macOS Catalina's Preview App Lets You Sign Documents on Mac Using iPhone or iPad

In macOS Catalina, the Preview app has a new feature that makes it easier to sign PDFs and other documents by leveraging an iPhone or an iPad running the iOS 13/iPadOS operating system.

Rather than using the Trackpad to create a signature, or scanning a piece of paper, you can connect to your ‌iPhone‌ or ‌iPad‌ to sign there using either a finger or an Apple Pencil.

signiphoneipad
In the Preview app, under Tools > Annotate > Signature > Manage Signatures > Create Signatures, there is a new option to choose to create a signature with an iOS device. Clicking on this option lets you select an available ‌iPhone‌ or ‌iPad‌ to use.

selectdevicesignaturepreview
Devices running iOS 12 will show up in this list, but creating a signature only works on a device running iOS 13. Selecting an ‌iPhone‌ or ‌iPad‌ with iOS 13 will pop up a simple signature interface on the device in question, where you can sign with a finger on the ‌iPhone‌ or a finger or ‌Apple Pencil‌ on ‌iPad‌.

previewsignatureiphone
After you've signed, tap the done button, and your signature is instantly made available in the Preview app as an option to be inserted into your documents.

signaturespreview
We needed to have the devices unlocked to get the signature interface to pop up, but this may be a bug that will be addressed in a later beta.

You can already sign PDFs right on the ‌iPhone‌ or ‌iPad‌ using Markup features, but the new Preview option is a useful, streamlined way to get a signature on a document if you start the process using a Mac.

Related Forum: macOS Catalina

Popular Stories

iPhone 17 Pro Blue Feature Tighter Crop

iPhone 17 Pro Launching in Three Months With These 12 New Features

Saturday June 21, 2025 2:45 pm PDT by
The iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max are around three months away, and there are plenty of rumors about the devices from credible sources. Below, we recap key changes rumored for the iPhone 17 Pro models as of June 2025:Aluminum frame: iPhone 17 Pro models are rumored to have an aluminum frame, whereas the iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 16 Pro models have a titanium frame, and the iPhone X...
iPhone 16 Battery Life Feature

iOS 26's New Battery Life Mode Available Only on These iPhone Models

Saturday June 21, 2025 9:02 am PDT by
Last week, we reported that iOS 26 introduces an opt-in Adaptive Power Mode on the iPhone, alongside the existing Low Power Mode. Apple says that Adaptive Power Mode can make "small performance adjustments" when necessary to extend an iPhone's battery life, including slightly lowering the display brightness or allowing some activities to "take a little longer." The full description of...
All Screen iPhone 2027 Feature 1

iPhone Reportedly Moving to All-Screen Design in Two Stages

Sunday June 22, 2025 3:58 pm PDT by
Apple has long been working towards an iPhone with an all-screen design, and it might finally achieve the feat in a few more years from now. In his Power On newsletter today, Bloomberg's Mark Gurman said that Apple will shrink the size of the Dynamic Island on new iPhone models released next year. A year after that, he expects Apple to release a redesigned 20th-anniversary iPhone model....
iPhone 17 Pro Blue Feature Tighter Crop

iPhone 17 Pro's Alleged Vapor Chamber Cooling System Partly Revealed

Sunday June 22, 2025 6:37 am PDT by
Apple's upcoming iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max models are rumored to be equipped with a vapor chamber cooling system, and a leaker known as Majin Bu today shared a photo of an alleged copper thermal plate for the system. Many high-end Android smartphones like Samsung's Galaxy S25 Ultra are equipped with a vapor chamber cooling system, which can manage heat dissipation inside the...
ios 26 control center b2

iOS 26 Beta 2 Fixes Control Center Design

Monday June 23, 2025 10:58 am PDT by
With the second beta of iOS 26 that Apple provided to developers today, Apple addressed one of the major complaints that people have had with Liquid Glass. iOS 26 beta 1 on left, iOS 26 beta 2 on right The Control Center buttons are now slightly more opaque, making it easier to see the different control options even on a multicolored background. The new, more opaque look is apparent with the ...
Wi Fi WiFi General Feature

iOS 26 Adding Two New Wi-Fi Features, Allows AirDrop and AirPlay Alternatives

Saturday June 21, 2025 7:02 am PDT by
iOS 26 is gaining two new Wi-Fi features, including Captive Assist and Wi-Fi Aware. MacRumors contributor Aaron Perris discovered a reference to Captive Assist within the code for the first iOS 26 developer beta, but Apple has yet to enable the feature. It should be available by the time the software update is released later this year. In his Power On newsletter last month, Bloomberg's...
iOS 26 Feature

Everything New in iOS 26 Beta 2

Monday June 23, 2025 2:57 pm PDT by
Apple provided developers with the second beta of iOS 26, introducing the first changes and refinements to the new operating system since it debuted after the WWDC keynote. Because we're early in the beta testing process, there are quite a few tweaks to iOS 26, which we've rounded up below. Control Center The background behind the Liquid Glass Control Center buttons has more blur, allowing...
iOS 26 on Three iPhones

iOS 26 Includes These Five Smaller Features You Might Have Missed

Saturday June 21, 2025 11:18 am PDT by
While the dust is beginning to settle on the first iOS 26 beta, we continue to take a closer look at new features coming with the update. Below, we recap five smaller changes that you might have missed. Emoji Game Apple News+ subscribers in the U.S. and Canada can play a new Emoji Game, which tasks players with completing words and phrases with emoji. This is the fifth game that is...
airpods 4 blue

Apple Offering Free AirPods — Here's How to Get Them

Tuesday June 17, 2025 6:33 am PDT by
Apple is running a new promotion that offers free AirPods to qualifying customers. Now through September 30, college and university students in the U.S., Canada, Mexico, and Singapore can receive free AirPods 4 when they purchase an eligible new Mac or iPad from Apple. AirPods Pro 2 are also available at a discount. If you do not want AirPods, the promotion also offers various other...

Top Rated Comments

TMRJIJ Avatar
79 months ago
I still don’t understand why Apple is so afraid of touchscreens on Macs when they are so good with them on mobile devices. It’s so much easier just to sign on the screen. Goofy workarounds like this should be unnecessary for the prices Apple charges.
I can list many reasons why Apple shouldn't put touchscreens on Macs but you probably already heard them before and disagreed.
Score: 37 Votes (Like | Disagree)
alexandr Avatar
79 months ago
this is pretty dope.
Score: 27 Votes (Like | Disagree)
BootsWalking Avatar
79 months ago
Apple is blurring the lines between iOS and Mac in terms of functionality and cross-utility. It’s a brilliant strategy to leverage their success with iOS and encourage even more people into the Mac fold. Looking back I think the recent plateauing of iPhone sales is probably the best thing that could’ve happened to Apple users - it’s forced Apple to reevaluate their entire product line and look for ways to improve synergy and platform lock-in to increase company-wide revenue.
Score: 20 Votes (Like | Disagree)
TheShadowKnows! Avatar
79 months ago
That is all well and good.
But this analog signing method is just last century.

Opinion;:
macOS under the Preview app. should support signing using digital signatures, even if one does not own a certified public-key/private-key pair (thus, signing with self as the certificate authority).
Score: 12 Votes (Like | Disagree)
mihike Avatar
79 months ago
I still don’t understand why Apple is so afraid of touchscreens on Macs when they are so good with them on mobile devices. It’s so much easier just to sign on the screen. Goofy workarounds like this should be unnecessary for the prices Apple charges.
Score: 9 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Contact_Feanor Avatar
79 months ago
The image of the iPhone has an interface that says: "sign your name using your finger or pencil."; is that a real screenshot? a doctored image? If it's a screenshot, is it a mistake in iOS 13 or a sign that pencil support for (maybe the next) iPhone is finally coming with iOS 13?
Score: 9 Votes (Like | Disagree)