How to Add a Signature in Gmail

A signature adds your name, title, and contact details to the bottom of every email you send. Gmail lets you keep several signatures and choose which one appears on new messages and which on replies.

Open Gmail settings

In Gmail on the web, click Settings (gear icon) at the top right, then See all settings. The General tab opens by default.

Scroll to the Signature section

Scroll about two thirds of the way down the General tab until you reach Signature. If you have never made one, the section says "No signatures".

Click Create new and name it

Click Create new. A box asks for a name. The name is only for you, so something like "Work" or "Short" is fine. Click Create.

Type and format the signature

Type the signature in the editor on the right. The toolbar underneath lets you change the font and size, apply bold or italics, change the color, add a link, and insert an image. Keep it short. Three or four lines is typical: name, title, company, then a phone number or website.

Set the signature defaults

Below the editor, under Signature defaults, there are two dropdowns: For new emails use and On reply/forward use. Pick the signature you just made in each, or leave the reply dropdown as "No signature" if you do not want it repeated in long threads. Tick Insert signature before quoted text in replies and remove the "--" line that precedes it if you prefer the signature directly under your reply rather than at the very bottom of the thread.

Click Save Changes

Scroll to the bottom of the page and click Save Changes. Open a new message to check that the signature appears. To switch signatures inside a single message, click the pen icon in the compose toolbar and pick a different one.

In the Gmail app. The phone app does not use the web signature. It has its own setting under Settings, your account, then Mobile Signature on Android or Signature settings on iPhone. Set both if you send from both, and keep the mobile one plain text since it does not support formatting.