How to add an email signature in Gmail (step by step)
Create an HTML signature in Gmail, set it as the default for new emails and replies, and fix the most common problem — missing images.
Adding a signature in Gmail takes a few clicks, but getting a logo and clickable links to show up reliably depends on a few details. This guide walks through the steps first, then the problems people run into most often.
Add a signature in Gmail (desktop)
- Open Gmail in your browser and click the ⚙️ Settings icon in the top-right corner.
- Click See all settings.
- On the General tab, scroll down to the Signature section.
- Click + Create new and give the signature a name (for example "Work").
- Click inside the editor on the right and paste your signature (Ctrl+V, or ⌘+V on a Mac).
- Under Signature defaults, choose the signature for For new emails use and On reply/forward use.
- Scroll to the bottom of the page and click Save Changes.
Your signature is now added automatically to every new email. If you have more than one, you can switch between them with the pen icon in the toolbar at the bottom of the compose window.
Tip: When copying a signature from a web page, select only the signature, not the whole page. The Copy signature button on a mailimza setup page does this for you.
Why are my signature images missing?
The most common Gmail problem is a logo or image that disappears after pasting. There are two usual causes:
- The image is embedded in the HTML (base64). Some tools embed images inside the HTML as text. Gmail's signature editor doesn't accept these, and signatures also have a character limit that embedded images fill up quickly.
- The image isn't publicly available. If the image address only works inside your company network or requires a login, recipients can't see it.
The fix is to host signature images at a public https address. In mailimza, enter that address in the Image URL field on the Preview & download screen; the generated HTML signature then loads images from there, and you only need to upload the images folder from the ZIP file to that address.
Gmail signature on your phone
The Gmail apps for iOS and Android have a separate mobile signature setting that only supports plain text. The signature with a logo you added on the desktop may not be used for emails sent from the app. If you send a lot of email from your phone, add a short text signature (name, title, phone) in the app settings.
For companies using Google Workspace
Setting up everyone's signature one by one takes time and leads to inconsistent results. A more organized approach:
- Design one shared template.
- Upload your employee list from a spreadsheet and create everyone's signature at once.
- Send each employee their own setup page, which contains their signature and these steps.
mailimza is built for exactly this, and it's free. See how to create email signatures for your whole team from a spreadsheet for details.
Common questions
The signature doesn't appear in replies
Make sure On reply/forward use under Signature defaults isn't set to "No signature".
The signature breaks when I paste it
You may have copied elements around the signature too. Select only the signature and try again, or use the Copy signature button on the setup page.
The links aren't clickable
If you added the signature as a single image (PNG), the phone number and email inside it can't be clicked. Use an HTML signature for clickable links.