You can set an email signature on replies separately from the one on new messages in Gmail, Outlook, Apple Mail and Zoho Mail, and the usual plan is a full signature for first contact and a short one for replies. Each app keeps the setting in a different place. This page follows Google’s signature help, Microsoft’s Outlook signature page, Apple’s Mail signature page and Zoho’s Signatures page, all read on 5 October 2026.
Email signature on replies, in short
- Gmail: Google says you can choose a signature default for new emails and for emails you reply to.
- Outlook: the Replies/forwards drop-down (classic) or the checkbox for replies and forwards (new Outlook, web).
- Apple Mail: Place signature above quoted text controls position.
- Zoho Mail: Add signature to all my email replies.
- Keep the reply version to name, role and one contact line.
Where each app keeps the email signature on replies
| App | The setting the vendor page names | What the page leaves out |
|---|---|---|
| Gmail (computer) | A signature default for new emails and for emails you reply to; Insert signature at the bottom of the compose window | The exact label of the reply setting in the text we read |
| New Outlook, Outlook on the web | Checkboxes for new messages and for replies and forwards, under Settings, Accounts, Signatures | Character limits, number of signatures |
| Classic Outlook | New messages and Replies/forwards drop-downs under Choose default signature | Whether the signature lands above or below quoted text |
| Apple Mail (Mac) | Choose Signature pop-up; Place signature above quoted text | A separate signature just for replies |
| Zoho Mail | Add signature to all my email replies, with placement above or below the quoted text | Mobile app steps |
The phone apps are missing from the table on purpose. Microsoft’s page for Outlook on iOS and Android says nothing about replies in the text we read, and Apple’s iPhone page would not load for us, so we make no claim for them. Our article on multiple signatures in Gmail and the one on Outlook replies and forwards go deeper on those two apps.
Gmail: the email signature on replies
Google’s page says Gmail lets you set a signature default for new emails you compose and a default for emails you reply to. The page also says that to change your signature while you write, you click Insert signature at the bottom of the window. To open the settings, the page starts at Gmail’s Settings and See all settings.
The page’s text does not name the setting for replies, and it describes the desktop steps only. For position relative to quoted text, which is a separate question, see Gmail signature before quoted text.
Outlook: the email signature on replies
Microsoft’s page gives two versions.
- Classic Outlook. Open a new message, go to Message, Signature, Signatures. Pick the account. Under Choose default signature, set New messages and then Replies/forwards. Select OK.
- New Outlook and Outlook on the web. Go to Settings, Accounts, Signatures. Add or pick a signature, and use the checkboxes to turn it on for new messages, for replies and forwards, or both. Select Save.
One line from the page saves a headache: classic Outlook does not add a new signature to the message you opened in step one, even if you applied it to all new messages. Close that message and start a fresh one to see the effect.
Apple Mail and Zoho: the email signature on replies
Apple’s page, under Mail, Settings, Signatures, names Choose Signature for a default, or for rotating through signatures in order or at random. It names Place signature above quoted text for the position when replying or forwarding. It does not describe a signature used only for replies, so on a Mac the closest thing is the placement option plus choosing the signature per message.
Zoho’s page has a switch of its own: Add signature to all my email replies. After it is on, you choose between the bottom of the composer, which is below the quoted text, and below the reply you just drafted, which is above the quoted text. Our guide to signatures in Zoho Mail lists the rest of the steps.
What a short reply signature should hold
A reply sits inside an ongoing thread. The reader already has your full details from the first message, so the second block can shrink.
Keep:
- Your name and role.
- One way to reach you, usually a direct number.
- Your company name.
Drop:
- Social icons, banners and promotions.
- Long legal lines, unless your policy says they go on every message. Ask whoever owns that policy.
- Your address and every number you have.
Etiquette points on when long signatures grate are in our guide to email signature etiquette.
A full signature and its short reply version
Here is the full signature for new emails, drawn by emailfooter:
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Full version for new emails. The company and person are made up.
And the short version for replies:
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Short version for replies. Same made-up person.
They share one name, one logo and one colour, so the reply still looks like the same sender.
Setting up two signatures without a mess
- Build the full version first and save it under a clear name such as “Full, new”.
- Create the short version and name it “Short, reply”.
- In each app, point new messages at the first and replies at the second.
- Send yourself one new message and one reply. Look at both.
- Check a forward as well, because some apps group it with replies and some do not.
emailfooter lets the company admin design one layout and each employee fill in their own details, with steps for 16 mail apps. It does not set the reply default for anyone, because it has no link into their mailboxes; each person follows the steps and picks the defaults themselves. It is English-only for now, and it has no click analytics.
When the email signature on replies goes wrong
- Signature missing on replies only. The reply default is set to none, or the checkbox is off.
- Signature on replies only. The new-message default is none.
- Two signatures. One came from the default and one was pasted by hand.
- Signature above the quoted text when you wanted it below. Check the position option where your app has one.
- A different font on replies. Apple’s page lists Always match my default message font, which applies the message font instead of the signature’s own.
- Plain text reply. Formatting is lost; Zoho’s page warns that images and links do not display when you compose in plain text.
If none of these fit, read our fix list for an Outlook signature that is not showing.
Frequently asked questions
Can I have a different email signature on replies?
Yes in the apps above: Gmail has a default for replies, Outlook has a replies and forwards setting, and Zoho has a reply switch. Apple Mail’s page describes only a choice of signature and a placement option.
How do I turn off my email signature on replies?
In new Outlook and Outlook on the web, untick the replies and forwards checkbox. In classic Outlook, change the Replies/forwards drop-down. In Zoho, leave Add signature to all my email replies off. For Gmail, Google’s page only says you can choose a default for replies, so look at that setting.
What should a short reply signature include?
Your name, role, company and one contact line. Leave out images, banners and long notices.
Why does my email signature on replies appear in the wrong place?
Check the placement option: Apple Mail has Place signature above quoted text, and Zoho lets you choose above or below the quoted text.
Keep reading
- Outlook signature on replies and forwards: set it once, use it everywhere: Outlook signature on replies and forwards: where classic Outlook, new Outlook and the web keep the setting, and how to use a short reply signature.
- Email signature etiquette: what is polite, what is noise: Email signature etiquette in one table for new emails, replies, long threads and internal mail, plus nine habits that waste the reader’s attention.
- Multiple signatures in Gmail: create several, set defaults and switch while you write: Set up multiple signatures in Gmail, choose defaults for new emails and replies, and switch from the compose window, checked against Google’s help page.
Make every signature in your company match
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