How to sign a PDF on iPhone

Sign it yourself with Markup

These steps follow Apple's guide for iOS 27. On older versions a few buttons sit in different places.

1. 1

   Open the PDF

   Tap the PDF in Mail, Messages or Files. If your iPhone asks, open it in the Files app, then tap Save.

2. 2

   Tap Add, then Add Signature

   Tap the Add button (the plus), then Add Signature. In apps like Notes and Photos, tap Markup first, then Add in the Markup toolbar.

3. 3

   Sign with your finger

   Sign your name on the screen. Tap Clear to try again, or turn your iPhone sideways for more room. Tap Done.

4. 4

   Place and size it

   Drag the signature onto the signature line. Drag any blue dot on its border to make it bigger or smaller.

5. 5

   Save or send it

   Tap the Menu button, then Export, Print or Share to send the signed PDF. Tap Back to save it.

Fill in the rest of the form

Tap the AutoFill button, then tap a blank field and type. If you've filled in your My Card in Contacts, AutoFill can complete supported forms with your details. For text where there's no field, tap Add, then Add Text Form Box.

Other built-in ways

• Preview app: open the PDF in Preview, tap the Form Filling button to fill fields, then tap Add to add your signature or a text box.
• Mail: tap the PDF attachment, then the Markup button. When you tap Done, you can reply to the sender with the marked-up file, start a new message or save it to Files.

When Markup isn't enough

Markup places a picture of your signature on the page. That's fine for a permission slip or a form you sign and send back yourself. It falls short in three situations:

• Someone else has to sign. A customer, tenant or new hire. Emailing a PDF back and forth for each signature is slow, and versions get mixed up.
• You may need to prove who signed. A Markup signature carries no record of who applied it, when, or from which device. Anyone with the file can copy it.
• The deal needs a clean paper trail. Contracts, leases and offer letters are easier to stand behind with a consent step and an audit trail.

Sign or collect signatures with SignMaster

SignMaster runs in Safari on your iPhone, so there's nothing to install. Each document you send is an envelope: one or more documents going to one or more signers.

1. 1

   Start an envelope

   Sign in at usesignmaster.app (or start free, no card) and start a new envelope. Upload the PDF from Files, or a JPG or PNG photo of a page.

2. 2

   Add the signers

   Tap Add me if you're signing too, add anyone else by name and email, and set the order they sign in.

3. 3

   Place the fields

   Drop signature, initials, date signed, text and checkbox fields where each person needs them.

4. 4

   Send, or sign right there

   Review and send. If you're first, tap Sign now. Others get a link they open on any phone or computer, with no account. Sitting across the table? Tap Sign in person and hand them your phone.

5. 5

   Everyone gets the signed copy

   When the last person signs, every signer gets the signed PDF by email. A certificate of completion lists who signed, their email and IP address, the device used, and when each step happened.

Have paper to sign as well? Start an envelope on a computer and click Scan with your phone: your iPhone's camera turns the pages into a PDF you send like any other. The SignMaster iPhone and iPad app scans straight into a signable PDF too.