Sign a PDF. No upload, ever.

How to use PDF Sign

PDF Sign adds your signature, and an optional line of text such as a signing date, to a PDF. You draw or type the signature, place it on a page, and the tool writes it into a new copy of the file. It is for signing forms, letters and agreements quickly when you do not need a certificate based digital signature.

Step by step

1. 1
   Open your PDF

   Drop the file on the card that says Drop a PDF here, or click it to choose one. On a keyboard, focus the card and press Enter. Every page appears in the preview on the right, and the panel on the left shows how many pages it has.

2. 2
   Draw or type your signature

   Under Your signature, keep Draw selected and sign on the pad above the line with a mouse, trackpad, pen or finger. Pick black, blue or green under Pen colour first, and press Clear to start over. Or press Type, enter your name in Type your name and choose one of the three Style buttons.

3. 3
   Place it on a page

   Click anywhere on a page to drop the signature there, centered on your click. Or choose the Page, set the Width (60 to 420 pt, 180 by default) and the X (pt from left) and Y (pt from bottom) position, which start at 60, then press Place signature.

4. 4
   Adjust the position

   Drag the dashed box to move it, and drag the round handle at its bottom right corner to resize it. The X, Y and Width fields follow along, so you can also type exact numbers. Press Remove, or the cross on the box, to take it off.

5. 5
   Add a date or text stamp if you need one

   Under Date / text stamp, type in Stamp text or press Today to fill in Signed and today's date. Set the Size between 8 and 40 pt (14 by default), then press Place text on page. It lands on the page chosen in the Page menu, and you can drag it into place.

6. 6
   Download the signed copy

   Press Sign & download. The new file is saved with -signed added to the original name, and your original file is not changed. Press New PDF to start again with a different document.

Reading the result

• The signature is written into the page as a picture with a transparent background, trimmed close to the ink, so it sits over the document's own text and lines.
• Positions are in PDF points, where 72 points make one inch. X counts from the left edge of the page and Y from the bottom edge, so the default 60 and 60 puts the signature near the bottom left corner.
• The text stamp is set in Helvetica in a near black color, at the size you chose. Its Y position is the baseline of the text.

Tips and common mistakes

• Each document takes one signature box and one text stamp. To sign several pages, sign one, download it, then open the signed copy and sign the next page.
• If you change your drawing or typed name after placing it, click the page or press Place signature again. The box keeps the version it had when you placed it.
• Typed styles use handwriting fonts already on your device, so the same name can look different on another computer or phone.
• The stamp font only covers Western European letters. Text in other scripts makes signing fail, and so can the Today button if your browser writes dates in another script. Write the stamp in Latin characters, or add the text to the signature instead.
• This adds a visible signature, not a certificate based digital signature. For agreements that require a verified e-signature, use a dedicated signing service.

Privacy and limits

Your PDF is read, previewed and signed by your own browser using PDF libraries served from this site. The document and your signature are never uploaded and nothing is saved, so closing the tab clears them. Encrypted PDFs, including password protected ones, cannot be signed here, and very long documents take a while to preview because every page is drawn.

Back to the tool

Everything a PDF signer should do.

• Draw a freehand signature on the built-in pad using your mouse, trackpad or touchscreen.
• Type your name in one of three handwriting-style fonts as an alternative to drawing.
• Choose your ink colour, black, blue or moss green, for both drawn and typed signatures.
• Add a date or text stamp alongside your signature, with an adjustable font size and its own position.
• Place and reposition the signature by clicking a page, dragging the box, resizing the handle, or entering exact coordinates.
• Download a signed PDF with the signature and stamp baked in, at full quality, nothing is ever uploaded.

Frequently asked questions.

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