Install guide · Outlook classic (Windows)
How to add an email signature in classic Outlook for Windows
Classic Outlook is the desktop app with a File menu. Its signature editor is a small version of Word, so pasting works well, as long as you paste straight from the builder.
- ABOUT 3 MIN
- Windows desktop
- Full HTML
- Logo & photo work
Step by step
6 steps- 1
Step 01 / 06
Copy your signature
In the builder, click Copy signature.
- 2
Step 02 / 06
Open the Signatures window
In Outlook, go to File › Options › Mail and click Signatures…. (Shortcut: open a new email and choose Signature › Signatures… in the ribbon.)
- 3
Step 03 / 06
Create a new signature
On the E-mail Signature tab, click New, type a name and click OK.
- 4
Step 04 / 06
Paste it in
Click into the Edit signature box, press Ctrl+V and click Save. Avoid the box's own formatting buttons afterwards; they can shift the layout.
- 5
Step 05 / 06
Set the defaults
Top right, under Choose default signature, pick the right E-mail account, then select your signature in the dropdowns for New messages and Replies/forwards.
- 6
Step 06 / 06
Save and test
Click OK (and OK again in Options). Open a new email to check.
P.S. Good to know
- Downloaded the .html file? Rename it to
.htmand put it in%APPDATA%\Microsoft\Signatures(paste that into the Explorer address bar). Restart Outlook and it appears in the list. - Logos can look slightly too large or small on high-DPI screens in classic Outlook. That's an Outlook display quirk; recipients see the intended size.
- Each email account in Outlook has its own default, so repeat the defaults step per account.
Not working?
The most common problems, and what to do about them.
The Signatures button does nothing.
That's a known Office issue, usually fixed by a repair: Windows Settings › Apps › Microsoft 365 › Modify › Quick Repair. The .htm file method in the tips works as a workaround.
My signature looks fine but arrives without images.
Many recipients block remote images until they click “Download pictures”. That's normal and safe. The text and links still arrive.
I don't have a File menu.
Then you're on new Outlook. Use the guide for new Outlook and Outlook on the web.
No signature yet?
Make one in two minutes.
Free, no account, no watermark. Copy it and paste it into Outlook classic (Windows) with the steps above.
Kind regards,