Here’s how you can buy one of the new Wisconsin license plates

If you want to get one of the two new Wisconsin license plates, you can order them now.

The new plates – the blackout design and the “butter” yellow design – are available on the Division of Motor Vehicles’ new online portal. They’re also stocked at most DMV regional offices and participating car dealerships.

You’ll pay a $15 fee up-front, plus $25 annually. Personalizing the characters is an extra $15 each year.

Along with the new plates, you can order any of the other 60 specialty designs through the portal.

Customers who apply online and don’t want a personalized message could get their new plates within a week.

If you want to personalize the plate, you can see a preview online and check if the message is already taken. DMV staff then review the personalization requests, and delivery can take several weeks.

You can also renew vehicle registration at the same time and pay online, rather than mailing in a check or money order.

The new plates were approved in the state budget this summer, kicking off several months of design work at the state Department of Transportation. State officials unveiled the designs in December.

State officials anticipate the plates will generate more than $25 million for road projects in the first three years.

The “blackout” plate is a simple black-and-white theme, similar to the popular Road America plate. Lawmakers have considered creating the plates in Wisconsin for nearly two years, citing success in other states.

The “butter” plate isn’t pale yellow or shaped like a stick of margarine, but rather a throwback to the standard plate design of the 1970s and ’80s. Unlike the blackout plate, it includes “America’s Dairyland” text on the bottom.

Non-personalized blackout plates will begin with the combination “ZAA-1001,” and yellow plates will start with “YAA-1001.” There are seven characters available for personalized combinations.