How to sign a PDF without uploading it

Sign a PDF step by step

1. Open Sign PDF and choose your document.
2. Create your signature: draw it, type your name, or upload a photo of your signature on paper.
3. Click the page where it belongs, then drag and resize it until it sits on the line.
4. Export the signed copy. Your original file stays untouched.

Tips for a signature that looks right

• Photographed signature: sign on plain white paper with a dark pen and take the photo in good light. When you upload it, turn on Remove white background so the paper becomes transparent and only the ink shows.
• Reuse it: you can save signatures so you don't redraw them every time. They're stored only in this browser, and you can delete them at any time.
• Forms first: if the document has fields to fill in, complete them with Fill PDF form before signing.
• Lock it in: Flatten PDF turns filled-in fields and annotations into ordinary page content, so the recipient can't change the values and every reader shows the same thing.

Electronic signature or digital signature?

These are two different things. An electronic signature, like the one Sign PDF adds, is an image of your handwritten signature placed on the page. That's what most everyday agreements, forms and permission slips need.

A digital signature is cryptographic: it uses a certificate to prove who signed and to show whether the file was changed afterwards. Sign PDF does not add one. Whether a simple electronic signature is enough depends on your country and the type of document, so check what your situation requires.

Why signing in the browser matters

The documents people sign are often the most sensitive ones they handle: employment contracts, leases, loan papers, medical consent forms. Signing them in the browser means no copy of the document, and no copy of your signature, ends up on someone else's server. If you want to confirm that for yourself, follow our two-minute check.