How to sign a PDF without printing it
Updated
A form arrives as a PDF and needs your signature. The old routine is to print it, sign it with a pen, scan it and send it back. For most everyday documents you can skip all of that and sign on screen in a minute. This guide explains what kind of signature that is, when it’s accepted, and how to make it look like your own.
Three things “signing a PDF” can mean
People use the same words for quite different things:
| Kind | What it is | Typical use |
|---|---|---|
| Simple electronic signature | An image of your signature, or your typed name, placed on the page | Forms, letters, rental and job paperwork, permission slips |
| E-signature service | A website that collects signatures and keeps a record of who signed and when | Contracts sent by a company for you to sign |
| Certificate-based digital signature | A coded seal linked to a certificate that proves who signed and shows if the file was changed later | Some legal, government and financial documents |
Sign PDF creates the first kind. It suits the large majority of documents people are asked to sign day to day.
When is a simple signature enough?
Rules vary by country and by organisation, so there is no single answer, but a simple pattern helps:
- Usually fine: application and consent forms, letters, school forms, rental and employment paperwork, delivery and expense forms.
- Check first: documents that say “wet signature”, “original signature” or “certified”, and anything involving property, wills, courts or notaries.
If you aren’t sure, ask the person or organisation who sent the document. It’s a quick question, and they will tell you whether a signed PDF is acceptable.
How to make your signature look like yours
Sign PDF gives you three ways to create a signature, on the Draw, Type and Upload tabs. They give quite different results:
- Draw. On a phone or tablet, draw with your finger or a stylus: it looks much more natural than drawing with a mouse. Take a couple of tries, and sign a little larger than on paper. It is scaled down when you place it.
- Upload a photo of your real signature. This gives the most authentic look. Sign on plain white paper with a dark pen and photograph it in good light from straight above. The paper is removed automatically, so only the ink appears on the page.
- Type your name. It is set in a handwriting-style font. It’s quick and neat, but it is clearly not your own handwriting, so some people prefer it only for informal documents.
If you need a signature image for an online form rather than a PDF, for example a JPG under 20 KB, use Signature resizer instead.
Signing the document
- Open Sign PDF and choose your PDF.
- Go to the page that needs signing and click Signature. Create your signature, then drag it onto the signature line and use the corner handle to resize it.
- Add anything else the form needs: the date, a line of text such as your printed name, or your initials on every page.
- Download the signed PDF, then open it to check every page before you send it.
Your signature is drawn into the page itself, so it stays in place in every PDF reader. The rest of the document doesn’t change, and its text can still be selected.
If the PDF won’t open for signing
Some PDFs need a password to open, or block editing. Sign PDF can’t change those while they are protected. If you know the password, or the document is yours and only blocks editing, remove the protection with Unlock PDF first, then sign the unlocked copy.
After signing: keep it safe
- Keep the unsigned original in case you need to correct something and sign again.
- Send it only to the people who need it. A signed PDF can be copied like any file.
- Add a password before emailing sensitive documents. Protect PDF encrypts the file so it needs a password to open. Share the password separately, for example by phone or text message, not in the same email.