You've seen them. Those tiny, gray "Sent from my iPhone" tags at the bottom of every professional email. It’s the default setting. It's also a bit of a branding disaster. Honestly, leaving that default text there tells the recipient one of two things: either you're too busy to care, or you haven't figured out your settings yet. Setting an email signature on iPhone is one of those tasks that sounds like it should take five seconds, but if you want it to actually look good—not just plain text—it gets a little finicky.
Let's fix it.
Apple’s iOS has changed a lot over the years, but the way it handles signatures remains surprisingly buried in the settings menu. It isn't in the Mail app itself. That’s the first mistake most people make. You’re digging through the Mail app's internal folders looking for a "Signature" button that doesn't exist there.
Finding the Secret Signature Menu
To actually get started, you have to leave your inbox. Close the Mail app. Head over to Settings. Scroll down—past the notifications, past the battery settings—until you find Mail. It’s usually grouped with Contacts, Calendar, and Notes.
Once you’re in the Mail settings, scroll all the way to the bottom. Near the very end of the list, you’ll see "Signature." Tap that.
Now, you have a choice. Apple gives you two ways to organize this. You can select "All Accounts," which applies the same signature to your work Outlook, your personal Gmail, and that old iCloud account you never use. Or, you can choose "Per Account." Pick Per Account. Seriously. You don't want your boss getting an email with a signature that has your "Check out my Etsy shop!" link, and you probably don't need your grandma seeing your corporate legal disclaimer.
Dealing with the "Per Account" Logic
When you toggle "Per Account," a text box appears for every email address synced to your phone. This is where the magic happens. Or the frustration.
If you just want text, type it in. Done. But if you want a professional look with bold text, different colors, or a logo, typing it directly into this box is a nightmare. The iOS keyboard isn't built for formatting HTML. Most people try to bold their name here and find that the options are limited or the cursor jumps around like it’s caffeinated.
The "Shake to Undo" Trick for HTML Signatures
Here is a weird quirk of iOS that almost nobody talks about. Apple's Mail app tries to "simplify" any signature you paste into it. It strips out your nice fonts and messes with the spacing. It’s infuriating.
If you have a beautiful signature designed in a tool like HubSpot, WiseStamp, or even just copied from your desktop version of Outlook, copy it to your clipboard. Paste it into the box on your iPhone.
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The second you paste it, it might look slightly "off." Shake your phone. I’m serious. The "Undo Change Attributes" prompt will pop up. When you hit "Undo," iOS stops trying to "help" you and reverts the signature back to its original HTML formatting. This is the only way to keep your colors and fonts looking exactly like they do on your computer. It’s a literal "hidden" feature that saves your branding from looking like a 1998 chat room.
Why Images Are Tricky
Images are the bane of mobile email signatures. If you paste a massive 2000-pixel headshot into that signature box, your iPhone won't automatically resize it for the recipient. They’ll open your email and see a giant, pixelated eyeball taking up the whole screen.
If you must use an image, host it online. Don't just paste the file. Use a direct link to the image hosted on your website or a public Drive folder. Even better? Skip the image. In 2026, most mail clients block external images by default for privacy reasons anyway. Your "professional" signature ends up looking like a broken box with a red "X."
Common Myths About iPhone Signatures
A lot of people think you need a third-party app to manage this. You don't. Apps that promise to "sync your signature" often just want access to your data. Stick to the native settings.
Another misconception is that the signature will sync from your Mac to your iPhone automatically. It doesn't. iCloud is great for syncing photos and notes, but for some reason, Apple treats the mobile Mail signature as a device-specific setting. If you change it on your MacBook, your iPhone will still be happily chirping "Sent from my iPhone" until you manually intervene.
Formatting for the Modern Inbox
Think about the recipient. Over 50% of emails are opened on mobile devices. If your signature is five lines of text plus a legal disclaimer the size of a short story, you’re making people scroll just to see if you actually wrote anything else.
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Keep it tight:
- Name (Bold)
- Title | Company
- Phone Number (Make it a clickable link using
tel:) - One social link or website
Avoid putting your email address in your signature. It’s redundant. They literally just received an email from you. It’s like wearing a name tag that says "I am currently talking to you."
The Legal Disclaimer Problem
If you work in law or finance, you might be required to have a disclaimer. On an iPhone, these look terrible. They take up the entire screen. A better move is to put a single line that says "Legal Disclaimer" and hyperlinking it to a page on your company site. It keeps the thread clean and your mobile replies won't look like a TOS agreement.
Troubleshooting the "Sent from my iPhone" Ghost
Sometimes, you'll set your signature, and it just... won't show up. Usually, this happens if you’re using a third-party app like Gmail or Outlook instead of the native iOS Mail app.
If you use the Gmail App:
- Open the Gmail app.
- Tap the three lines (menu) in the top left.
- Scroll to Settings.
- Select your account.
- Tap Signature Settings.
- Toggle "Mobile Signature" on and paste your text there.
If you use the Outlook App:
- Tap your profile icon in the top left.
- Hit the gear icon (Settings).
- Scroll to Signature.
- Turn off the "Per Account" toggle if you want one for all, or keep it on for variety.
Note that these apps operate completely independently of the iOS "Mail" settings. Changing it in the iPhone Settings app won't affect the Outlook app. It’s a common point of confusion that leads to people having two different signatures depending on which app they happen to open that day.
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Actionable Steps for a Better Signature
Don't just read this and leave the "Sent from my iPhone" tag active.
- Audit your current accounts. Go to Settings > Mail > Signature and see what's actually there. You might be surprised to find an old job title or an inactive phone number still hanging around.
- Standardize your "Per Account" settings. Even if the signatures are different, make sure the font sizes are consistent.
- Test it. Send an email to yourself. Open it on a desktop and a phone. If the image looks huge or the text is tiny, go back and use the "Shake to Undo" trick.
- Remove the fluff. Delete the "Please consider the environment before printing" line. It's 2026. Nobody is printing your three-sentence email about a Zoom link.
Getting your signature right is a small win, but it’s one of those things that subtly signals you know what you’re doing. It’s the digital equivalent of a clean suit. Now that you know how to set email signature on iPhone properly, you can stop sending those generic mobile disclaimers and actually look like the professional you are.