Window Stickerby VIN

What a Monroney label is

The window sticker on a new car has an official name: the Monroney label. It comes from the Automobile Information Disclosure Act of 1958, sponsored by Senator Mike Monroney of Oklahoma. The law requires manufacturers to attach a label to the window of every new passenger car sold in the US, and only the buyer may remove it.

The law set out what the label must show:

• Make, model and serial number (today, the VIN)
• The final assembly point
• The dealer the car was shipped to
• The manufacturer’s suggested retail price (MSRP) of the base vehicle
• Each factory-installed option and its price
• The destination and delivery charge
• The total suggested price

Later rules added more. EPA fuel economy figures, estimated fuel cost and emissions ratings now sit on the label, along with NHTSA crash-test star ratings where a vehicle has been rated. A separate 1992 law, the American Automobile Labeling Act, added the share of US and Canadian parts content and the country of origin for the engine and transmission.

Why used-car buyers want the original sticker

Once a car is sold, the sticker usually ends up in a glove box or a bin. But for a used-car buyer it is still the best single record of how that car was built.

• Verify options and packages. A listing might say “fully loaded”. The sticker shows exactly which packages were ordered and what each one cost.
• See the original MSRP. Knowing what the car cost new helps you judge whether an asking price makes sense, and whether a higher-priced trim was really bought.
• Spot a misrepresented trim. Badges are cheap. A base model wearing a top-trim badge, or a truck sold as an off-road package it never had, is easy to catch when the sticker lists the real trim and packages.
• Check the factory color and equipment. The exterior and interior color names, wheels, engine and transmission are all printed, which helps if a part has been swapped or the car has been repainted.

How our window sticker lookup works

Enter the 17-character VIN in the tool above. We decode it through NHTSA’s free vPIC database, then check whether an original sticker is available for that exact vehicle.

What happens next depends on the brand:

Brand	Original sticker	Cost
Ford, Lincoln	Straight from Ford’s own window-sticker system, when Ford has released it for that VIN	Full Report, $9.99
Chevrolet, GMC, Buick, Cadillac, Jeep, Ram, Dodge, Chrysler, Fiat, Alfa Romeo, Hyundai, Genesis, Kia, Toyota, Lexus, Nissan, Mitsubishi	Through a licensed window-sticker data partner, when one is on file for that VIN	Full Report, $9.99, when a partner has it on file
Honda, Acura, Subaru, Volkswagen, Audi, BMW, Mercedes-Benz, Tesla, Porsche, Mazda, Volvo and others	No original-sticker source	Free decode only

Ford coverage is best for recent model years. In our testing, 2025 vehicles returned the real sticker, while several 2021 and 2022 VINs returned Ford’s “not yet released” notice. Older Fords are often unavailable. Partner coverage also varies by model year and market, so we never promise a sticker exists for every VIN.

For brands with no sticker source, we tell you plainly. Your best options are the selling dealer, the brand’s customer-service line, the original purchase paperwork, or the owner’s online account (Tesla owners, for example, can find purchase documents in their account).

What is always free

For every brand, at no cost:

• The VIN check and NHTSA decode: year, make, model, trim where the VIN shows it, series, body style, engine, drivetrain, fuel type, and the assembly plant where NHTSA reports it
• Whether an original window sticker is on file for that VIN
• The number of NHTSA recall campaigns for that make, model and year, with a link to NHTSA’s free open-recall check for your exact VIN

The Full Report

The Full Report is a one-time $9.99 purchase, with no subscription and no account needed. It has the original window sticker PDF where one is on file, the MSRP breakdown (base price, options total, destination), every factory option and package with its original price, the paint code, and full recall details: what’s wrong, the risk and the fix. It’s all saved as one PDF with a permanent link. If we showed a sticker as available and can’t deliver it, you’re refunded automatically. A vehicle history report covering title brands, odometer and salvage records is coming soon where available.

Window sticker vs build sheet

People use the two terms loosely, but they are different documents.

• Window sticker (Monroney label): the federally required label for the customer. It lists equipment in plain English with prices, MPG and safety ratings.
• Build sheet: the factory’s internal record of how the car was assembled, often a list of option codes rather than prices. Old build sheets were paper sheets that sometimes turned up under seats or behind door panels.

On StickerByVIN, the build sheet is the parsed version of the sticker, included in the Full Report: standard equipment, optional packages with original prices, base MSRP, destination charge, total MSRP, EPA MPG and assembly plant. Without a sticker, we show the NHTSA-decoded build data, clearly labeled as decoded data rather than the original sticker. See build sheet by VIN for more.

Where to find the VIN

The VIN is 17 characters, using letters and numbers but never I, O or Q. You can find it in several places:

• Dashboard: on a plate at the base of the windshield on the driver’s side, readable from outside the car
• Driver door jamb: on the certification label on the door edge or the pillar it closes against
• Paperwork: the registration, title and insurance card all show it

Check that the VIN on the dashboard matches the door jamb and the paperwork. If they don’t match, ask why before you go any further.

Related lookups

• Paint code by VIN: what the VIN can and can’t tell you about color, and where each brand puts its paint label
• What trim is my car: how to confirm the real trim level
• Brand guides: Ford, Chevrolet, Jeep, Toyota