California License Plates:
Occupational License Plates

as observed by Roger M. Wilcox Last updated 1-September-2026

These are license plates for vehicles that either haven't been bought yet, or are destined for the junk heap, but which still need to be transported on the road.

The license number consists of a three-letter code for the type of plate (manufacturer, distributor, dealer, dismantler, etc.), a full-sized number in all digits, and a small two-to-four-character code consisting of 1-3 digits followed by a letter. The full-sized number is assigned to the occupational entity (the dealer, the manufacturer, etc.), not to the vehicle, and does not vary over the occupational entity's lifetime. All of these characters — the three-letter entity-type code, the full-sized digits, and the small 2-4 character code — are considered part of the license plate number.

During the blue license plate era, the three-letter entity code was replaced with the full word describing the entity ("DEALER", "DISTRIBUTOR", etc.). This word appeared in small embossed type at the bottom-left of the plate, and the 2-4 character code was laid out horizontally at the bottom-right of the plate. The use of a vertically-stacked 3-letter entity-type code was resumed in the California Sunset license plate era.

Manufacturer plates

These plates are used by auto and truck manufacturers. They have the letters "MFG" on the left, in small type stacked on top of one another. There is also a two- or three-character code, with both/all characters stacked vertically. On old plates (black plate era and older), this code was on the far left, to the left of the MFG. On modern plates, this code is on the far right. Both the MFG and the three-character code are considered part of the license plate number.

Yellow Manufacturer plate, 1E MFG 013 Black Manufacturer plate, 29Z MFG 015 White-with-California-in-trendy-script Manufacturer plate, MFG 46773 43A

White-with-California-in-trendy-script manufacturer plates seen

[MFG]797[##A] (seen on 20-Oct-2025)

[MFG]05951[60B] (seen on a Rivian truck on 8-Sept-2025)

[MFG]10052[7A] (seen on a Mercedes SUV on 2-Oct-2025)

[MFG]45257[???] (seen on 24-July-2025)

[MFG]45257[??] (seen on 19-Aug-2025)

[MFG]45257[93M] (seen on a Cadillac SUV on 27-May-2026, Stevens Creek Cadillac [Santa Clara, CA] license plate frame)

[MFG]45257[34J] (seen on a Cadillac Escalade on 28-July-2026)

[MFG]48475[70B] (seen on a Tesla on 18-Aug-2025)

[MFG]48475[62C] (seen on a Tesla on 14-Nov-2025)

[MFG]48475[76F] (seen on a Tesla in April 2026)

[MFG]48475[87C] (seen on a Cybertruck on 23-June-2026)

[MFG]63277[#A] (seen on a Tesla on 16-March-2026)

[MFG]63277[1I] (seen on a Tesla on 30-July-2026)

[MFG]63277[25T] (seen on a Tesla on 27-Oct-2025)

[MFG]63277[39M] (seen on a Cybertruck on 23-April-2026)

[MFG]63277[68H] (seen on a Tesla on 15-July-2026)

Dealer plates

These plates are used by auto and truck dealers. They have the letters "DLR" on the left, in small type stacked on top of one another. There is also a two- or three-character code, with both/all characters stacked vertically. On old plates (black plate era and older), this code was on the far left, to the left of the DLR. On modern plates, this code is on the far right. Both the DLR and the three-character code are considered part of the license plate number.

Yellow Dealer plate, 1A DLR 3560 Black Dealer plate, 1F DLR 5534 Blue Dealer plate, DEALER 5336 14A California Sunset Dealer plate, DLR 1314 7A White-with-California-in-block-printing Dealer plate, DLR 23175 1A