Sign a document yourself
Upload a file, click I am the only signer, drop your signature onto the page and finalize. No email, no recipients, sealed PDF in seconds.
Self-sign is the shortcut for a document only you need to sign: a purchase order you are approving, or a form somebody sent you as a plain PDF. Upload the file, click I am the only signer, place your fields, and the sealed copy downloads the moment you finalize.
Who can self-sign
Anyone with an account, on any plan. Nobody else is involved, so there is no recipient limit or plan gate to worry about. Self-signing does not count against your monthly document allowance either, so a stack of internal approvals will not eat into what you can send.
Sign a document yourself
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Click Send for signature in the top bar and add your file the usual way.
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Instead of Continue to recipients, click I am the only signer. The button sits beside it and is enabled once every file has finished uploading.
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You land on a single signing screen with the document on the left and the field tray on the right. Drag a tile onto the page, or click the tile and then click where it should land.
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Fill each field as you place it. Signature, Initial and Stamp open the signature panel, where you can draw, type or upload. Date Signed fills with today. Name, Email and Company name pull from your profile. Text and Tickbox you complete inline.
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Click Sign & finalize.
Every field you place counts as required, tickboxes included, so a half-filled document will not go through.
What happens next
A Signed. confirmation appears and your browser starts downloading the finished PDF on its own. If you dismissed it, Download signed PDF fetches it again, and Back to documents returns you to the list.
The copy you get is stamped with your signature and sealed with a tamper-evident certificate, so a PDF reader can tell whether a single byte changed after signing. In Documents the file shows as Signed straight away, skipping the In progress stage an envelope you send out for signature sits in, with an audit trail recording the signature, the completion and the device it happened on.
Nothing leaves your workspace. No signing request, no completion email, no link to anyone.
If something goes wrong
- Sign & finalize is greyed out. No field is on the document yet. Drop at least a Signature onto the page.
- "Fill the highlighted field before signing." A placed field is still empty. The page jumps to the field it is waiting on and selects it.
- "Save a stamp on your Profile, then sign." You placed a Stamp field with no stamp image saved. Add one on your profile, or open the field and upload an image for this document.
- You were sent to the document page instead of the signing screen. The draft belongs to someone else and you cannot manage it. Ask them to finish it, or ask an admin.
- The download never started. Some browsers block an automatic download in a background tab. Use the Download signed PDF button, or open the document from Documents and download it there. See Download your signed copy.
Frequently asked questions
Does anyone get emailed when I sign a document myself?
No. Self-sign never sends a signing request, a completion notice or a copy to anyone. It is you, your file and your signature. If you need somebody else to receive the finished PDF, download it and email it, or send the document the normal way with them added as a CC.
Do I need to place fields, or can I sign anywhere?
You place them. Drag a Signature field from the tray onto the page where the signature belongs, then fill it. Sign and finalize stays disabled until at least one field is on the document, which stops a completely unsigned PDF being sealed and filed as signed.
What if my signature is already saved?
Then it drops in for you. A field you place picks up the default signature, initials or stamp saved on your profile, and you can still open the field and draw or type a different one for this document. Date fields fill with today automatically.
Where does the signed copy go?
Straight to your browser as a download, and into Documents with the status Signed. The download starts on its own from the confirmation screen, and the Download signed PDF button repeats it. You can re-download the same sealed file from the document page at any time.
Can a colleague finish a self-sign document I started?
A workspace admin, or a manager over your team, can open the draft and finalize it. They sign as themselves, not as you, and the document is reassigned to them at that moment. A notice on screen tells them so before they sign, and the audit trail records the handover.
Keep going
Send your first document for signature
Upload a PDF or Word file, add who signs, drag signature and date fields onto the pages, write the email, and click Send for signature. Four steps, a few minutes.
ReadSet your default signature and initials
Save a signature once from the dashboard, add initials under Settings > Profile, and both are pre-selected every time you sign a document.
ReadDraw, type or upload your signature in Document eSign
The signature window has three ways to make a signature. Draw with a mouse or finger, type your name in one of six scripts, or upload a PNG or JPG of your real signature.
ReadDownload your signed copy
Where to get the completed PDF and the audit certificate after you sign, from the thank-you page, the email, or by reopening your link.
Read