Vehicle registration plates of Delaware
The U.S. state of Delaware first required its residents to register their motor vehicles in 1905. Registrants provided their own license plates for display until 1909, when the state began to issue plates.
All license plates issued since 1942 can still be used with current stickers. Authorized reproductions of porcelain enamel license plates can be obtained through a private vendor, provided they fall within the state's guidelines. Plates are currently issued by the Division of Motor Vehicles of the Delaware Department of Transportation. Only rear plates have been required on standard passenger vehicles since 1945.
In 1956, the United States, Canada, and Mexico came to an agreement with the American Association of Motor Vehicle Administrators, the Automobile Manufacturers Association and the National Safety Council that standardized the size for license plates for vehicles at in height by in width, with standardized mounting holes. The first Delaware license plate that complied with these standards was issued in 1958.
Passenger baseplates
1909 to 1942
No slogans were used on passenger plates during the period covered by this subsection.| Image | First issued | Design | Serial format | Serials issued | Notes |
| 1909 | White on black porcelain; "DEL. 1909" at top | 1234 | 1000 to 1500 | ||
| 1910 | Black on white porcelain; "DEL. 1910" at top | 123 | 1 to 900 | ||
| 1911 | White on dark blue porcelain; "DEL. 1911" at top | 1234 | 1 to 1500 | ||
| 1912 | White on maroon porcelain; "DEL. 1912" at top | 1234 | 1 to 2000 | ||
| 1913 | White on black porcelain; vertical "DEL" and "1913" at left and right respectively | 1234 | 1 to approximately 2000 | ||
| 1913 | As above, but with "DEL 13" at right | 1234 | 2001 to approximately 2500 | ||
| 1914 | Yellow on black porcelain; "DEL 14" at right | 1234 | 1 to approximately 3200 | ||
| 1915 | Blue on white porcelain; "DEL 15" at right | 1234 | 1 to approximately 4700 | ||
| 1916 | White on dark green; "DEL 16" at right | 1234 | 1 to approximately 7000 | ||
| 1917 | White on black; "DEL 17" at right | 1234 | 1 to approximately 11000 | ||
| 1918 | White on brown; "DEL 18" at right | 12345 | 1 to approximately 13000 | ||
| 1919 | White on dark blue with border line; "DEL 19" at right | 12345 | 1 to approximately 12500 | ||
| 1920 | Black on light green with border line; "DEL 20" at right | 12345 | 1 to approximately 16500 | ||
| 1921 | Red on white with border line; "DEL 21" at right | 12345 | 1 to approximately 21000 | ||
| 1922 | Blue on white with border line; "DEL 22" at right | 12-345 | 1 to approximately 24-000 | ||
| 1923 | White on black with border line; "DEL 23" at right | 12-345 | 1 to approximately 25-000 | ||
| 1924 | Brown on white with border line; "DEL 24" at right | 12-345 | 1 to 20-000; 30-001 to approximately 39-000 | Serials 20-001 through 30-000 reserved for commercial vehicles. | |
| 1925 | Black on orange with border line; "DEL 25" at right | 12-345 | 1 to 30-000; 45-001 to approximately 48-000 | Serials 30-001 through 45-000 reserved for commercial vehicles and tractor units. | |
| 1926 | Yellow on blue with border line; "DEL 26" at right | 12-345 | 1 to approximately 37-000 | ||
| 1927 | Red on gray with border line; "DEL 27" at right | 12-345 | 1 to approximately 40-000 | ||
| 1928 | Black on white with border line; "DEL 28" at right | 12-345 | 1 to approximately 50-000 | ||
| 1929 | Blue on golden yellow with border line; diamond at left and "DEL 29" at right | 12-345 | 1 to approximately 47-000 | ||
| 1930 | Golden yellow on blue with border line; diamond at left and "DEL 30" at right | 12-345 | 1 to approximately 45-000 | ||
| 1931 | As 1929 base, but with "DEL 31" at right | 12-345 | 1 to approximately 48-000 | ||
| 1932 | As 1930 base, but with "DEL '32" at right | 12-345 | 1 to approximately 47-000 | ||
| 1933 | As 1929 base, but with "DEL '33" at right | 12-345 | 1 to approximately 48-000 | ||
| 1934 | As 1930 base, but with "DEL '34" at right | 12-345 | 1 to approximately 47-000 | ||
| 1935 | As 1929 base, but with "DEL '35" at right | 12-345 | 1 to approximately 48-000 | ||
| 1936 | Golden yellow on blue with border line; "DELAWARE – 36" at bottom | 12♦345 | 1 to approximately 51♦000 | First use of the full state name. | |
| 1937 | Blue on golden yellow with border line; "DELAWARE – 37" at bottom | 12♦345 | 1 to approximately 53♦000 | ||
| 1938 | Red on silver with border line; "DELAWARE – 38" at bottom | 12♦345 | 1 to approximately 55♦000 | ||
| 1939 | Silver on maroon with border line; "DELAWARE – 39" at bottom | 12♦345 | 1 to approximately 58♦000 | ||
| 1940 | Blue on golden yellow; "DEL. EX. 3-31-41" at bottom | 12♦345 | 1 to approximately 60♦000 | ||
| 1941 | Golden yellow on blue; "DELAWARE 3-31-42" at top | 12♦345 | 1 to approximately 59♦000 |
1942 to present
Notes:1 The state recycles serials, so they can be found on any base.
2 Serials 1, 2 and 3 reserved for the Governor, Lieutenant Governor and Secretary of State respectively. Plates with these serials are blue on gold with the state's coat of arms at the left.
Non-passenger plates
Delaware does not use leading zeros on its plates, so serials are composed of a variable number of digits.| Image | Type | Slogan | Serial format | Notes |
| Commercial | The First State | C123456 C/L123456 | ||
| Dealer | The First State | D12345 | ||
| Farm Truck | The First State | FT1234 | ||
| Handicapped | The First State | HP12345 | International Symbol of Access at left. | |
| Limousine | The First State | LX1234 | ||
| Motorcycle | none | 12345 | "M/C" at bottom left. | |
| Pleasure Commercial | The First State | P/C123456 | Issued to station wagons and sport utility vehicles. | |
| Recreational Trailer | The First State | RT1234 | ||
| Recreational Vehicle | The First State | RV12345 | ||
| State-Owned | The First State | S1234 | ||
| Street Rod | The First State | SR123 | ||
| Taxi | The First State | TX1234 | ||
| Temporary Registration | The First State | XC123456; XP123456 | Delaware started issuing temporary tags with an all-numeric format, then moved to the letter X as a prefix, then XA, XB, XC, XD, then XP as of April 16, 2015 | |
| Trailer | The First State | T123456 |
Optional plates
Delaware does not use leading zeros on its plates, so serials are composed of a variable number of digits.| Image | Type | Serial format | Notes |
| Centennial of Delaware License Plates | Remakes of passenger serials: 123456 Remakes of pleasure commercial serials: P/C123456 | Issued from October 1, 2008 through December 31, 2009. Awarded "Plate of the Year" for best new license plate of 2008 by the Automobile License Plate Collectors Association, the first and, to date, only time Delaware has been so honored. | |
| Disabled American Veterans | 123DAV | ||
| Duck | Remakes of passenger serials: 123456 | A portion of the proceeds from this license plate's sales benefit Delaware's two National Estuary Programs: the Center for the Inland Bays and the Partnership for the Delaware Estuary. These funds are used to improve the health of Delaware's coastal waterways and bays, or "estuaries." | |
| Lighthouse | Remakes of passenger serials: 123456 Remakes of pleasure commercial serials: P/C123456 | A portion of the proceeds from this license plate's sales benefit Delaware's two National Estuary Programs: the Center for the Inland Bays and the Partnership for the Delaware Estuary. These funds are used to improve the health of Delaware's coastal waterways and bays, or "estuaries." | |
| Lighthouse—Personalized | various | A portion of the proceeds from this license plate's sales benefit Delaware's two National Estuary Program's: the Center for the Inland Bays and the Partnership for the Delaware Estuary. These funds are used to improve the health of Delaware's coastal waterways and bays, or "estuaries." | |
| Passenger—Personalized | various | ||
| Purple Heart | P/H1234 | ||
| State Legislators | Legislators' initials: A. B. C. | ||
| Telephone Pioneers | TP1234 | ||
| University of Delaware | UD1234 | ||
| Volunteer Firefighter | V/F1234 |