Add a signature to a PDF

Create a signature by drawing, typing or uploading an image, place it with initials, date or short text on any page, and download a checked copy with -signed in its name. The tool reopens the saved file, compares each marked page before and after, and offers no download unless every mark landed visibly. This is a visible mark on the page, not a certificate backed signature, and nothing you draw is kept for the next visit.

The change order waiting in your inbox

This page fits the everyday signature: a visible mark that says you saw and approved the page. If nobody asked for a verifiable certificate, a timestamp or an audit trail, a drawn mark placed here does the job.

Say a contractor emails Change-Order-14.pdf on a Thursday afternoon: two pages, needs your signature and today's date beside the total before the crew starts Monday. You open it here, draw your name on the pad with a finger, press Place signature, drag the mark onto the line on page two, then press Place date beside it. The mark lands as dark blue ink at the size you set, and a second pass adds your initials to the first page so both pages carry you.

Three ways make the mark. Draw on the pad, type up to 80 characters in a script style through Use typed signature, or upload a PNG or JPG photo of your ink signature, scaled to at most 1600 pixels on the long side. Remove a light paper background stays ticked by default and fades near white paper toward transparent while darker ink stays solid, so a phone photo of a signed scrap usually just works. Initials take up to 12 characters, the text mark up to 80, and the date mark always shows today in your locale's medium format.

Marks for the usual situations:

Add marks to PDF writes the marks into the pages without redrawing them, then reopens the file: geometry and selectable text must match the source, and a before and after render of each marked page must show visible pixel change inside every mark. The download gains -signed in its name, so the order returns as Change-Order-14-signed.pdf. A password locked file is refused, and a file carrying certificate signature fields shows a warning you must accept, because new content can invalidate an existing certificate.

From blank pad to signed copy in four steps

1. Choose a PDF

   Press Choose a PDF or drop the file onto the page. The first page renders with the signature pad beside it, and certificate signature fields trigger a warning to confirm before running.

2. Create the signature

   Draw on the pad, type your name and press Use typed signature, or press Choose a signature image for a PNG or JPG. Press Clear drawing to redo a shaky attempt; nothing is stored between visits.

3. Place the marks

   Press Place signature, Place initials, Place date or Place text, then drag each mark where it belongs and size it with Selected mark size. Walk the page selector to mark several pages in one pass.

4. Add the marks and download

   Press Add marks to PDF. The saved file is reopened and every mark is checked for visibility before Download signed PDF appears.

Marks that misbehave, and how to tame them

A shaky drawn signature usually means drawing too small: use the full pad width, then shrink the placed mark with the size control instead. Typed marks cannot be restyled; the script look and the dark blue ink are fixed, so upload an image when the mark must match existing ink.

An uploaded photo with gray shadows keeps them: background removal fades near white only, so rephotograph on plain white paper in even light when the preview shows a gray box. Marks smaller than two percent of the page width grow to that minimum, and marks follow rotated pages, so place along the text you see.

A run that refuses to start usually faces a locked file or an unconfirmed warning. Open password files with Unlock PDF first, and read the certificate warning on files that already carry one: ticking it means accepting that new content may invalidate their seal.

When a drawn mark is not enough

A visible mark proves nothing about identity: no certificate, no trusted timestamp, no audit trail. When the other side demands a verifiable digital signature, a qualified eIDAS signature or a tamper evident seal, route the file through a certificate signing service instead. Digital vs electronic signature explains which kind the person asking will accept.

Forms with boxes to complete want filling before signing: run Fill PDF form first, then sign the answered copy. When the mark must sit beside a stamped date or page numbers across the whole file, Stamp PDF adds those mechanically after the marks land.

Short answers about signing PDFs

Can the recipient tell I signed in a browser?

No. The download is an ordinary PDF with your marks baked into the pages. The tool adds no watermark, no extra pages and no signature storage; close the tab and the drawing is gone.

Does my signature stay on this device after I leave?

No. The result screen states it plainly: the signature was not stored on this device. Draw again next time you need it.

Can I sign every page of a long contract?

Yes. Walk the page selector and place initials or the full mark on each page in one pass. Each mark sizes independently with the size control.

Why does the page warn about signature fields?

Your file contains certificate signature fields, and any new page content can invalidate an existing certificate. The run waits until you tick the warning and accept that trade.

My uploaded signature shows a gray box. How do I fix it?

Keep Remove a light paper background ticked and rephotograph the signature on plain white paper in even light. Only near white fades; gray shadows and ruled lines survive.

Companions for before and after signing

Everything below runs in the browser with no account and checks its own output before the download. Fill the boxes first, sign here, then flatten, stamp or compare the result.

• Merge PDFs Join files in the order you set
• Organize pages Move, remove or split out pages
• Rotate & crop Turn sideways pages, trim edges
• Images to PDF Turn JPG or PNG pictures into pages
• HEIC to PDF The iPhone photo format as pages
• TIFF to PDF Scanner files with several frames
• WebP to PDF Pictures saved from a browser
• BMP to PDF Old Windows bitmap pictures
• Privacy scan Check and clear hidden file details
• Protect & unlock Lock with a password, or unlock
• Repair PDF Rescue a file that will not open
• Compress PDF Shrink to the size you need
• PDF size breakdown What makes the file heavy
• Print preflight Catch print problems early
• PDF to images Each page as a JPG or PNG
• PDF to TIFF All pages in a single TIFF
• Extract images Pull out the embedded pictures
• PDF to Markdown Headings and lists as plain text
• Markdown to PDF Plain text notes to a checked PDF
• PDF to CSV Table rows as comma-separated data
• PDF to Excel Each table on its own worksheet
• Edit PDF Cover, type and place pictures
• Stamp PDF Add page numbers or a watermark
• Compare PDFs See what differs between versions
• Flatten PDF Lock fields and marks in place
• Fill PDF form Type into the form's own boxes
• Create PDF form Turn a flat page into a form
• N-up & booklet Fit pages per sheet or fold a booklet
• Comic archive Comic archives in both directions
• Redact PDF Remove marked text for good
• Redaction checker Test whether black boxes hide text

Signing guides and the privacy small print

• How to sign a PDF The full walkthrough, from drawing the mark to checking the copy.
• Add a signature to a PDF Draw or type a mark and land it on the right line.
• Digital vs electronic signature Learn which kind of signature the recipient actually wants.
• Privacy What this tab remembers after you close it, and what it never sends.