Pole Pockets vs Grommets vs Hem: How Should You Actually Hang a Banner?
Grommets, pole pockets and hems are not three ways of doing the same job. A hem is the folded and welded edge that gives the banner something strong to attach to, and almost every finished banner has one whether you ask for it or not. Grommets are metal eyelets punched through that hem so you can tie, bungee or zip tie the banner to a fence, frame or wall. Pole pockets are open sleeves sewn or welded along an edge so a rod or pole can slide through. The real question is never hem versus grommet, it is grommets versus pole pockets, and the answer is decided entirely by what you are attaching to.
Key takeaways
- A hem is structural reinforcement, not a hanging method. Grommets punched into an unhemmed banner tear out.
- Grommets are for anything you can tie to: fences, railings, frames, eye bolts, existing hooks.
- Pole pockets are for anything that passes a rod through: street pole banners, hanging crossbars, wall mounted bracket sets.
- Industry standard grommet spacing is every 24 inches along the top and bottom, plus all four corners.
- A standard pole pocket is about 3 inches of flat measure, which accepts a rod of roughly 1.375 inches diameter.
- You can have both. A banner can carry pole pockets top and bottom and grommets down the sides for tensioning.
Which finishing do I need for my mounting situation?
| Where the banner is going | Use | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Chain link or wooden fence | Grommets, 24 in spacing | Zip ties through the eyelets, quick to fit and remove |
| Building wall with eye bolts | Grommets, plus corners | Bungees at the corners absorb gusts instead of tearing the hem |
| Street light pole, bracket set | Pole pockets top and bottom | The brackets supply the rods, so eyelets are useless |
| Hanging from a ceiling or truss | Pole pockets top and bottom | The bottom rod acts as a weight and stops the banner curling |
| Freestanding A frame or banner frame | Grommets all round | Frames expect bungee tensioning at every edge |
| Strung between two posts | Grommets plus rope in the hem | Rope carries the tension so the eyelets do not have to |
| Exposed site, sustained wind | Mesh banner with grommets | Airflow through the weave, not slits in solid vinyl |
What is the difference between a hem, a grommet and a pole pocket?
In one line each: the hem is the folded edge, the grommet is the metal ring through it, the pole pocket is a sleeve instead of a ring. We cover the terminology in detail in banner finishing explained, so this article stays on the decision rather than the definitions.
The practical point most people miss is that the hem is doing the load bearing. Without a hem, the vinyl at the eyelet is a single layer and it tears in a straight line from the hole to the edge the first time the wind lifts it. With a hem, the eyelet is clamped through two or three layers of welded vinyl and the failure point moves elsewhere.
How far apart should banner grommets be?
Every 24 inches along the top and bottom, plus one in each corner. Smartpress describes 24 inch spacing along the top and bottom perimeters as the industry standard for indoor banners, trade show displays and low wind outdoor installations. On banners wider than about 72 inches, that spacing stops being optional: with fewer fixings the vinyl scallops between them and the load concentrates on the corners.
The load case is worth understanding. Nazdar describes banner stock as a polyester scrim laminated between PVC layers, and that scrim is strong across its whole width. Concentrating the entire wind load onto two corner eyelets ignores all of it.
Two rules that save banners. First, never hang a banner from the top two corners alone. Second, if you can only fix the top edge, add a rope in the hem so the load spreads along the whole span instead of pulling on individual eyelets.
When should I use pole pockets instead of grommets?
Whenever the mounting hardware supplies a rod. eSigns notes that outdoor pole banners typically use a standard 3 inch flat measure pocket accepting a rod of about 1.375 inches diameter, which is what almost all commercial street pole bracket sets are built around. Order the pocket to the flat measure the bracket supplier specifies, not to the rod diameter, because the flat measure is the amount of vinyl folded over.
Pole pockets also solve a problem grommets cannot: a hanging banner with a bottom pocket and a rod in it stays flat and stops rolling in a draught. That is why almost every ceiling hung retail banner uses pockets top and bottom.
On our banner builders, pole pockets are priced per linear foot of pocket plus a one time setup charge per order line, and grommets are included as a standard finishing option. Configure it on the vinyl banner builder and the price updates live as you change the finishing.
What holds the banner up in practice?
Whatever you tie to, and that is worth thinking about before the banner is made. Zip ties are quick and cheap but rigid, so every gust loads the eyelet directly. Bungee cords cost slightly more and absorb gusts, which is why they are standard on banner frames. Rope through the eyelets spreads the load between fixings but tends to slacken, so it needs retensioning.
The other decision is what you are fixing to. A chain link fence is ideal because it accepts a tie anywhere along the edge. A solid wall needs eye bolts, and the position of those bolts has to be agreed before the banner is finished, since the grommet spacing must line up with them. Measure the fixing positions first, then order the banner to suit, rather than the other way round.
What about wind, rope and webbing?
Rope sewn into the top or bottom hem spreads tension across the whole edge and is the single cheapest upgrade on a large banner. Webbing around the full perimeter does the same job more aggressively and is the standard choice on mesh banners that are going up somewhere genuinely exposed. Wind slits are the option people ask for and the one that helps least. For the reasoning see mesh versus vinyl banners.
Frequently asked questions
Do all banners come with grommets?
Not automatically. Grommets are a finishing option you choose. What every banner does get is a hem, because without it there is nothing strong enough to punch an eyelet through.
Can a banner have both grommets and pole pockets?
Yes. A common combination is pole pockets top and bottom with grommets down both sides so the banner can be tensioned sideways once the rods are in.
What size pole pocket do I need?
Ask the bracket or frame supplier for the flat measure they expect. Three inches flat is the common standard and takes a rod of roughly 1.375 inches.
How many grommets does a 3×8 banner need?
At 24 inch spacing, five along the top and five along the bottom, with the end positions doubling as the corners. That is ten in total.
Do grommets go rusty outdoors?
Nickel plated brass eyelets are standard and hold up well. Staining usually comes from whatever the banner is tied to rather than from the eyelet itself.
Finish your banner correctly
Choose hem, grommets, pole pockets, rope or webbing and watch the price change as you go on the vinyl banner builder. For high wind sites start with mesh, and for everything else see the full banners category or the shop.
