How to Add a Signature in Outlook: New, Classic, Web, Mac, and Mobile

Which Outlook Do You Have?

Microsoft currently ships two Windows apps called Outlook, and their signature settings are in different places, so check this first.

• New Outlook for Windows has a New Outlook toggle in the top-right corner that is switched on, and a gear icon for Settings instead of a File tab.
• Classic Outlook for Windows (the Microsoft 365 desktop app) has a File tab at the left end of the ribbon.
• Outlook on the web runs in your browser at outlook.office.com (work and school accounts) or outlook.live.com (Outlook.com and Hotmail accounts).

One difference matters before you start: according to Microsoft's signature guide, a signature you create in classic Outlook is stored on the computer where you made it. If you also use Outlook on the web or another computer, you need to create the signature there too.

How To Add A Signature In New Outlook For Windows

1. Open Settings

   Select the gear icon at the top of the window.

2. Go to Accounts > Signatures

   If you have more than one account in Outlook, choose the account the signature belongs to.

3. Select Add signature and give it a name

   The name is only for you, so something like "Work" or "Short reply" is enough.

4. Type and format the signature

   Use the editor's toolbar for fonts, links, and images.

   

5. Choose when it is added, then select Save

   Tick the boxes to add the signature to new messages, to replies and forwards, or both. Leave them unticked if you would rather insert it by hand.

To insert a signature by hand, start a new message and select Signature in the Insert group of the Message tab.

How To Add A Signature In Classic Outlook For Windows

This is the Microsoft 365 desktop app with the File tab. The same window lets you create the signature and set it as the default.

1. Open the Outlook application

   

2. Go to File > Options

   

3. Select Mail, then Signatures

   

4. Select New and name the signature

   

5. Type the signature under Edit signature

   

6. Set the defaults, then select OK

   Under Choose default signature, pick the email account, then choose a signature for New messages and for Replies/forwards. Choose (none) for either one if you don't want it added automatically.

The new signature is not added to a message that is already open, so add it to that one by hand with Message > Signature.

How To Add A Signature In Outlook On The Web And Outlook.com

The browser version uses the same settings layout as new Outlook for Windows. These steps work for work and school accounts and for personal Outlook.com and Hotmail addresses.

1. Select the gear icon at the top of the page

2. Go to Accounts > Signatures

3. Select Add signature, name it, and type the signature

4. Tick the boxes for new messages and for replies and forwards, then select Save

To add a saved signature to one message only, select Message > Signature while you are writing it.

How To Add A Signature In Outlook For Mac

1. Open the Outlook menu and select Settings

   Older versions call this Preferences.

2. Select Signatures

3. Rename the Untitled signature, or select + to add a new one

4. Type and format the signature, then close the window

   To have Outlook add it for you, set it as the default for new messages and for replies and forwards in the same Signatures settings.

Microsoft's Outlook for Mac signature guide covers inserting a signature by hand from the Signature button in a new message. Mac users who mainly use Apple's own app can follow our guide to adding a signature in Apple Mail instead.

How To Add A Signature In The Outlook App For iPhone And Android

1. Tap your profile picture, then the Settings gear

2. Under Mail, tap Signature

   If you have more than one account in the app, turn on Per Account Signature to give each account its own signature.

3. Type the signature and go back

   The app saves it and adds it to the messages you send from that phone.

Two things to know: the mobile app's signature is mostly plain text, so logos and rich formatting from your computer may not carry over, and a signature you set up on your computer does not appear in the app automatically.

How To Change Or Edit Your Signature In Outlook

Changing a signature uses the same settings you used to create it:

• New Outlook for Windows and Outlook on the web: go to Settings > Accounts > Signatures, select Edit signature next to the one you want, make your changes, and select Save.
• Classic Outlook for Windows: go to File > Options > Mail > Signatures, select the signature, edit it, then select Save and OK.
• Outlook for Mac: go to Outlook > Settings > Signatures, select the signature, and edit it.
• Outlook app: go to Settings > Mail > Signature and type over the old one.

Because classic Outlook keeps signatures on each computer, an edit there does not update Outlook on the web, another PC, or your phone. Make the same change in each place you send from.

How To Add A Logo Or Image To Your Outlook Signature

In the signature editor of new Outlook, Outlook on the web, and Outlook for Mac, use the picture button in the toolbar to insert your logo. In classic Outlook, select the Image button in the signature editor. To resize it there, right-click the image, choose Picture, and use the Size tab with Lock aspect ratio left on.

Keep the logo small and simple. Many email apps block images until the reader allows them, so put your name and contact details in text rather than inside the image. If you want a polished layout without building it by hand, Flamingo, Mailbird's free email signature generator, creates one you can copy into any of the Outlook editors above.

Why Your Outlook Signature Isn't Showing

If you created a signature but it doesn't appear, check these in order:

• It isn't set as the default. Outlook only adds a signature automatically when it is selected for new messages or for replies and forwards. Those are two separate settings, so a signature can appear on new emails and not on replies.
• It wasn't saved. In new Outlook and on the web, the signature is only kept after you select Save.
• You're sending from a different account. Signatures belong to one account, so an email sent from another address uses that account's signature, or none.
• You made it in a different version of Outlook. A signature created in classic Outlook stays on that computer and won't show up on the web, on another PC, or in the mobile app.
• The message is in plain text. Plain-text emails can't show images or formatting, so switch the message format to HTML.
• The recipient's email app blocks images. Your logo is there but hidden until they allow images. Text details still show.

Managing Signatures Across More Than One Account

Outlook stores signatures per account and per platform, which is manageable with one mailbox and tedious with several — a work address, a personal one, and anything you handle on someone else's behalf each need setting up separately, and none of them stay in sync.

Mailbird brings multiple email accounts into one desktop inbox, so you manage signatures for all of them in one place rather than repeating the steps above per account. For other providers, see our guides to adding a signature in Gmail and in Yahoo Mail.

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