Seattle Convention Center (SCC) is the largest venue for conventions and trade shows in the Pacific Northwest. The SCC is located in the central business district of Seattle on Capitol Hill. Since its opening in 1988, the SCC has been the main convention center in Seattle and has recently undergone an extensive renovation with the completion of the new Summit building (opened in 2023), which added 570,000 square feet of event space to the existing Arch building.
If you’re exhibiting in Seattle, getting your Seattle Convention Center booth rental right starts with understanding a venue that’s changed a lot in the past few years. What used to be the Washington State Convention Center is now the Seattle Convention Center, a two-building campus with different rules, capacities, and vendor policies depending on which side you’re in. This Seattle Convention Center exhibitor guide covers what actually matters for your booth: the venue’s real structure, which services are locked to in-house vendors, and what to budget for. Our 10×10 trade show exhibit rentals scale from compact inline spaces to full islands for Seattle shows.
Venue Overview: Seattle Convention Center
| Venue Detail | Information |
|---|---|
| Full Name | Seattle Convention Center (SCC) |
| Address: Arch Building | 705 Pike St, Seattle, WA 98101 |
| Address: Summit Building | 900 Pine St, Seattle, WA 98101 |
| Buildings | Arch Building (existing) + Summit Building (2023 addition) |
| Total Campus Space | Arch: ~300,000 sq ft event space; Summit: ~570,000 sq ft new space |
| Exhibition Space | Approx. 265,000 sq ft combined exhibition halls |
| Nearest Airport | Seattle-Tacoma International Airport (SEA): 14 miles south |
| Light Rail | Capitol Hill Station (Link Light Rail): 0.4 miles; Convention Place (planned) |
Seattle Convention Center Exhibit Rental: Talk to Nationwide Booth Design Specialists at purexhibits.com
What a Seattle Convention Center Booth Rental Actually Requires
Planning a Seattle Convention Center booth rental means navigating two categories of services: what the venue requires you to use exclusively, and what you’re free to source yourself. Getting this distinction wrong is one of the most common ways exhibitors blow their budget or run into move-in delays.
Exclusive Services You Can’t Source Elsewhere
The following are locked to the venue’s in-house providers:
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Catering
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Voice/data/network
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Temporary electrical
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Air/water/drain
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Ballroom rigging
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Emergency medical services
Audiovisual is “preferred” rather than fully exclusive, meaning there’s more flexibility there than with the categories above.
Where You Actually Have a Choice
Unlike several major convention centers around the country that lock down freight and material handling entirely, the Seattle Convention Center lets exhibitors choose their own general service contractor for freight handling, aisle and booth carpet cleaning, and registration services. This is a real point of leverage; it means your SCC exhibit rental partner can shop material handling rates rather than being stuck with a single locked-in provider, which can meaningfully affect your total exhibit budget.
Seattle Convention Center Exhibitor Guide: What’s Included and What Costs Extra
A proper Seattle Convention Center exhibitor guide needs to separate what comes bundled into your rental from what shows up as a separate line item. Included with your space:
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One move-in and one move-out day per paid show day
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A freshly cleaned exhibit area ahead of move-in
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On-site building electricians, engineers, sound technicians, and custodial staff
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Trash and recycling service in aisles and common areas
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Self-service coat check
Budgeted separately:
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Catering and concessions
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Supplemental lighting, heating, or A/C on move-in/out days
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Carpet and aisle cleaning (though you choose the vendor)
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Electrical for your booth and registration areas
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A/V equipment and sound system fees
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Internet and data access
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Attendee and exhibitor parking
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Marshalling yard use
Building this list into your budget from day one avoids the most common surprise exhibitors run into: assuming rental cost covers everything, then discovering electrical, internet, and A/V are all separate invoices.
Design Your Seattle Convention Center Exhibit Rental: Talk to Nationwide Exhibit Rental at purexhibits.com
Arch vs. Summit: Understanding the Two-Building Campus
The Seattle Convention Center’s 2023 expansion created a two-building campus connected by a pedestrian bridge. Understanding each building’s strengths helps exhibitors choose the right space and plan their logistics. Many exhibitors choose our 30×30 trade show exhibit rentals for a professional footprint without the cost of buying.
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Arch Building (Original Building, 705 Pike St): Multi-level exhibition halls within proximity to Pike Place Market district. Arch Building’s exhibition halls are known for hosting various types of trade shows, technology exhibitions, and health care meetings. It is built above Interstate 5 on a steel framework – a feat of engineering.
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Summit Building (New Building, 900 Pine St): Opened in 2023. Sustainable architecture design with LEED Platinum accreditation. Greater amount of continuous exhibition floor space than Arch Building. Also, it features a rooftop garden and outdoor space. This building was designed for the next generation of large conventions.
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Pedestrian Bridge: The two buildings are joined by a pedestrian bridge – convenient for conventions held simultaneously in both buildings.
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Total Capacity: Together the two buildings provide the SCC campus with one of the largest convention centers on the West Coast.
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Sustainability: The Summit Building is considered to be one of the most environmentally friendly convention facilities in the United States.
Exhibit Design Strategy for Seattle Trade Shows
Seattle’s convention audience is among the most sophisticated in the United States. The city’s tech culture, outdoor recreation values, and strong sustainability ethic shape what works in a Seattle trade show exhibit.
Design for a Technology-First Audience
The people of Seattle are very particular about the kind of technology they expect. The people use the latest software, devices, and interfaces for their day-to-day activities. It is very easy for them to differentiate between displays based on modern technology and those that are based on older technology. This display must use all the modern technological devices and software interfaces. For a fully branded build, our Custom Trade Show Booth Rentals deliver a custom look tailored to your brand.
Sustainability is Table Stakes in Seattle
The values related to the environment of Seattle are not niche; rather, they are integral parts of the mainstream business world. The use of sustainable exhibit material, renting instead of buying (thereby reducing manufacturing and disposal), mentioning the environmental initiatives and commitments of your firm through ESG, and removing any plastic or waste from the exhibit are all important for Seattle conventions.
Create a Human-Scale Experience
The culture in Seattle appreciates the scale of experience for people more than spectacle for spectacle’s sake. Booths that emphasize the experience of quality conversations over quantity of visuals — comfortable seats, great lighting for demonstrations, acoustics for conversations — win over visual spectacles in a Seattle environment. The best exhibits in Seattle are like experiencing a great product rather than the floor of a Las Vegas casino. You can see comparable projects in our trade show booth case studies from past builds.
Related: Salt Lake City Convention Center: Exhibitor’s Booth & Trade Show Guide
Choosing a Seattle Trade Show Booth Partner
Because so much of what you’ll pay depends on vendor choices the venue leaves open to you, your Seattle trade show booth partner matters more here than at venues with fully locked-down services. A builder with real Seattle Convention Center experience will already know which general contractors offer competitive freight rates, how Summit and Arch differ operationally, and how to sequence your move-in around the venue’s electrical and rigging schedule.
Look for a partner who can speak specifically to:
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Recent installs at Summit and/or Arch, not just “Seattle” broadly
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How they handle the open freight/material handling vendor choice on your behalf
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Whether their quote separates electrical, A/V, and internet, or bundles it transparently
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Real turnaround time for design and fabrication given Seattle’s booking calendar
Seattle Convention Center Logistics
Seattle’s downtown urban environment creates specific logistics challenges for exhibitors, limited truck access, strict move-in window management, and significant freight costs.
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Official contractor: SCC events utilize a variety of official GSCs. Freeman handles the major events. Check the exhibitor manual for your event for the official contractor.
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Urban freight: Being in downtown Seattle makes the logistics of freight handling more complicated than at suburban facilities. Freight must be moved into the proper dock position within certain times. Off-hour deliveries of freight to a downtown area like Seattle can cause particular problems due to narrow city streets.
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Advance warehouse: Make use of the advance warehouse for all exhibit freight. Advance warehouses for events held in Seattle are generally situated outside of downtown, in industrial districts of SODO and North Seattle.
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Drayage: Drayage is moderately expensive in Seattle compared to the national average; this is caused by the urban location and labor unions. Budget 30–50% of the exhibit cost for drayage.
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Union labor: Washington State has a strong union labor environment. Be aware of jurisdiction labor rules in your specific SCC event.
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Light rail: The Link Light Rail Capitol Hill Station is only 0.4 miles from the Arch Building – that’s a quick walk uphill. The SCC is enhancing light rail accessibility as part of the Seattle transit expansion.
Request a Free Seattle Convention Center Exhibit Consultation at purexhibits.com
Hotels Near the Seattle Convention Center
| Hotel | Distance | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Sheraton Grand Seattle | Connected to Arch Building | Convention hotel, directly attached to SCC Arch |
| Hyatt Regency Seattle | 0.1 miles | Large convention hotel adjacent to SCC |
| Marriott Waterfront | 0.6 miles | Waterfront views, popular for conventions |
| Thompson Seattle | 0.4 miles | Boutique luxury, design-forward |
| AC Hotel Seattle Downtown | 0.2 miles | Modern mid-price, popular for tech conferences |
Apply trade show booth rental benefits strategy for Seattle shows; renting your exhibit eliminates the need for West Coast storage, reduces your carbon footprint (a Seattle brand attribute worth communicating), and lets you scale your exhibit size year-over-year.
Plan your budget for the show in Seattle based on the how to reduce trade show costs approach – urban freight logistics, union labor, and high hotel prices in Seattle really benefit from proper planning and early booking of contractors.
Exhibit Rental Seattle WA: What to Budget
Costs for exhibit rental Seattle WA scale with size and design complexity, but as a general guide for a fully custom rental including design, fabrication, and install/dismantle:
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A 10×10 or 10×20 inline booth typically runs in the low-to-mid five figures.
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Larger island or peninsula exhibits with AV integration or multi-level elements can run into six figures once electrical, internet, and material handling are factored in separately.
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Because freight and carpet cleaning aren’t locked to a single exclusive vendor here, getting a quote that includes competitive sourcing on those line items, rather than a flat pass-through fee, can meaningfully lower your total cost compared to venues where those services are exclusive.
Washington State Convention Center: What’s in a Name?
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If you’ve exhibited in Seattle before 2023, you likely knew this venue as the Washington State Convention Center.
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The rebrand to Seattle Convention Center, alongside the addition of the Summit building, changed more than just the name; it effectively doubled the campus’s exhibit capacity and split operations across two connected but distinct facilities.
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Older resources and even some current directories still reference the old name and old capacity figures, so it’s worth confirming with your booth builder that any quote or planning document reflects the current two-building structure.
Final Thoughts: Get Your Seattle Convention Center Booth Rental Right From the Start
Between the Summit and Arch rebrand, a mix of exclusive and open vendor categories, and separate line items for electrical, internet, and A/V, a Seattle Convention Center booth rental has more moving pieces than exhibitors often expect walking in. Getting ahead of those details, before your design is finalized, not after, is what keeps your budget and your move-in schedule on track.
Pure Exhibits builds and installs custom exhibit rentals for convention centers across the country, and we handle the venue-specific coordination, from navigating exclusive service categories to sourcing competitive freight vendors where the venue allows it, as part of every Seattle build. If you’re planning your next Seattle Convention Center booth rental, get in touch with Pure Exhibits for a fixed-price quote built around how this venue actually works.
Let’s Build Something Extraordinary
Share your event details and we’ll craft a custom booth solution designed to captivate your audience and maximize your ROI.
Seattle Convention Center Booth Rental: Frequently Asked Questions
Where is the Seattle Convention Center?
The Seattle Convention Center has two buildings: the Arch Building at 705 Pike St, Seattle, WA 98101, and the new Summit Building at 900 Pine St, Seattle, WA 98101. Both are in downtown Seattle, adjacent to Pike Place Market and the Seattle central business district. The buildings are connected by a pedestrian bridge.
What is the new Summit Building at the Seattle Convention Center?
The Summit Building is the Seattle Convention Center’s major expansion, opened in 2023. It adds approximately 570,000 square feet of new event space, including large contiguous exhibition halls, meeting rooms, a rooftop park, and event terraces with views of downtown Seattle and Puget Sound. The Summit building has achieved LEED Platinum certification, making it one of the most sustainable large-scale convention buildings in the world. Our 20×20 island booths cover every footprint from inline to island.
How large is the Seattle Convention Center?
The SCC’s two-building campus (Arch and Summit combined) totals approximately 850,000+ square feet of total event space, with approximately 265,000 square feet of combined exhibition hall space. The campus makes the SCC one of the largest convention facilities on the US West Coast.
How do I get to the Seattle Convention Center from SeaTac Airport?
Sound Transit Link Light Rail provides direct service from SeaTac Airport to downtown Seattle (approximately 38–45 minutes). Alight at Westlake Station (approximately 0.5 miles from the SCC) or Capitol Hill Station (0.4 miles from the Arch Building). Rideshare from SeaTac to the SCC is approximately 25–45 minutes depending on traffic, at a cost of $35–$60+. The downtown Seattle traffic environment is notoriously congested during peak hours; light rail is usually faster.
Who handles drayage at the Seattle Convention Center?
Drayage at SCC events depends on the official GSC for each event. Freeman manages drayage for major events at the SCC. All material handling within the exhibition halls goes through the official GSC. Review your event’s exhibitor manual for the official contractor, advance warehouse address, and deadline dates.
What union labor rules apply at the Seattle Convention Center?
Washington State has an active labor union environment. IATSE and Teamsters cover labor at the SCC for larger events. Review the specific labor jurisdiction rules in your event’s exhibitor manual. Seattle’s union rules can be somewhat more complex than right-to-work state venues. Exhibitor employees may perform limited assembly tasks in many circumstances, but electrical work, overhead rigging, and large structural installations require union contractors.
What types of trade shows and conventions are held at the Seattle Convention Center?
The SCC hosts a wide range of events including technology conferences (Amazon re:Invent adjacent events, cloud computing, cybersecurity, gaming), healthcare and medical conferences, environmental and sustainability events, aerospace and maritime industry shows, food and beverage industry events, outdoor and recreation industry shows, and major association annual meetings. Seattle’s tech industry concentration means technology-oriented events are particularly well-attended at the SCC.
What are the ceiling heights at the Seattle Convention Center?
Ceiling heights at the SCC vary by hall and building. The Arch Building exhibition halls have ceiling heights ranging from 20–35 feet in different spaces. The Summit Building’s larger exhibition halls offer heights of 30–45 feet. Confirm specific ceiling clearances for your planned booth location with venue management or your event’s GSC before planning overhead rigging or tall exhibit structures.
Is parking available at the Seattle Convention Center?
Downtown Seattle parking is limited, expensive ($30–$60/day during conventions), and often full during major events. The SCC does not have its own large dedicated parking structure. Most convention exhibitors and attendees use light rail, rideshare, or Seattle’s bus network for daily transit. If driving, multiple parking garages within 2–3 blocks of the SCC are available, though rates are high during events.
What is Seattle Convention Center weather like during trade show season?
Seattle’s convention season is primarily fall through spring. September–October: mild (60–70°F), lower rain probability, excellent show weather. November–March: cool (40–55°F), significant rain, grey skies. April–May: mild (55–65°F), improving weather, popular for spring conventions. Seattle’s summer (June–August) is beautiful but has fewer major conventions scheduled. Exhibitors from warmer climates should prepare for Seattle’s maritime climate, layers, waterproof shoes, and rain gear.
What restaurants are near the Seattle Convention Center?
The SCC is extraordinarily well-located for dining. Pike Place Market (0.3 miles) is one of the country’s most vibrant public markets with dozens of vendors and restaurants. The Pike/Pine corridor of Capitol Hill (immediately uphill from the Arch Building) has hundreds of restaurants and bars. The downtown Seattle core surrounding both SCC buildings has extensive restaurant density within a 5-minute walk.
What makes the Seattle Convention Center Summit Building unique?
The Summit Building is one of the most sustainable large-scale convention buildings in the United States. LEED Platinum certified, with on-site stormwater management, a rooftop park, electric vehicle charging infrastructure, and building systems optimized for energy efficiency. It also offers superior large-format exhibition hall space compared to the Arch Building, with more modern infrastructure and better loading dock access. For sustainability-focused brands, the Summit Building’s credentials are a meaningful association.
How early should I arrive for Seattle Convention Center setup?
Plan to arrive at least 24–36 hours before your move-in window, particularly for larger exhibits. Seattle’s urban freight environment means move-in windows are strictly managed; arriving outside your assigned window can mean hours of dock queue delays. Shipping materials to the advance warehouse (well before setup) reduces last-minute freight risk.
What is the cost of exhibiting at the Seattle Convention Center?
Booth space fees at SCC events vary by show and space type. Typical ranges are $2,000–$7,000 per 10×10 for standard inline at national events. All-in exhibitor costs for a 10×20 (exhibit rental, drayage, electrical, hotel, and travel) typically range from $12,000–$35,000. Seattle’s hotel rates are moderately high, and drayage rates are above national averages; factor these costs into your exhibiting budget early.
Who provides exhibit rental for Seattle Convention Center events?
Pure Exhibits provides nationwide exhibit rental and custom booth design for events at the Seattle Convention Center. We design and deliver complete exhibit packages, structures, graphics, lighting, and display elements, with full logistics coordination for Pacific Northwest shows. Contact us 10–14 weeks before your Seattle event for design consultation and a custom rental quote. On a tight timeline, our rush booth rental option can turn a booth around fast.
