Fairsig

How to add an email signature in Gmail

Works for personal Gmail and Google Workspace accounts, in Gmail on the web.

Don't have a signature yet? Make one in two minutes with the free Fairsig generator, then come back here. Use Copy signature (not “Copy HTML”) when you paste into a mail app's signature editor.

Add the signature

  1. In the generator, click Copy signature.
  2. Open Gmail on a computer. Click the gear icon (top right), then See all settings.
  3. Stay on the General tab and scroll down to Signature.
  4. Click Create new, give the signature a name (for example “Work”) and click Create.
  5. Click in the editor box and paste with Ctrl+V (⌘+V on a Mac). Don't use “paste as plain text”, which drops the layout.
  6. Under Signature defaults, pick the signature for For new emails use and On reply/forward use.
  7. Scroll to the bottom of the page and click Save Changes. Nothing is saved until you do.

Open a new message to check it. If you have several addresses in Gmail (“Send mail as”), each one has its own defaults.

“Signature is too long”: the 10,000-character limit

Gmail refuses signatures longer than 10,000 characters, and it counts the HTML code, not the visible text. Styling, links and long legal footers add up quickly. Fairsig shows a live counter under the preview and warns you from 9,000 characters.

If you are over the limit:

  • shorten or remove the disclaimer, which is often the longest part;
  • remove social links you don't need;
  • switch to the Compact or Minimal template, which produce the least HTML;
  • never paste images “embedded” into the signature: a single embedded (base64) image can be larger than the whole limit.

Images that don't show up

  • The image must be at a public https link. Links that need a login (a private Google Drive or Dropbox file, an intranet) show a broken image to everyone else.
  • If you host the image on Google Drive, share it as “Anyone with the link”. A normal website or CDN is more reliable.
  • Gmail loads images through its own proxy, so changing the file behind the same URL can take a while to show up.
  • Use PNG or JPG. SVG images don't display in Gmail.

Tips

  • Tick “Insert signature before quoted text in replies and remove the ‘--’ line that precedes it” if you want your signature right under your reply instead of below the whole thread.
  • The Gmail apps for Android and iPhone use a separate, plain-text mobile signature (in the app's settings for your account). Keep it short, for example your name and phone number.
  • For a whole Google Workspace domain, Fairsig Teams will deploy signatures centrally (coming soon).

Other guides: Outlook · Apple Mail