CES 2027 Booth Guide: What to Do With 12 Weeks Left

CES 2027 opens January 6 in Las Vegas, which is about 12 weeks from today. If your booth is not designed yet, that is tight but workable. If it is not ordered by the end of the month, it gets expensive. Here is the plan we would follow.

What CES looks like on paper

CES 2026 drew 148,392 audited attendees, up from 142,465 the year before. More than 4,100 exhibitors filled 2.6 million net square feet, and 1,200 of them were startups in Eureka Park. Over 55,000 attendees came from 141 countries. Those are the organizers' own numbers, and they matter for one reason: you are not competing with a few dozen booths. You are competing with thousands.

The dates for 2027 are January 6 to 9, with CES Unveiled Las Vegas on Monday, January 4. Your move-in window sits before all of that, so the real deadline is earlier than the date on the poster.

Build, rent or mix the two

Custom build. This is the right call when you want a look nobody else has: a branded structure, a demo area shaped around your product, a hanging sign. It also needs the most time. Design, fabrication, pre-build and inspection, then freight. Twelve weeks is enough only if design gets approved fast. We will tell you straight whether your date works. See our custom exhibits.

Rental. A rental exhibit is built from modular parts that already exist, so your lead time is mostly graphics. For a first CES, or a smaller space, this is usually the smart move. Browse rental displays.

A mix. Rent the walls and structure, then build the one custom piece people remember: a demo counter, a branded tower, a lit logo. You get a booth that looks custom without the full custom timeline.

The 12-week timeline

Your exhibitor service manual sets the real deadlines, so read it the day you get it. The order below is the usual shape of a job like this one.

Weeks 12 to 10 (now): confirm your space and size with CES, choose your exhibit house, and send the brief. The sooner design starts, the more choices you keep.

Weeks 9 to 8: approve the design and the graphics. Every round of changes after this point costs days, and days are what you do not have.

Weeks 8 to 5: fabrication and graphics printing. This is also when your hanging sign, if you have one, needs its permit and its own crate. More on that in our post on hanging signs.

Weeks 5 to 4: pre-build, inspection and crating. We assemble the booth before it ships so surprises happen in our shop, not on your show floor.

Weeks 4 to 2: freight. Decide between the advance warehouse and direct to show. Our advance warehouse breakdown explains the trade-off.

Week 1: install in Las Vegas. Then show.

The costs people forget

The build is only part of the bill. Floor space, electrical, drayage, rigging and labor are charged by the venue and show organizer to every exhibitor, whoever builds the booth. Together they can approach or exceed the cost of the booth itself. Our post on what a booth really costs breaks it down, and drayage, explained covers the line that confuses the most people.

At a technology show, one line deserves extra attention: electrical. Screens, demo units, chargers and lighting add up fast, and ordering power late costs more than ordering it early. Make a list of everything that plugs in before you place the order.

Labor matters too. Las Vegas has strict jurisdiction rules about who can do what on the floor, and they decide whether your crew can touch your own booth. Read union labor basics before you plan your install day.

Design for a floor this loud

A CES aisle is crowded, bright and noisy. Your booth has about three seconds to explain what you do. Four things help:

One message, readable from 20 feet. A short line in large letters beats a paragraph. Save the details for the demo.

Room to stand. A demo that fits one person at a time creates a queue and a crowd that blocks your own entrance. Plan space for three or four people at each station.

Real lighting. Convention halls are lit for walking, not for products. Good booth lighting is often the difference between a stop and a walk-by.

A place to put things. Brochures, chargers, bags and spare cables need a closed storage spot. A tidy booth looks like a company that has its act together.

If you are choosing a size, our booth size guide will save you from buying floor space you cannot use.

Shipping to Las Vegas from the East Coast

We build in Haverstraw, New York and ship nationwide. For CES that usually means a pre-built booth, crated and labeled, trucked to the Las Vegas advance warehouse or direct to the show depending on your dates. Our Las Vegas Convention Center page has more on what to expect in the city, and there is more on exhibiting in Las Vegas.

Four mistakes we see on tech show floors

A demo that needs the internet. Convention hall wifi is shared with tens of thousands of people. Ask for a wired line, or build a demo that works offline.

Hiding the product. If the thing you sell sits behind a counter or a glass wall, visitors will not ask about it. Put it where people can see it from the aisle.

No plan for leads. Decide before the show how names get captured and who follows up in the first 48 hours. A booth that collects a thousand cards and calls no one is an expensive printing job.

Too many messages. One product, one promise. Visitors walk past seven booths in the time it takes to read one long paragraph.

Quick answers

When is CES 2027? January 6 to 9, 2027 in Las Vegas, with CES Unveiled Las Vegas on January 4.

Can I get a booth ready in 12 weeks? Yes, in most cases, as long as design gets approved in the next two or three weeks. A rental or a mix of rental and custom gives you the most room.

How much does a CES booth cost? It depends on size, materials and how much is custom. Use our price check and the booth cost guide for a realistic range, then add the venue charges.

Should I rent or build? Rent if it is your first CES or your space is small. Build if the booth is a lasting brand asset you will reuse across several shows. Mix if you want both.

Do you handle install and dismantle in Las Vegas? Yes. We coordinate installation and dismantle, and we plan around the labor rules for the venue.

Start with three facts

Send us your space size, your hall or booth number if you have it, and your show date. We will tell you honestly whether it can be done, what it will take, and whether a rental gets you there sooner. Contact us and we will get back to you fast. And if you are planning more shows this season, our trade show checklist and the trade show calendar are good places to start.