, a semester abroad or months of travel
• A hospital stay: a parent or grandparent finally back in their own chair
• A new baby: the banner greets the baby, and big brothers and sisters can sign it
• An adoption: a child arriving at the house that will be theirs
• A new home: a family getting its keys, or new neighbors on the street

What to write, and photo or words only

Lead with the name people use at home: Jake, Grandma, Dad, Sgt. Miller. Add one warm line, such as We missed you or So glad you are home, and sign it with the people who are waiting. Naming the family tells the person that this banner came from people who love them. Three or four lines is plenty.

A photo makes it feel like a real celebration. Welcome home banners come in four layouts: a photo on the left, a photo in a ring, an instant-photo frame with a big script Home, and a military homecoming layout in navy and red. The site finds the faces in your browser and frames them, and a note says how sharp the print will be. For words only, welcome banners include Welcome, Welcome home and Welcome back designs in several colors.

No photo yet? For a new baby you may not have one, and words work well. Tick the box saying you took the photo or may print it when you do use one. A snapshot from your own phone is fine, and a studio portrait usually needs the photographer's print release.

Military homecoming banner ideas

A military homecoming banner has two jobs: it thanks the person, and it tells the whole street the family is proud. Our military homecoming layout puts the photo on the left, in navy and red with a flag theme. Type the rank and name the way your family says it, such as Sgt. Jake Miller. Keep the rest plain: a thank-you, a welcome and the people who love them.

Short wording beats clever wording. Welcome home, Thank you for your service and We are so proud of you all read from the street. Put the family in the small line, or a party time if the neighbors are invited, such as Cookout at our house, Saturday 5 pm. Pick a photo with a large face and an easy smile, because this banner will be photographed again and again.

If you do not have a photo you love, words-only banners in white on blue, white on red or white on green carry the same message in big letters. If the date is not certain, plan for the earliest day the person could arrive, and remember that shipping times are not a promised date.

The airport pickup

At arrivals the banner has to be held up by two people, read across a crowd and photographed in a second. A 6 x 3 ft banner weighs about 1.6 lb, light enough for two people to hold at shoulder height, and a 4 x 2 ft banner is easier still in a tight crowd. Choose one big word, such as WELCOME or the name, and keep the small line short.

Hold it with the print toward the person walking in. Cord or ribbon threaded through the brass grommets gives each holder a loop. Check the airport's rules about signs before you go, since each place has its own.

A banner on the car makes a good ride home. Tie it through the grommets to a parked car for the photo, then take it off before you drive, because an outside banner on a moving car is not safe. At home, hang it where they walk in.

The front porch and the garage door

Most surprises happen at home, and the front of the house is the stage. Hang the banner across the garage door, along the porch rail or on the front fence, so it is the first thing the car sees when it turns into the drive. Put it up the morning of, or the night before, so it is waiting when the doors open.

A 6 x 2 ft banner fits a porch rail. A 6 x 3 ft or 8 x 3 ft banner suits a garage door or a fence, and an 8 x 4 ft banner makes the loudest welcome across a wide door. Use zip ties or rope through the grommets outside, or hooks on an indoor wall. Our how to hang a banner guide covers each spot.

Keep it afterward. A photo banner is a keepsake for a den or a bedroom wall, and a roll is easy to store: roll it with the print facing out and avoid hard folds.

Sizes, prices and when to order

Think about distance. A rule of thumb from the sign trade is about 1 inch of letter height for every 10 feet, so a banner read from a car 30 feet away wants letters near 3 inches tall. The live preview shows the letter sizes on the banner itself, and our banner sizes guide goes deeper. The table below pairs each size with a likely spot.

Your banner leaves us in 1 to 2 business days, then ground shipping takes 2 to 5 business days. We cannot promise an arrival date, so order well before the earliest day the person could be home. If you would like help with the layout, Design it for me adds $35: you upload files and notes, we email a mockup within 1 business day, and nothing prints until you say so.