How to add an email signature on iPhone

Phone signatures are plain text

Apple's iPhone User Guide says plainly that you can only use text in Mail signatures. The Gmail app's mobile signature is also a plain text box, and the Outlook app's signature is best treated the same way. A designed signature with a logo belongs on your computer, where you copy it from a page and paste it into Gmail, Outlook, or Apple Mail.

That is not a problem. People expect a shorter signature from a phone. What matters is that it has the basics, so a client can call you back without scrolling to an older email.

What to put in a phone signature

• Your full name
• Your title and company
• One phone number, usually your cell
• Your website, written out (for example, yourcompany.com)
• A license or ID number if your profession requires it on every email

Delete the default Sent from my iPhone line. Some people like it as an excuse for typos, but it adds nothing a client needs.

iPhone Mail app

1. Open the Settings app.
2. Tap Apps, then tap Mail.
3. Scroll down and tap Signature (below Composing).
4. Tap the text field and type your signature, replacing Sent from my iPhone.
5. If you have more than one email account, tap Per Account to set a different signature for each one.
6. Go back. The signature saves automatically.

On iOS versions before Apps was added to Settings, Mail is listed directly in the Settings app. These steps follow Apple's guide page Change your Mail settings on iPhone.

Gmail app on iPhone

Google's help page notes that if you do not create a signature in the Gmail app, new messages use the signature you set up on your computer. If you have more than one account in the app, set each one separately.

1. Open the Gmail app.
2. Tap Menu at the top left, then tap Settings.
3. Under Compose and Reply, tap Signature settings.
4. Turn on Mobile Signature.
5. Type your signature.
6. Tap Back to save.

Outlook app on iPhone

1. Open the Outlook app and open Settings.
2. Under Mail, tap Signature.
3. Type your signature. To use different ones for different accounts, turn on Per Account Signature and fill in each.

Keep phone and computer signatures consistent

Use the same name, title, phone number, and website on your phone as on your computer, in the same order. The phone version just drops the logo and icons. If your title changes, update both on the same day. Clients notice when two emails from the same person disagree about their phone number.

If you manage a team, put the phone signature text in the same handout as the desktop install steps. Most people set up their computer and forget their phone, and many emails go out from phones.

A faster option

When you build a signature with Staff Signature, the install page gives you the designed version for your computer and a matching plain text version for your phone, with these steps for each app.

Common questions