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Updated: Feb. 10, 2026. The 2026 SEMA Show runs Tuesday, Nov. 3 through Friday, Nov. 6 at the Las Vegas Convention Center (3150 Paradise Road) — the first edition staged in the fully renovated North, Central and South halls. Organizers have commitments for more than 1 million net square feet of indoor exhibit space, and SEMA's online directory listed 2,228 exhibiting companies as of early October. Six automakers are on board — Ford, Toyota, Honda, Nissan, Mitsubishi and Stellantis — though none had announced specific show vehicles when the directory was checked.
The Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority announced on Jan. 5, 2026 that the $600 million overhaul of the convention center's legacy campus was complete. Work had been underway since 2023. The project added a 100,000-square-foot Grand Lobby at Central Hall with a glass curtain wall and a 75-by-42-foot digital screen; a climate-controlled interior concourse linking North and South Halls, so crossing between them no longer means stepping outside; a new east entrance at South Hall; and the West Hall ribbon roof extended across the older buildings. CES got the first run at the finished space in January; SEMA becomes the second major show to use it.
Worth noting: SEMA describes the renovated area as 3.2 million square feet, a figure that appears in SEMA's materials but not in the authority's release. And despite the completion announcement, SEMA's transportation page still warns that parking at the convention center "will be impacted by construction" during the show. Allow extra time on the first two mornings if you're driving.
| Day | Show floor hours | Admission |
|---|---|---|
| Tuesday, Nov. 3 | 9 a.m. – 5 p.m. | Trade and media |
| Wednesday, Nov. 4 | 9 a.m. – 5 p.m. | Trade and media |
| Thursday, Nov. 5 | 9 a.m. – 5 p.m. | Trade and media |
| Friday, Nov. 6 | 9 a.m. – 4 p.m. | Trade, media and ticketed public |
The show is a trade marketplace first. SEMA — the Specialty Equipment Market Association, which held its first show in 1967 — exists so that aftermarket parts makers can sell to the distributors, retailers and shops that stock and install their products. That's why three of the four days are closed to consumers.
Trade badges cost $100, with the price having moved up in stages: $50 through June 26, $75 through late September, and $100 now. To qualify, you have to work for a company that is genuinely in the automotive aftermarket. Employees submit a business email address on the company domain or a photo of their company badge, plus one document showing the business is active in the aftermarket — a company website or two recent pay stubs usually does it. Business owners need only that second document. SEMA's qualification page is explicit about who does not qualify: accounting firms, law firms, software companies and enthusiasts. The same badge admits the holder to AAPEX, the aftermarket expo that runs alongside the show.
Registration desks at the convention center open Sunday, Nov. 1 from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., then at 7:30 a.m. each day Monday through Friday.
SEMA calls the program "SEMA Show Friday, Open to the Public." Ticket holders get the same floor the trade walked all week, from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., and SEMA's ticketing page lists no halls as closed to them.
| Ticket | Price | What it covers |
|---|---|---|
| SEMA Show Friday | $130 | Show floor, 9 a.m. – 4 p.m. |
| SEMA Show Friday + Concert GA | $170 | Floor plus SEMA Fest general admission |
| SEMA Show Friday + Concert VIP | $210 | Floor plus SEMA Fest VIP; sold out |
| SEMA Fest GA | $80 | Concert only |
| SEMA Fest VIP | $120 | Concert only; sold out |
The fine print matters. SEMA sells nothing at the door, and its ticket page states "No day-of purchases" and "All sales are final, no refunds." Every ticket holder must pick up their own credential in person at SEMA Show Registration in South Hall or West Hall between 7:30 a.m. and 2 p.m. on Friday, with government photo ID that matches the confirmation. The show floor is limited to ages 16 and up; SEMA Fest admits all ages. Weapons and outside food and drink are banned at SEMA Fest, and hoverboards, Segways, skateboards and scooters are barred from the convention center grounds.
If you're planning to do both the floor and the concert, the bundle math points one way: floor-only is $130 and concert-only GA is $80, so the $170 combo effectively prices the show floor at $90. The VIP tiers were listed as sold out as of October — check semafest.com if you're holding out for upgrades.
SEMA Fest takes over the convention center's Bronze Lot on Friday night, with gates at 3 p.m. The Offspring headline, with Jimmy Eat World, 311 and The Alive also on the bill. Around the music, SEMA lists four outdoor attractions: the SEMA Cruise, in which show vehicles parade out of the convention center when the floor closes; Optima-sponsored drifting demonstrations; a Globe of Death motorcycle act; and exotics from Supercar Saturdays Florida, which first appeared at the 2025 SEMA Show.
SEMA groups exhibitors by product category, and each category has a fixed home:
West Hall — Trucks, SUVs and Off-Road; Powersports, SxS and Lifestyle; Restyling and Car Care Accessories. Automakers and brands here: Ford, Mopar, Mitsubishi and Harley-Davidson, with Kawasaki also listed in the powersports section.
Central Hall — Racing and Performance; Hot Rod Alley; Restoration Marketplace. Ford, Toyota, Nissan and Honda Racing Corporation have stands here, alongside Battle of the Builders (booth 24743) and the FutureTech Studio (booth 24401), which covers electric vehicles, future propulsion, automation and smart manufacturing with its own education stage.
North Hall — Mobile Electronics and Technology; Business Services; Restyling, Trucks and New Exhibitors. The Auto Film Mastery Conference runs Monday, Nov. 2.
South Hall Upper — Collision Repair and Refinish; Tools and Equipment, plus the ADAS Showcase and Collision Repair Stage.
South Hall Lower — Global Tire Expo; Wheels and Accessories, plus the New Products Showcase.
Outdoor lots — Feature vehicles in the Silver, Diamond and Blue lots, with SEMA Fest in the Bronze Lot.
The powersports section got a significant upgrade. Formerly "Powersports and Utility Vehicles," it has been renamed "Powersports, SxS and Lifestyle" and enlarged, with Harley-Davidson signing on in September. SEMA's reasoning: off-road buyers tend to own a tow vehicle, a trailer and several two- and four-wheeled machines, so the cross-shopping potential between the truck and powersports aisles is intentional.
The 2026 SEMA Market Report explains the West Hall layout better than anything else: pickup owners spent $15.0 billion on parts and accessories in 2025, or 30% of all specialty-equipment spending. Suspension parts accounted for $3.15 billion of that, and off-road and oversize tires for $2.23 billion. ARB, Fox, Lippert, RealTruck, Westin and Yakima are among the returning names in the truck section.
Battle of the Builders reaches its 13th year with a new element: a separately judged Bike Builder Shootout that adds motorcycles to the competition. Custom bike builders now have their own path to a SEMA trophy alongside the four-wheel categories.
The 2026 SEMA Show is the first to benefit from the convention center renovation — a finished lobby, climate-controlled routes between halls, an expanded powersports section and a public Friday with a parking-lot concert attached. Consumers who want in should buy the Friday ticket or the SEMA Fest combo before show week; there is no box office on site. Trade attenders who qualify still get the week's best deal at $100, as long as the paperwork proves they belong in the aftermarket.
