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How to make an email signature with a logo

A logo tells the reader at a glance which company you write for. It also has to load in Gmail and Outlook, stay sharp on phones and survive dark mode. Here is the size to use, where to host the file, and the layouts that work.

The short version

  • Size: shown 100–150 px wide, up to about 80 px tall; file about 240 px wide.
  • Format: PNG (transparency) or JPG. No SVG.
  • Hosting: a public https link to the file itself, ideally on your own website.
  • Never embedded: linked images don’t turn into attachments.

All the numbers, for photos and icons too, are on the email signature size page.

Step by step

  1. Export your logo as a PNG (or JPG) about 240 pixels wide, twice the size it will be shown at.
  2. Put it somewhere public that gives you an https link to the file itself: your website is the most reliable.
  3. Open the link in a private browser window to check it loads without signing in.
  4. In the Fairsig generator, open “Photo & logo” and paste the link into Logo URL.
  5. Choose a layout and, in Design, set Logo position to Beside or Below a divider.
  6. Click Copy signature, paste it into your email app's signature settings and send yourself a test email.

Hosting tip: the link must lead to the image, not to a page that shows it. Share links from cloud drives usually open a viewer page, which appears as a broken image in email. A link ending in .png or .jpg on your website is the safest.

Layouts with a logo

Companies, names and numbers are fictional.

CEO with company logo

Executives rarely need a photo: the logo carries the brand, and the contact band keeps a long address readable. No social links, because a CEO's inbox is not a marketing channel.

Use this signatureCorporate template

Management consultant

A large name and a firm rule underneath read as confident without decoration. The logo sits to the side so the name stays the first thing you see.

Use this signatureBold template

Nonprofit program director

Centered layouts suit organisations whose logo is part of the message. Facebook and Instagram are where volunteers find events, so they get icons.

Use this signatureCentered templateIncludes social links

Logo below the details

In Design, set Logo position to “Below a divider”: the logo moves under an accent divider, which keeps the signature narrow on phones.

Use this signatureClassic template
  • Corporate: a logo column beside a contact band. Made for company-wide signatures.
  • Bold: the name leads, the logo sits to the side.
  • Centered: the logo on top, everything centered. The logo is the message.
  • Classic and Modern: show a photo and a logo together, with the logo beside or below.

Bold, Centered and Corporate show one image: the logo if you set one, otherwise your photo. To show both, pick Classic or Modern (see signatures with a photo).

Transparent logos and dark mode

Many people read email in dark mode. A dark logo on a transparent background then disappears into the dark background. Two fixes: flatten the logo onto a light tile with some padding, or use a light version of your logo. The dark mode guide compares both.

Logo flattened onto a light tile

The logo file has its own white background and padding, so there's no transparency for a dark theme to expose. In dark mode it shows as a neat light tile.

Use this signatureCorporate template

Partner and certification logos

Your company logo belongs next to your name. Partner badges, certifications or awards go in a separate row at the bottom, so they don’t compete with it. Fairsig Pro has a logo row for up to five such logos, 36 px high, each with alt text and an optional link. Anyone can preview it; copying a signature that uses it needs Pro.

Mistakes to avoid

  • A logo wider than your text: keep it under 150 px wide so your name stays the first thing people read.
  • The whole signature as one image: when images are blocked, nobody sees your name or number.
  • A logo with a tagline in tiny letters: at 120 px, small text is unreadable.
  • Missing alt text: Fairsig uses your company name, so blocked images still say who you are.

Ready? The free Fairsig generator builds a signature that works in Gmail, Outlook and Apple Mail, in your browser, with no sign-up. Create your signature with a logo →

Questions

What size should a logo be in an email signature?

Show it 100 to 150 pixels wide and no more than about 80 pixels tall, and upload the file at twice that size (for example 240 pixels wide) so it stays sharp on high-resolution screens. Fairsig sets the display width in the HTML for you.

Why does my logo show as an attachment?

The logo was embedded in the email instead of linked. That happens when you paste or insert a picture from your computer into the signature editor. Link it from a public https address instead; Fairsig always links images.

Why is my logo blurry?

The file is smaller than twice its display size. Export it at about 240 pixels wide (for a logo shown at 120) and let the signature scale it down.

My logo disappears in dark mode. What can I do?

A dark logo on a transparent background vanishes on a dark background. Give the file its own light background with some padding, or use a light version of the logo. The dark mode guide shows both.

Can I use an SVG logo?

No. Gmail doesn't display SVG images, and many other email apps don't either. Use PNG (with transparency if you need it) or JPG.

I don't have a website. Where do I host the logo?

Any host that gives a public https link straight to the image file works. With Fairsig Pro ($9 once) you can upload the logo in the generator; it is resized, stripped of metadata and hosted on fairsig.com.

Rolling the logo out to a whole team? See business email signatures.