FORTISVEX Idaho State Flag 5x8 Feet Nylon - Made in USA with Brass Grommets

Businesses fly this size on thirty foot flagpoles: dealerships, banks, fire stations, churches, schools. A homeowner with a tall flagpole reaches for it too, once a 4x6 foot flag starts looking small up there.

This is the Idaho state flag at 5x8 Feet (40 square feet) in nylon, made in the United States and finished with brass grommets.

Built to the Idaho flag specification

The Idaho flag is set out in Idaho Code Section 46-801. It is the state seal on a blue field with a red and gold band reading State of Idaho. The statute describes a silk ceremonial color, five feet six inches by four feet four inches with gilt fringe, which is the pattern flag the state keeps rather than the size anyone flies outdoors.

Adopted in 1907.

Idaho Code Section 46-801 describes a silk flag five feet six inches by four feet four inches on a pike with two and a half inch gilt fringe and a twenty one inch seal. Those are the dimensions of a ceremonial parade color from 1907, not of an outdoor flag, and no manufacturer in the country stocks that size.

We build a faithful reproduction of that design at the standard outdoor sizes the industry uses, the same sizes states order for themselves. Correct colors, seal and emblems are what an outdoor flag has to get right, and that is what this one gets right.

The law that defines it, in its own words

Idaho Code Section 46-801, State Flag reads:

A state flag for the state of Idaho is hereby adopted, the same to be as follows: A silk flag, blue field, five (5) feet six (6) inches fly, and four (4) feet four (4) inches on pike, bordered with gilt fringe two and one-half (2 1/2) inches in width, with state seal of Idaho twenty-one (21) inches in diameter, in colors, in the center of a blue field. The words "State of Idaho" are embroidered in with block letters, two (2) inches in height on a red band three (3) inches in width by twenty-nine (29) inches in length, the band being in gold and placed about eight and one-half (8 1/2) inches from the lower border of fringe and parallel with the same.

You do not have to take our word for any of that. Read Idaho Code Section 46-801 in full at the Idaho Legislature, and check what we sell against it.

This is what we actually make, not a stand-in for it.

What is on it and what it means

The seal shows a miner and a woman representing liberty, justice and equality, and reflects mining, forestry, farming and the state’s wildlife.

What most listings get wrong

The seal on this flag is the only state seal in the country designed by a woman, Emma Edwards Green, in 1891. Almost nobody selling this flag mentions her. Note also that the words State of Idaho appear both on the red and gold band and again inside the seal itself. That is not a printing mistake, it is the flag as Idaho Code Section 46-801 specifies it.

Emma Edwards Green designed the seal in 1891. No other state seal was designed by a woman.

Where the Idaho flag flies

Idahoans obtain United States Capitol flags through the congressional delegation. Idaho Code Section 67-820 provides that when the flag is flown at half staff at the capitol for a line of duty death, the flag flown over the capitol building in honor of the deceased shall be presented to the family. The Idaho State Historical Society documents that the copper eagle atop the Capitol dome was fabricated from parts of the battleship Idaho and was re-gilded with gold leaf during the 2005 to 2010 restoration. The state flag descends from the battle flag of the First Idaho Infantry carried in the Philippines in 1899.

Fly it on Idaho’s birthday

Idaho became the 43rd state on July 3, 1890. Under the United States Flag Code as amended July 7, 1976, a state flag flown on the state’s birthday takes its place beneath the United States flag, and that day is the one date every year the Idaho flag has an official reason to go up.

Buy it in time and it goes up on the day it matters. Every state’s date is on our state birthdays page.

Nylon or polyester in Idaho

Nylon in the sheltered Treasure Valley at Boise, Nampa and Meridian. Polyester across the wind exposed Snake River Plain and Magic Valley at Twin Falls, Pocatello and Idaho Falls.

For scale, the National Weather Service ultraviolet index forecast for Boise on July 23, 2026 was 10 at solar noon, in the very high band. That is the sun this flag has to survive.

Forty square feet puts real load on the heading in any gust, and an exposed site from the list above will show the difference between materials inside a single season.

This listing is the nylon. It is the right choice for the sheltered and moderate wind sites named above, on any house bracket, and anywhere the flag comes down in storms. Two things decide that. Nylon is light, so it flies on the breeze most yards actually get instead of hanging limp, and it dries fast, which is what fights mildew in a humid climate. What it gives up is ultraviolet life: nylon’s amide bonds absorb ultraviolet and break, so under hard sun it loses strength and color faster than polyester, and it loses roughly a tenth of its strength while it is wet. If your site is one of the exposed ones above, look at the polyester version of this flag instead.

Here is the part usually learned the hard way, after a second purchase: nylon catches wind on days polyester simply will not move. When the flag needs to be visibly flying — a quiet morning, a holiday, a funeral, a ceremony — that argues for nylon even on a site where polyester would technically last longer. A flag that just hangs there is not doing its job either.

The working benchmark most institutions use comes from the American Legion, which reports that the United States government expects a flag flown daily from sunrise to sunset to last about ninety days, and one flown around the clock about a quarter of that. Retailer experience runs three to six months for nylon and four to eight for polyester flown daily, and one to three years for a flag flown only on occasions. Those are working figures, not a warranty, and exposure moves them a long way in either direction.

How the 5x8 Feet is built

Forty square feet is real work for a flag, and this one fails where everyone can see it. A frayed tip on a business flagpole shows from the road — which is exactly why the flag is flying.

Work the numbers and you get 40 square feet of nylon at roughly two ounces a square yard. At thirty miles an hour, the fly end actually outpaces the wind, because the wave running to the tip accelerates along the way — the reason the tip fails first, and the reason fly-end stitching count is the number that matters.

Two people is easier than one at this size, particularly on a windy site. Forty square feet of loose material catches wind while you are folding it.

With lock stitching, every stitch knots into its neighbor, so damage stays contained at the break instead of running down the seam. Read 4 rows not as 4 times the strength but as 3 backups. This size steps the heading up to two inches, heavy duty white and reinforced, with brass grommets and tooth washers. Forty square feet in a gust pulls hard, and that extra half inch of heading earns its place.

Nylon, commercial grade, is what this flag is made from. It is light enough to move in a gentle breeze, sheds rather than soaks up water, and dries quickly — a wet flag is a heavier flag, harder on its own seams. The ink is UV resistant and field tested, because sun exposure is what actually fades a flag.

Why this flag is harder to make than most

A highly detailed painterly seal with two human figures. This is among the most expensive state flags to reproduce accurately and the fine detail is what separates a good one from a cheap one.

For what it is worth, the North American Vexillological Association surveyed 72 state, provincial and territorial flags in 2001 and rated them from zero to ten. The Idaho flag placed 64, at 3.17 out of 10.

Will it fit my flagpole?

An in-ground flagpole of twenty five to thirty five feet is the pairing most commercial sites use for this size.

Questions about the 5x8 Feet

What size flagpole for a 5x8 foot flag? Twenty five to thirty five feet in the ground, which is the standard commercial flagpole. This is the size on most dealerships, banks and fire stations.

Should a business choose nylon or polyester at 5x8 Feet? Nylon flies more often and looks better on a calm day. Polyester lasts longer on an open, windy or coastal site. The section above names which your state is.

How often does a 5x8 foot commercial flag need replacing? A flag flown daily on an exposed commercial flagpole is typically replaced two to four times a year. A rotation of two flags swapped monthly stretches that.

What the condition of it says

Before the building registers, the flag does — that is what anyone driving past a business sees first. A frayed, faded flag communicates something, and the cost of that is separate from what replacing it would run.

Specifications

• Size: 5x8 Feet
• Area: 40 square feet
• Material: 100 percent nylon
• Fly end: 4 rows of lock stitching
• Heading: heavy duty white, reinforced, 2 inch
• Finish: Brass Grommets
• Ink: UV resistant, field tested
• Made in the United States by FORTISVEX

Which size do I need?

Both tables follow the same logic. A flagpole reads best with a flag whose length falls between a quarter and a third of its height. Where a size could go either way, smaller means more flying days and a longer life, bigger means more visibility at range.

If you know your flagpole height, start here.

• 6 Feet house bracket: 2x3 Feet or 3x5 Feet
• 15 to 20 Feet flagpole: 3x5 Feet or 4x6 Feet
• 20 to 25 Feet flagpole: 4x6 Feet or 5x8 Feet
• 25 to 35 Feet flagpole: 5x8 Feet or 6x10 Feet
• 35 to 45 Feet flagpole: 6x10 Feet or 8x12 Feet
• 45 to 60 Feet flagpole: 8x12 Feet or 10x15 Feet
• 60 to 80 Feet flagpole: 10x15 Feet or 12x18 Feet
• 80 to 100 Feet flagpole: 12x18 Feet or 15x25 Feet
• 100 to 120 Feet flagpole: 15x25 Feet or 20x30 Feet
• 120 to 150 Feet flagpole: 20x30 Feet or 20x38 Feet
• 150 to 200 Feet flagpole: 20x38 Feet or 30x50 Feet
• 200 to 240 Feet flagpole: 30x50 Feet or 30x60 Feet
• 240 Feet and above: 30x60 Feet or 50x80 Feet, engineered to the flagpole

If you know your flag size, start here.

• 2x3 Feet: 4 to 8 Feet bracket or garden flagpole
• 3x5 Feet: 6 Feet bracket, or 15 to 20 Feet in-ground flagpole
• 4x6 Feet: 18 to 25 Feet in-ground flagpole
• 5x8 Feet: 25 to 35 Feet flagpole
• 6x10 Feet: 30 to 40 Feet flagpole
• 8x12 Feet: 40 to 50 Feet flagpole
• 10x15 Feet: 50 to 60 Feet flagpole
• 12x18 Feet: 60 to 80 Feet flagpole
• 15x25 Feet: 80 to 100 Feet flagpole
• 20x30 Feet: 100 to 120 Feet flagpole
• 20x38 Feet: 120 to 150 Feet flagpole. This is the garrison size under Executive Order 10834, at a one to one point nine ratio rather than the two to three of the commercial sizes, and it is the size flown at the White House and the Capitol
• 30x50 Feet: 150 to 200 Feet flagpole
• 30x60 Feet: 200 to 240 Feet flagpole. This is the largest standard commercial size
• 50x80 Feet: 240 Feet and above, engineered to the flagpole

The ratio does not fail at a hundred feet, but the transaction does change: past that height the flag, the flagpole, the truck, the halyard and the foundation have to be engineered together, and a flag ordered without checking the flagpole rating tends to cost the flagpole first. A few of the country’s best known flags deliberately exceed the rule, on the strength of an engineer’s calculation rather than a chart.

We carry the full range whether or not every size appears on this website. If the size you need is not listed, we can still supply it.

About the back of the flag

A printed flag's reverse face is a mirror image of the front, and that is standard, not a fault — it describes most of the flags flown across the country. Double sided construction, which reads correctly from either face, sews two flags together with a liner and roughly doubles both weight and price. Single sided remains standard, and correct, unless a state's statute specifically calls for double sided.

Flying it with the United States flag

Section 7 of Title 4, the United States Flag Code, addresses this directly: the United States flag is never outranked in position, staying above every other flag and to the right at the same level, which reads as the viewer’s left. Same-height flagpoles put the United States flag on the viewer’s left with matching flag sizes; different heights put it on the taller pole; one flagpole with two flags puts it at the top. There is no legal penalty for civilians under the Flag Code, but it is what every institution follows anyway.

Buy two and they both last longer

Fly one for a month, then swap. Two flags rotated monthly will outlast three flags flown to destruction, because the fabric recovers when it rests and the fly end stops taking the same abuse in the same place. Take it down in severe weather; a flag left up through a real windstorm can take more damage in one night than in six normal months. And watch the fly end rather than the middle, because a few minutes with a needle when the fraying starts buys another season.

For cities, counties, schools and agencies

We regularly supply state flags to cities, school districts, fire and police departments, courthouses and state agencies. Tax exempt accounts run through the tax exempt page. Quantity pricing, replacement schedules, or a size that is not listed all go through the contact page.

Why buy it from us

Small and American describes this company, and we stock what we list. Every flag is made in the United States, printed with UV resistant ink, and finished to the construction described above rather than to a price target. We’d rather sell one flag that holds up than three that don’t. Free shipping on orders over twenty five dollars.