How to Create an Email Signature in iOS Mail

Email signatures save time and add information automatically

What to Know

  • Go to Settings > Mail > Signature. Choose a signature or create a new one. Tap BIU for Bold, Italics, and Underline formatting.
  • To create a signature with advanced formatting, use the Pages app. Compose a signature, then copy and paste it into the Signature settings.

If you send a lot of emails in a day, having a preset signature can save time. When you send an email from an account with a signature, the signature appears at the end of every email automatically. Learn how to set up a basic email signature with rich text formatting using iOS 10 or later.

Apply Basic Formatting in Your iOS Mail Signature

To add a basic signature—including boldface, italics, and underline formatting—to the text of your iOS Mail email signature:

  1. Open the Settings app on the Home screen.

  2. Scroll down and choose Mail.

  3. Select Signature at the bottom of the screen.

  4. Choose an existing signature or type a new one.

    Signature settings in iOS
  5. Double-tap any word you want to format. Use the text highlighting handles to select more or fewer words or characters.

  6. Select BIU in the context menu that appears above the chosen word. If you don't see it, select the arrow at the end of the context menu to reveal more options.​

  7. For bold text, select Bold. For italicized text, select Italics. For underlined text, select Underline.

  8. Repeat the process of selecting parts of the signature and formatting the text. Exit the screen to save the changes.

    Formatting options in iOS Mail

The next time you write an email, your formatted signature appears at the end of it automatically.

Advanced Settings: Create a More Elaborate Signature

If you want a signature with a little more flair—or at least some font choices—you need to go to a different iOS app: Pages. The Pages app is a free download from the App Store. Use its advanced formatting capabilities to add color, change the font size and type, and add links. Then, copy it to the Signature settings. Here's how:

  1. Open the Pages app and open a blank page.

  2. Type the content of the signature.

  3. Select a word or line of text and choose the Paintbrush icon at the top of the screen to display formatting options. Select a color, size, font, or one of the other available options.

    Text formatting options in Pages for iOS
  4. Select another word or line of text and repeat the formatting process.

  5. When you are finished formatting, copy the signature by pressing on it and choosing Select All, followed by Copy.

  6. Leave Pages and go to Settings > Mail > Signature. Paste the copied signature into the desired account field by tapping the area and selecting Paste.

    Pasting a signature from Pages into Mail settings on iOS

Why Use Formatting in Your Signature?

The text of your email signature may be as short as your name. However, it could also contain your title, contact information, company name, or a favorite quotation.

In Settings, you can format the signature to contain bold, italics, and underlines—a sparse selection of rich text features. Using all of them in one signature may be a bit much, but the judicious application of rich text features can be beneficial.

For signatures used in iOS Mail on iPhone, iPod touch, and iPad, adding that kind of formatting is easy.

You can opt to use the same signature for all your email accounts or set up a different one for each account.

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