How to sign a PDF on Windows or Mac

On a Mac, with Preview

Preview is built into macOS and keeps your signature for next time.

• Open the PDF in Preview.
• Show the Markup toolbar, then click the Sign button.
• Create a signature: sign on the trackpad with your finger, hold a signature written on white paper up to the camera, or sign on a nearby iPhone or iPad.
• Click the signature to add it, drag it into place and resize it with the handles.
• Save the file.

On Windows, with Microsoft Edge

Edge opens PDFs by default on Windows and has a Draw tool. Open the PDF in Edge, choose Draw, write your signature with the mouse, touchpad or a pen, and save. It works, but a signature drawn with a mouse is rarely neat; a typed signature in a handwriting style, below, often looks better.

On Windows or Mac, with Adobe Acrobat Reader

The free Acrobat Reader has a Fill & Sign tool. Open the PDF, choose Fill & Sign, add a signature by typing, drawing or using an image, and click where it should go. It is a good choice if you already have Reader installed.

In any browser, with nothing to install

PactPen’s free Sign a PDF tool runs in the browser on Windows, Mac, Linux and Chromebooks. The file is opened on your computer and never uploaded.

• Open the Sign a PDF tool and choose your file, or drag it onto the page.
• Type your name in a handwriting style, or draw your signature.
• Click where it goes, drag it into place, and download the signed PDF.

Signing a form, not just a page

If the PDF has boxes to fill in, fill them before you sign. The free Fill a PDF form tool types into a fillable PDF’s own fields, so the answers land in the right place.

When you need other people to sign

The methods above add your own signature as an image on the page. When you are the one collecting signatures, on a contract, an NDA or an offer letter, send it through an e-signature service instead. It emails each signer a link, records consent, time and IP address, and attaches a certificate of completion to the signed PDF.