DLT auction plates: bid yourself or buy from a shop?
The Department of Land Transport (DLT) keeps the best numbers for public auction. You can bid for one yourself, or buy a plate that someone already won.
In short: a graphic auction plate is a right to the number that you own for life. You can keep it without a car, sell it, or move it to another car. At the auction you can only bid on the numbers in the current round. From a shop you can choose from plates already won in many rounds, and the price is known before you pay.
What is a graphic auction plate?
The DLT puts special numbers up for auction, such as single digits, three or four of a kind and sequences. The money goes to the Road Safety Fund. A plate won at auction has a coloured picture background for its province. In Bangkok the picture shows the Temple of the Emerald Buddha.
The winner gets an official certificate of the right to that number. The right can be passed to another person, and it can be passed to heirs.
Graphic auction plates and classic white plates
| Graphic auction plate | Classic white plate | |
|---|---|---|
| Where the number comes from | Won at a DLT auction | A normal series number, already held by someone |
| Look | Coloured picture of the province | Black letters on a white background |
| Keep without a car | Yes, for life | No, it must stay on a registered car |
| Selling it on | The right is transferred on paper | The plate is swapped from the seller's car to the buyer's car at the DLT |
| One-year rule | Does not apply | Applies when moving to another person's car |
| Province | Both must match the province where the car is registered | |
Read more about the one-year rule in our guide to plate transfer and documents.
Starting prices at the DLT auction (Bangkok cars)
Each number group has a starting price. Popular numbers usually sell for many times more. These starting prices are for private cars registered in Bangkok, from DLT announcement No. 3 of 2020, checked in October 2026.
| Number group | Examples | Starting price |
|---|---|---|
| Group 1: four of a kind | 1111 to 9999 | ฿100,000 |
| Group 2: single digits, two or three of a kind, 8899, 9889 | 1 to 9, 11 to 99, 111 to 999 | ฿30,000 |
| Group 3: round thousands, sequences, pairs | 1000 to 9000, 123 to 789, 1234 to 6789, 1122, 1212 | ฿5,000 |
Plates outside Bangkok, vans and pickups have their own, lower starting prices. Special word plates (Thai words instead of letters) start much higher. For example, a word plate with 9999 sold for ฿18,560,000 at its first auction in 2022.
If you win an auction
- Your bid deposit counts towards the price.
- Within 7 days you pay at least 10% of the price.
- Within 30 days you pay the rest.
- Then you receive the certificate of the right to the number.
If you do not pay, you lose the number and it goes back to auction.
Bid yourself or buy from a shop?
| Bid at the DLT auction | Buy from a shop | |
|---|---|---|
| Choice | Only numbers in the current auction round | Plates already won in many past rounds |
| Price | Unknown until the auction ends | Known before you pay |
| When you get it | After you win and pay in full | Usually right after the deposit |
| Paperwork | You do it yourself | We do it with you at the DLT |
If the number you want is in an upcoming auction round, bidding can cost less. If you want a plate now, or a number from a past round, buying from a shop is simpler. Browse graphic auction plates for sale or see plate prices.
More guides
Looking for a number from a past auction?
Send us the number you want. We will check which plates are available.