Braille on Signs: Grade 2 Dot Sizes, Spacing and Placement (Checklist)
The braille numbers every sign shop needs: Grade 2 (contracted) braille, dot size and spacing from the 2010 ADA Standards, how far below the text it goes, mounting height, and the stricter California 11B values.
Tool for this: Free Braille Translator — Type sign text and get Grade 2 Braille with dot sizes for routing.
Braille is the part of a tactile sign that is easiest to get wrong and hardest to fix. A letter that is slightly too small can still be read; a braille cell with the wrong spacing, the wrong contraction or a missing capital sign has to be remade. This checklist puts the numbers from the 2010 ADA Standards (section 703.3) and California's CBC 11B in one place, so you can check a layout before it goes to production.
1. Use Grade 2 (contracted) braille
US sign codes ask for contracted braille, also called Grade 2. Contracted braille uses short forms for common words and letter groups, so "Conference" is not spelled letter by letter. Since 2016 the US uses Unified English Braille (UEB), so translate with a UEB Grade 2 table, not an older EBAE one.
- Capitals: the capital sign is used only before the first word of a sentence, proper nouns and names, single letters, initials and acronyms. A sign that reads "CONFERENCE ROOM" in raised letters is brailled as "Conference room", with one capital sign.
- Numbers: use the number sign before digits. Room "204" becomes the number sign followed by the letters b, j, d.
- Canada is different: CSA B651 asks for uncontracted (Grade 1) braille unless stated otherwise.
2. Dot size and spacing
| Measurement | 2010 ADA Standards (range) | California 11B |
|---|---|---|
| Dot base diameter | 0.059"–0.063" (1.5–1.6 mm) | 0.059"–0.063" |
| Dot height | 0.025"–0.037" (0.6–0.9 mm) | 0.025"–0.037" |
| Dot to dot in the same cell | 0.090"–0.100" (2.3–2.5 mm) | 0.100" fixed |
| Cell to cell (corresponding dots) | 0.241"–0.300" (6.1–7.6 mm) | 0.300" fixed |
| Line to line (corresponding dots) | 0.395"–0.400" (10–10.2 mm) | 0.395"–0.400" |
Dots must be domed or rounded, never flat-topped. With raster braille (beads in drilled holes) the bead size sets the dome; with photopolymer, check the plate maker's braille settings.
3. Where the braille goes
- Below the text it belongs to. Never above, and never on a separate part of the sign.
- 3/8" minimum from any other tactile characters, and 3/8" from raised borders and decorative elements.
- California: 3/8" minimum and 1/2" maximum below the raised text, flush left or centered.
- If a room name breaks onto two lines of raised text, the braille still goes below all of it.
4. Mounting height
- 2010 ADA: tactile characters 48" minimum and 60" maximum above the floor, measured to the baseline of the characters.
- California 11B: 48" minimum to the baseline of the lowest braille cells, 60" maximum to the baseline of the highest line of raised characters.
- The sign goes beside the door on the latch side, with an 18" × 18" clear floor space in front of it outside the door swing.
A quick check: work out the height of the lowest braille line and the highest text line from the bottom of the sign, then add the mounting height. Both must sit inside the 48"–60" band.
5. Proofreading checklist before production
- The braille was translated with UEB Grade 2 (US) or Grade 1 (Canada).
- The capital sign appears only where the rules allow it.
- Numbers start with the number sign.
- Cell and dot spacing match the table above for your state.
- The braille sits 3/8" (and in California, no more than 1/2") below the text.
- The lowest braille and highest text baselines are inside 48"–60" when mounted.
- A second person has compared the braille against the raised text.
Lay it out in minutes
Our free-to-design ADA Sign Maker translates UEB Grade 2 braille, places it at the right distance below the text, uses fixed California spacing when you choose 11B, and shows the mounting elevation. For braille only, use the Braille Translator. Need the whole sign package drawn? Our Sign Desk prepares white-label shop drawings for sign companies. Related guide: ADA Sign Requirements: A Checklist for Sign Shops.
Sources: 2010 ADA Standards, section 703, California CBC 11B-703 (2025).