AARP Hearing Center
Where Are Electronic Signatures Accepted and How Do You Create Them?
Digital John Hancocks are increasingly common, but keep your pen handy just the same
Electronic signatures can save time and paperwork, making it easier to sign important documents from almost anywhere.
AARP (Getty Images, 2)
Key takeaways
- Electronic signatures are widely accepted for many digital documents and save time otherwise spent on printing, scanning and mailing.
- Apple devices include Markup tools that let users create, save and reuse signatures in PDFs and other files.
- Android users can sign documents through Google Drive, Samsung Notes or approved third-party services, though features vary by device.
Got a tech query? AARP members and readers are invited to send me their questions about devices, online safety, social media and navigating today’s technology.
I’m old-fashioned. When called for, I still sign practically everything with a pen, even if I have the option to sign digitally. But I am noticing more occasions where I can sign something using a digital representation of my actual signature. How do I do that?
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Digital files have increasingly replaced paper over the last several years. We’re talking contracts, invoices, rental leases, vaccine records, tax statements and numerous other documents that may be scattered about.
Your accountant, lawyer, tenant or prospective employer may send you legally binding paperwork that requires an ink signature. But as you correctly noted, an electronic signature is an increasingly acceptable substitute. When that’s the case on what is often (but not always) a PDF document, it can save you time in the end.
Saving time
Indeed, emailing or uploading a document with an e-signature is always zippier than printing something out. You don’t have to sign with a pen and then either scan it back onto a computer, phone or tablet to email it, physically add postage and drop it in the mail or schlep to an overnight shipping service.
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In certain business environments, especially if enterprise-grade security is required, the person or company sending you the digital paperwork will use dedicated third-party platforms such as Adobe Acrobat, Docusign, Dropbox Sign or Microsoft 365 to handle electronic signatures. When you receive the document, sometimes via a secure link, you don’t need to install anything — the sender pays for the account or subscription. When you reply, you can either drop your signature in the designated areas on that document or type with a keyboard to create a faux signature that’s deemed acceptable. That said, the markup tools on your PC, tablet or phone will often suffice, and I’ll focus here on mobile devices.
Stylus or finger?
Depending on how often you have to sign stuff — perhaps you rent out an investment property and frequently sign tenant leases — you may want to create a reusable electronic signature that you can paste or drag onto a document as needed. If possible, create that signature with a stylus, such as the S Pen on Samsung devices or the Apple Pencil for certain iPads. Your digital penmanship will look neater than using a trackpad or scribbling with your finger directly on the screen.
Using Markup on Apple devices
Apple’s annotation tool is appropriately named Markup, and beyond creating an e-signature, you can use it to draw or add text to photos, messages and more. But back to that digital signature.
On an iPhone or iPad, launch Markup inside any apps in which you can create or view PDFs or other content, including Files, Notes, Messages, Mail and Photos. Tap the Markup icon, which resembles a pencil in a circle. Where you find it varies depending on the app you’re using. For example, in Notes, tap the icon at the bottom right to create a new note, followed by the Markup icon.
Once in Markup, tap the circled + in the bottom-right corner of the screen | Add Signature | Add or Remove Signature. Any signatures you previously created will appear here. You’ll see various drawing or writing tools at the bottom, including a pencil, pen, highlighter and, for any mistakes you may make in your penmanship, an eraser.
Now tap the + in the upper left corner of the window showing existing signatures (if any) to open the New Signature window. Sign your name with your finger on iPhone and/or finger or Apple Pencil on iPad above the line shown.
Tap the check mark at the upper right. Note the controls there to change the tip, color opacity, color shades and line thickness.
You can add as many new signatures as you like, which is useful if you want, say, a signature that is more formal, with middle initials, as opposed to something more casual, like a shortened name or nickname that you might use in a personal letter.
Tap the check mark to save the signature.
Once you have one or more saved signatures in Markup, tap the one you want to use so that it appears on the screen. You can resize it by dragging the edges of the box where that signature shows up. You can also change the color of the signature or tap the three dots to open a menu that lets you cut, copy, paste, duplicate or delete it. Drag or paste the appropriate signature to fill out forms or to sign on the virtual dotted line.
Options on Android vary
Android devices don’t have the uniformity of their Apple counterparts, so Android instructions for creating an e-signature vary by device and manufacturer.
Since all Android phones have Google Drive, let me start there. (And yes, Apple users can fetch Google Drive as well.)
Tap the Drive app to launch it, then open the file in question. What you see may also vary. It could be an Edit button represented by a pen-shaped icon and a squiggly line. Tap that button to open the toolbar, then use your finger or stylus to draw directly on the document.
Unfortunately, there are limitations to signing PDFs in Google Drive, so you may have to rely on some of the third parties I mentioned earlier. Google does have an e-signature tool for Google Docs and PDFs, but you’ll need a Google Workspace subscription.
Samsung Galaxy owners have another option: creating a digital signature in the preinstalled Samsung Notes app. Tap the squiggly icon on the line above the keyboard, followed by the pen icon at the bottom. You can choose different pen types, colors and line thickness options, and either use your finger to write your name in script or employ the S Pen for the same purpose.
Tap the three dots in the right corner | Save as, then choose, among other options, to Save note as a PDF file, a Microsoft Word file or an Image file.
In Samsung Notes, tap the PDF + icon near the top of the screen, then open or import the PDF you need to sign. Scroll to the area of the document where you want to place your signature, again using the S Pen or your finger. Quick tip: Spread your fingers to zoom into that area to make things a tad easier.
After signing, share the document as a PDF or use the method designated by the sender.
Bonus tip: Use a camera to create your e-signature on a Mac
Apple lets you capture your signature on a Mac using the computer’s built-in camera. Open the Preview app and the document you want to sign. Click Markup if the icon on the toolbar is visible, or look for an icon that has a small x followed by what looks like initials written in script.
Sign your name in dark ink on a white sheet of paper and click Create Signature | Camera on the computer. Hold the paper with your handwritten signature facing the camera, keeping it level with the blue line in the window. Click Done if satisfied, or Clear to try again. This may take some trial and error.
You can access your signatures in Preview by clicking Tools | Annotate |Signature.
The drill is similar to using a camera or webcam on a Windows PC. Launch the Camera app, take a picture of your signature and upload it to Adobe, Docusign or elsewhere.
The key takeaways were created with the assistance of generative AI. An AARP editor reviewed and refined the content for accuracy and clarity.
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