The fastest way to sign documents on Mac is a secret feature hidden in plain sight

MacOS, a feature-rich operating system, often hides its most useful tools in plain sight. One such feature is a quick and safe method to sign documents using Preview, the default app that most users already open daily. While Preview is commonly employed for viewing images or PDFs, it harbors an array of sophisticated tools that go unnoticed.

To sign PDFs on your Mac using this method, begin by clicking on the PDF in Finder or on your desktop. Press the spacebar to activate Quick Look. Within the top toolbar, locate and click the pen icon, then proceed to select the Signature icon, which resembles a small scribbled line. This brings up an option to draw your signature using your trackpad, an iPhone or iPad screen, or by placing a physically signed document in front of your Mac's camera.

Once your signature is captured, click Done to store it in a dropdown list for future use. To apply the signature, simply click on the saved signature from the list, drag it to the desired location on the document, and resize it as needed. After saving the document, the signature will be embedded. If you ever wish to remove a saved signature, simply open the signature menu again and click the X next to the signature you want to delete.

This efficient method proves that sometimes the simplest solutions lie within the most familiar tools.