Hey Michigan, Your License Plate Sticker Goes Here →

It never ceases to amaze me when I'm behind someone in traffic who's got their Michigan registration tabs (license plate stickers) in seemingly random locations all over their license plate.

It seems so easy just to put your renewal tab on top of the last one. But apparently, for some it's a cause for confusion.

Does It Really Matter Where I Put My License Plate Stickers in Michigan?

The law's the law. And there are fines up to $500 possible associated with "improper display". Maybe the police will ticket you for having your tab in the wrong place, and maybe they won't. Do you really want to play that game?

Where Not to Put Your License Plate Stickers in Michigan

Let's just get this out in the open front and center. The upper left corner is never the correct place to put a license plate sticker in Michigan. It doesn't ever go on the lower left either, for that matter.

Never put your renewal sticker in the upper left corner. There are no current Michigan plates where that's the correct placement. (Photo via Canva and JR, Townsquare Media Lansing)

Same goes for the middle of the plate. Points for being artistic? Maybe? But that's literally also never the right place for your registration tab in Michigan.

Never, ever put your renewal sticker in the MIDDLE OF YOUR PLATE. What the actual heck. It never goes there. (Photos via Canva and JR, Townsquare Media Lansing)

The Lower Right Is Sometimes Right

There are a few specialty Michigan license plates that require the renewal sticker to be placed in the lower right corner, but this is an exception to the rule.

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The sticker goes in the lower right only on Michigan motorcycle plates, the Water Wonderland plates, the Water-Winter Wonderland plates, and the throwback black-and-white or blue-and-white legacy plates. That's it.

This one's kind of tricky. There are certain Michigan plates - such as the Water/Winter Wonderland plate - where the renewal sticker goes in the bottom right corner. These are the exception, not the rule. (Photos via Canva and JR, Townsquare Media Lansing)

Where Do I Put My Michigan License Plate Sticker?

If you've got a standard "Pure Michigan" or Mackinac Bridge plate - which includes the majority of license plates issued in Michigan - your sticker goes in the upper right corner.

Got a standard Michigan plate? Your sticker goes in the upper right corner. It really is that simple. (Photos via Canva and JR, Townsquare Media Lansing)

But what if there's already a sticker there? Cover it up. One on top of the other. Please don't make your license plate look like your passport after a trip to Europe.

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