How to add a signature in the new Outlook for Windows

How to add signature in new Outlook: select Settings (the cog), then Accounts, then Signatures, choose Add signature, write it, tick when it should be used and select Save. It takes about two minutes. These steps follow Microsoft’s Outlook signature help page, read in October 2026, and the page that covers Outlook on the web.

How to add signature in new Outlook, step by step

1. Select Settings, the cog icon.
2. Select Accounts, then Signatures.
3. If more than one account is added to new Outlook, select the account the signature is for.
4. Select Add signature and give it a distinct name. “Work” and “Short reply” are easier to find later than “Signature 1”.
5. In the editing box under the name, type the signature. Use the font, colour and style controls to shape it.
6. Use the checkboxes at the bottom to choose whether it goes on new messages, on replies and forwards, or both. If you leave them blank, you add the signature yourself when you write a message.
7. Select Save.

Microsoft’s page says the same creation steps apply to new Outlook and to the web versions of Outlook, so if you have worked out how to add signature in new Outlook, you already know the browser version.

Put a signature on a single message

If you left the boxes empty, or want a different signature for one email:

1. From Mail, select New mail.
2. On the Message tab, in the Insert group, select Signature.
3. Pick one of your saved signatures.

The same drop-down has a Signatures… entry. Choose it to create a new signature without going back to Settings.

Change a signature you already have

Go back to Settings, then Accounts, then Signatures. Select the Edit signature button next to the one you want to change, make your edits and select Save. A change affects messages you write after saving, not ones already sent.

What changed from classic Outlook

If you used classic Outlook for years, how to add signature in new Outlook will feel familiar but the furniture has moved. This table compares what Microsoft’s page describes for each.

Task	Classic Outlook	New Outlook
Open signature settings	Open a new email, then Signature, then Signatures on the Message menu. Or File, Options, Mail, Signatures	Settings, Accounts, Signatures
Pick the account	E-mail account drop-down	Select the account in the Signatures list
Choose when it is used	Two drop-downs: New messages and Replies/forwards	Two checkboxes: new messages, replies and forwards
Edit	Choose it under Select signature to edit, then Save and OK	Edit signature button, then Save
Where it is stored	On the device where you created it	Not stated on the page

The last row is the one that matters most when something goes wrong, so it gets its own section.

Why a signature can go missing when you switch

Microsoft’s page says that signatures made in classic Outlook “are stored locally on the device where they were created”, and that to use one across supported Outlook experiences you should create and manage it through your Microsoft account where available. It adds a second warning: if you have a Microsoft account and use both Outlook and Outlook on the web, you need to create a signature in both.

The page does not say that new Outlook imports your classic signatures. So the safe assumption is that it does not. Open Settings, Accounts, Signatures the first time you use new Outlook, and if the list is empty, rebuild it. If your old one is a complicated layout, copy the content out of classic Outlook before you retire it, and paste it into the new editing box. The other causes are in our guide to a signature that is missing in new Outlook.

Three smaller points that also catch people out:

• One signature per account is not automatic. If you added a second mailbox, check the boxes again for that account.
• Do not count on drafts. If you started a message before saving the signature, insert it by hand from the Insert group rather than assuming the boxes reach back.
• Blank boxes mean manual. Leaving both boxes empty is a legitimate setup, but every message then goes out bare until you add one.

Check that you are in new Outlook

The steps for how to add signature in new Outlook only work in new Outlook for Windows. Microsoft’s page includes a note: if the steps under its new Outlook tab do not work, you may not be using new Outlook yet, and you should follow the classic steps instead. A quick test is where the settings live. New Outlook has a cog for Settings at the top right. Classic has a ribbon with a File tab. The classic Outlook steps are in their own guide, and Outlook in a browser is covered in the web version.

What the editing box can hold

Microsoft describes the editing box as a place to type and then format with fonts, colours and styles. Its general Outlook page says signatures can contain text, links and pictures, such as a logo or a handwritten signature image.

What the page does not describe is pasting a finished HTML layout into the new Outlook box, or any limit on image size. We do not want to guess, so treat both as things to test. Paste your design, save it, send a message to yourself and to a second address, and look at it on your phone as well.

A layout that holds up in a test is built from simple tables with inline styles. Here is one drawn by emailfooter, which keeps to short lines and a small logo:

Compact layout, no photo. The company and person are made up.

If you are building the same signature for a whole team, doing it by hand in each person’s Settings is where the differences creep in. emailfooter lets the company fix the layout and each person fill in their own details, then gives them numbered steps for their mail app. It does not write into mailboxes for you, so each person still pastes their own. For images, the size guide has the numbers we use.

Message format can hide a signature

A signature with formatting or a picture needs the message to be HTML. Microsoft’s message format page says plain text does not support bold, colour or pictures shown inside the message. In new Outlook you set the default under Settings, then Mail, then Compose and reply, then Message format. The page says new Outlook offers HTML and plain text only. Read the message format page if replies come out plain.

Frequently asked questions

How to add signature in new Outlook for a second email account?

Select Settings, Accounts, Signatures, pick the second account in the list, and repeat the steps. Each account has its own signatures and checkboxes.

How do I add a signature in new Outlook?

Select Settings, then Accounts, then Signatures. Choose Add signature, name it, write it, set the checkboxes and select Save.

Where is the signature setting in new Outlook?

Under Settings, Accounts, Signatures. People used to classic Outlook often look under File, Options, which is the classic route.

Does the new Outlook keep my old signature?

Microsoft’s page does not say it imports classic signatures. Check the Signatures list and recreate anything missing.

How do I add a signature to one email only?

Open a new message, and on the Message tab, in the Insert group, select Signature and pick one.

Do I need a signature in both Outlook and Outlook on the web?

Microsoft says yes if you have a Microsoft account and use both, because you create it in each product.