Home » Windows » How to Add Signature in Microsoft Word

How to Add Signature in Microsoft Word

by Parth Shah

Did you recently receive an NDA (non-disclosure agreement) or the rent agreement in a Word document to sign? You can print it out, sign the document using a pen and then scan it using a printer to send it back. It’s a time-consuming and unproductive way to get things done though. We have a better solution. You can open the document in Microsoft Word on PC or Mac and add a signature digitally. Here’s how to do it. 

Add Signature in Microsoft Word

There are three ways to add a signature in Microsoft Word. Let’s discuss all of them. 

1. Use the Drawing Tool

Microsoft Word comes with a built-in drawing tool to doodle on a Word document. Using the drawing tool, one can draw a digital signature and add it anywhere in the Word document. Follow the steps below to do so: 

1. Open the document that you want to sign in Microsoft Word. 

2. Select Draw from the above menu bar. 

click draw menu in microsoft word

3. Select the Pen tool that you want to use to sign a document. 

4. You can also click on the little down arrow beside the pen and change the thickness of the pointer, color, and even add glittering effects (irrelevant here). 

select pen tool in microsoft word draw tool

5. For better results, use a thinner pointer and choose Black, Green, or Red color. 

Here, we are going to sign a document using the trackpad. Doing the same thing with a mouse won’t get you desired results. Enable the Draw with Trackpad toggle. 

use draw with trackpad option in microsoft word document

6. It will open a little dialog box. Use one finger to add a signature. Use two fingers to change the position. And finally, press any key to exit the preview. 

signature added in microsoft word

Using the drawing tool won’t deliver a professional outcome that you might look for. For that, you will have to use a built-in add-on to sign a document in Microsoft Word. 

2. Use Third-Party Add-ons

Using third-party add-ons like Adobe Sign, DocuSign, and Panda Sign, you can easily sign a document in Word. DocuSign is one of the most popular services out there to sign documents. Let’s learn how to use it in Microsoft Word. 

1. Open the document that you want to sign in Microsoft Word. 

2. Select Insert > Get Add-ins

open add-in store in microsoft word

3. It will open the Add-in store inside Microsoft Word. Search for DocuSign and install the add-in in Microsoft Word. 

select docusign add-in in microsoft word

4. Select the Add-in and create a DocuSign account. 

5. Whenever you want to sign a document, select DocuSign from the menu bar. 

sign document using docusign

6. Click on Sign Document and DocuSign will upload the document to the cloud and open the default interface to sign a document. 

Here, you can sign documents, add initials, stamp, text, check box, and even company details to a document. 

add signature in microsoft word using add-in

Using a third-party add-on allows you to use the same signature across all services. We are saying all services here as DocuSign is available as a mini-app across various apps like Google Docs, Microsoft Word, Zoom, and even Microsoft Teams. 

The idea is to sign a document without leaving the current interface. 

3. Add Image Signature

If you have saved your signature in a white background as a PNG or JPG file on the PC, it’s time to insert it to the Word document. 

1. Open the Word document that you want to sign. 

2. Select Insert > Picture > Picture from File

add image signature to microsoft word document

3. Select the image from the device and insert it in the Word file. 

4. Resize the image and place it at a relevant place in the file. 

This is just a temporary workaround though. Let’s say the document has some other color background then the image signature with a white background looks unprofessional and out of place. You would need to remove that ugly background for a better outcome. 

Wrapping Up: Sign Word Documents on the Go

The methods above will save a lot of time figuring out how to add a signature to Word documents quickly and effortlessly. Our favorite method is the second one using third-party add-ins. You can also opt for the drawing tool if you accurately figure it out using the trackpad to add a signature.

You may also like