Free web tool
Academic Email Signature Generator
Make an email signature for a PhD student, postdoc or professor. It has fields for your ORCID iD, Google Scholar profile, lab site and latest paper, and it checks the ORCID iD for typos. Copy it into Apple Mail, Gmail, Outlook or Thunderbird. Runs in your browser.
Preview
Type your name to see the signature.
The dark preview is the worst case: a dark page where the mail app changes no colours. Apple Mail and Gmail usually adjust colours themselves, so test in your own app.
Your details never leave your browser. There is no upload, no account, and nothing you type is sent anywhere.
Put it in your mail app
Press Copy signature first, then follow the steps for your app. Paste with Cmd+V on a Mac or Ctrl+V on Windows.
Apple Mail on a Mac
- Open Mail, then Mail, Settings, Signatures.
- Click + and name the signature. Delete the sample text in the right pane.
- Untick “Always match my default message font” now, before you paste. If it is ticked, Mail removes the fonts and colours.
- Paste into the right pane. Drag the signature onto an account on the left if you want it used for that account.
- The preview in this window can look wrong. Write a new message to check it. Under Settings, Composing, the format should be Rich Text.
iPhone and iPad
- Press Copy plain text and send it to yourself, or use Universal Clipboard from your Mac.
- Open Settings, Mail, Signature and paste.
- Apple does not document what this box accepts, and pasted HTML is unreliable there. A plain text signature is the safe choice on a phone.
Gmail
- Click the gear, then See all settings, then the General tab.
- Scroll to Signature, choose Create new and name it.
- Paste into the box, set it as the default for new emails and replies if you like, and click Save Changes at the very bottom.
- Gmail stops at 10,000 characters of HTML. The count under the preview shows where you are.
Outlook (new Outlook, classic Outlook, Outlook on the web)
- New Outlook or Outlook on the web: Settings, Accounts, Signatures (or Mail, Compose and reply). Create a signature and paste.
- Classic Outlook for Windows: File, Options, Mail, Signatures, New. Paste into the editing box and click OK.
- Outlook for Mac: Outlook, Settings, Signatures, then the + button.
- If the layout breaks in classic Outlook for Windows, go to File, Options, Mail, Editor Options, Advanced. Set “Pasting from other programs” to Keep Source Formatting, restart Outlook, and paste again.
Thunderbird
- Press Download .html and keep the file somewhere permanent.
- Open Account Settings, pick your account, and tick Attach the signature from a file. Choose the .html file.
- Thunderbird reads the file when it builds a message, so move the file and the signature disappears.
- Pasting into the signature text box gives plain text only, which is why the file route is used.
What to put in an academic email signature
Keep it to four to six lines. The aim is that a stranger who gets your email can tell who you are and find your work.
Include
- Name and role. Full name, current title and department. Students write “PhD Candidate” with the department, not just “Student”.
- Institution and institutional email. It tells readers where you work and that the message is genuine.
- ORCID iD. University libraries recommend adding it, because it ties your name to your papers. Write it as the full https://orcid.org/ link.
- One place to see your work. A lab site, a Google Scholar profile or a university page. Two links at most.
- Pronouns, if you want them shown.
Add only if useful
- A phone number or office location, if people visit or call.
- Office hours, for faculty and teaching assistants.
- Your latest paper with its DOI, if you want it read.
- A short note on working hours, so no one feels a reply is due the same evening.
- A land acknowledgement, if your institution asks for one.
Leave out
- Photos, logos and rows of social icons. Many readers never see images, and they make every message heavier.
- Quotes, long disclaimers and several colours or fonts.
- “Sent from my iPhone” lines. Clear them in your phone's settings.
Three examples
Alex Rivera (they/them) PhD Candidate, Department of Sociology Example University alex.rivera@example.edu ORCID iD: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1825-0097 Google Scholar
Dr. Priya Nair Postdoctoral Researcher, Department of Biology Example University priya.nair@example.edu example.edu/nair-lab Latest paper: Title of the paper https://doi.org/10.1000/xyz123
Dr. Sam Okafor Associate Professor, Department of Economics Example University sam.okafor@example.edu | +1 555 0100 example.edu/okafor Office hours: Tuesdays 2 to 4 pm, Hall 214
The iD in the first example is ORCID's own sample iD, not a real person.
About this tool
The signature is built from tables with inline styles and system fonts, because mail apps ignore most other styling. Everything you type is escaped before it goes into the HTML, and links are limited to http, https, mailto and tel. Nothing runs on a server.
Does the signature work in Apple Mail?
Yes, with one setting. In Mail, open Settings, then Signatures, add a signature, and untick Always match my default message font before you paste. If it stays ticked, Mail strips the fonts and colours. The small preview in that window often looks wrong, so check the result in a new message.
Why is my ORCID iD rejected?
The last character of an ORCID iD is a check digit worked out from the other fifteen (ISO 7064 MOD 11-2). If it does not match, the iD has a typo. This tool checks it as you type, so a wrong digit is caught before it goes out in every email. It cannot tell you whether the iD exists, only that it is well formed.
Does it use images?
Only one, and only if you choose it: ORCID's own 16 pixel iD icon, unaltered. Many mail apps block images until the reader allows them, so the iD is always written out as a full link as well. Turn the icon off and the signature has no images at all.
Is anything uploaded or stored?
No. The signature is built by JavaScript in this page and nothing is sent to a server. If you tick Remember my entries, they are saved in this browser's local storage and nowhere else. If you leave the ORCID icon on, a reader's mail app will request that 16 pixel image from purplelink.llc when it shows your message. That request does not contain anything you typed.
Will it look right in dark mode?
Mail apps handle dark mode differently. Some invert colours, some leave them alone, and Gmail does a bit of both. The signature sets no background colour and has no white boxes. By default its text follows the message, so only the accent colour is fixed. If you untick Use my mail app's text colour, the text is dark grey, which apps that do not adjust colours will show as dark on dark. The dark preview shows that worst case.
Why no photo, logo or social icons?
Research advice for academic signatures is to keep to a few lines. Photos and logos arrive as images that many readers never see, add weight to every message, and your institution may have rules about its logo. Links to your ORCID, Scholar profile and lab site carry the same information.
Why not the Google Scholar logo?
Google's logo is theirs and is not offered for this use, so Scholar appears as a plain text link. It accepts only a scholar.google profile address.
Does it work on an iPhone?
Apple does not document what the iPhone signature box accepts, and pasted HTML is unreliable there. Copy the plain text version and paste it into Settings, Mail, Signature. Set up the formatted one on your Mac or in Gmail or Outlook on the web.
What is Gmail's size limit?
Gmail allows 10,000 characters in a signature, counting the HTML. A signature from this tool is usually 3,000 to 4,500. The count is shown under the preview.
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