How to sign a PDF on an Android phone
Checked 20 September 2026
Android is thinner here than iOS. Files by Google can annotate a PDF, but its documented tools are a pen, a highlighter and an eraser — no text, no signature field, no form filling. Drive adds freehand annotation on Android, which is again drawing rather than typing.
So: you can scrawl on a PDF on an Android phone without installing anything. To type into it, you need a browser tool.
Step by step
- 1For a quick scrawl, use Files by GoogleOpen the PDF, choose the annotation tool, and use the pen to sign. You can choose brush size and colour, and wipe through a line to erase it.
- 2To type on the form, open it in a browserOpen Chrome, go to pdfpad.app, and pick the PDF from your phone. The file is opened in the browser — it is not uploaded.
- 3Tap where the answer goes and typePinch to zoom for small boxes. Use the tick and date tools for checkboxes and dates.
- 4Sign with your fingerDraw the signature on the screen, or type your name in a handwriting face if you prefer. It is saved on the phone for next time.
- 5Save and sendSave the flattened PDF to your downloads and attach it to your reply.
What Android can't do
- Files by Google documents only pen, highlighter and erase for PDFs — there is no text tool.
- Drive's annotation on Android is also freehand only.
- Neither flattens the result, so annotations stay editable.
Finish it here instead
Type onto the page, tick the boxes, add the date and a signature you can reuse, then save a flattened PDF. It runs in this browser — your file is not uploaded.
or drop a file here · nothing is uploaded
Questions
- Is there a free way to fill in a PDF on Android?
- Yes — a browser tool. PDFpad runs in Chrome on the phone, keeps the file on the device, and gives you three free saves every 30 days.
- Can I type on a PDF with Files by Google?
- No. Google documents pen, highlighter and erase for PDFs in Files by Google, which means drawing rather than typing.