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Guide

How to design an email signature

To design an email signature, keep your name, job title and one or two contact details as plain text, add one small logo image (Gmail takes pictures up to 100 px tall), and use your brand colours sparingly so it reads well in dark mode too. MyCanvasDesign opens a 400 × 100 px page for the image free in your browser, with no sign-up and no watermark.

Your email signature is seen on every message you send, so it is worth getting right once. The best signatures are mostly text, which every email app shows, searches and reads aloud, with one small image for a logo or a banner. This guide covers what to include, how to design the image, and how to add it in Gmail, Outlook and Apple Mail.

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At a glance

Size
Email signature, 400 × 100 px
Time
20 to 30 minutes
You'll need
Your logo as a PNG or SVG file, your brand colours, and the contact details you want to show.

Design an email signature in seven steps

  1. Decide what goes in it

    Keep it to what people use: your name, job title and company, one phone number and your website. Add your pronouns, a booking link or one social profile if they help. A long signature with every social icon, a quote and a disclaimer makes replies hard to read, because most email apps repeat it under every message in a thread.

  2. Keep the words as text, not a picture

    Type your name and contact details straight into your email app’s signature settings rather than putting them in an image. Text always shows, can be copied, makes phone numbers and links tappable, and is read aloud by screen readers. An image may be hidden until the reader allows pictures, and then they see nothing at all.

  3. Open a 400 × 100 page for the image

    Choose "Open an email signature page": 400 × 100 px suits a logo with a short tagline. Gmail recommends signature pictures 70 to 100 px tall and 300 to 400 px wide, and takes nothing taller than 100 px, so this size works there and everywhere else. For a logo on its own, type 300 × 100 px as your own size.

  4. Design a simple logo block or banner

    Put your logo on the left and, if you like, a short line beside it, such as "Wedding photography in Bristol" or this month’s offer. Keep the page’s white background rather than relying on see-through areas: in dark mode some email apps show images on a dark background, and dark words on a see-through background vanish.

  5. Choose colours and text that survive email

    Use one brand colour for a thin line or your tagline, and dark grey or black for the rest. Make any words in the image at least 16 px tall on this page, and keep them few: the picture is small, and phones can show it smaller still. Avoid thin handwriting fonts in the image; a clean font such as Inter, Poppins or Montserrat stays readable.

  6. Download the PNG

    Download a PNG at 1×, which gives exactly 400 × 100 px, the size Gmail expects. Outlook lets you resize a picture in its signature editor, so there you can use a 2× PNG (800 × 200 px) shown at half size for extra sharpness on high-resolution screens. Apple Mail shows a picture at its full size, so use the 1× PNG there.

  7. Add it to your email app and test it

    In Gmail, open Settings, choose See all settings and scroll to Signature; type your details and use the picture button to add the image. In Outlook, find Signatures in the settings and insert the picture the same way; in Apple Mail on a Mac, choose Mail, then Settings, then Signatures, and drag the PNG in. Then email yourself and check it on a phone and a computer, in dark mode too.

What to put in an email signature

A good signature answers "who is this and how do I reach them?" in a glance. These are the pieces worth including, roughly in this order.

Name and job title
Your full name, and your role in a word or two.
Company and website
Your company or business name, and its web address as a link.
One phone number
In international format (+44 7700 900123) if you work with people abroad, so it can be tapped from any phone.
A logo or banner
One small image, about 400 × 100 px, with a white background so it works in dark mode.
Optional extras
Pronouns, a booking link or one social profile. Choose one or two, not all of them.

Email signature mistakes to avoid

The common problems are a signature that is one big image (unreadable when pictures are blocked), a banner file of several megabytes that slows every email, a row of ten social icons, colours that disappear in dark mode, and a signature taller than most of the emails it sits under. Keep the words as text, the image small and simple, and test it in the apps your contacts use.

Questions about designing an email signature

What size should an email signature image be?

Gmail recommends 70 to 100 px tall and 300 to 400 px wide, and takes nothing taller than 100 px. A 400 × 100 px picture, downloaded as a 1× PNG, works in Gmail, Outlook and Apple Mail.

Why does my email signature show as an attachment?

Some email apps send pictures in a signature as attachments, and some readers’ apps show them that way. Keep the image small, keep your details as text, and test by emailing people who use other apps.

Should my whole email signature be an image?

No. Images can be hidden or blocked, can’t be tapped, and aren’t read by screen readers. Keep your name and contact details as text and use the image only for a logo or banner.

What must a UK company include in its email signature?

Its registered name, company number, the part of the UK where it is registered and its registered office address. Put them in small text at the bottom, and check with your accountant if you are unsure.

Is it free to design an email signature image here?

Yes. MyCanvasDesign is free in your browser, with no sign-up and no watermark, and downloads are free in PNG, JPG, SVG and PDF.

Open an email signature page