How to remove the background from a signature

Turn handwriting on plain paper into a reusable signature image. Extract signature removes the paper background locally, so you can save the ink as a transparent PNG or place it on a PDF.

1. Prepare a clear photo or scan

Place the paper on a flat surface in even light. Avoid strong shadows and glare. Crop out surrounding objects, printed text, and other handwriting using your device’s image editor before choosing the file. A close crop helps the tool focus on the signature.

The picker accepts PNG, JPG, WebP, and AVIF images up to 15 MB. Larger images are processed with a maximum working edge of 2200 pixels to control memory use. Starting with sharp handwriting matters more than a very large file.

2. Choose Extract signature

Open Extract signature on the homepage and choose your image. The tool separates the ink from its surrounding paper. Your browser does the processing; the image is not uploaded to an image editing server.

The tool works best with plain paper. It is not a general photo cutout tool: ruled lines, printed words, textured paper, or objects behind the signature may remain in the extracted image.

3. Compare the original and extracted image

Use Original and Extracted to check whether the thin strokes, dots, and ends of letters remain. Adjust Background removal, then inspect again. A stronger setting may clear more paper but can also remove faint strokes. Aim for a clean result that still preserves your actual handwriting.

If parts of the signature disappear, reduce removal strength or choose a better photograph. If a shadow remains, try a more evenly lit image. Repeatedly increasing removal is less useful than improving a difficult source image.

4. Save as PNG with transparency

Choose PNG (Transparent) and select Download transparent PNG. The download uses the extracted result even if you are viewing Original for comparison. PNG (White Background) and JPG (White Background) deliberately add a white background.

For an explanation of the format choices, see the transparent signature PNG guide. Insert the downloaded PNG directly into your document to preserve its transparency. Converting it to JPG brings back a solid background.

5. Place the signature in a document

Choose Use on document to carry the extracted signature into the homepage PDF signer. You can then choose a PDF, place and resize the signature, and download a signed copy. Follow the PDF signing guide for the full workflow.

For a Word document, download the PNG and follow the Word signature guide. Scale the image down to fit the signature area and preserve its proportions.

Troubleshoot the result

Paper lines remain

The tool may treat ruled lines as ink. Retake the signature on blank paper or remove the lines in a dedicated image editor.

Faint ink disappears

Reduce background removal and compare again. A clearer scan or darker original ink may produce a better result.

The PNG looks white in my image viewer

The viewer may display transparency on white. Place the file over a colored area in a document to see whether a white rectangle is actually present.

The signature is blurry

Use an in-focus source image. Background removal cannot reconstruct detail that was missing from the photograph.

Download the result before closing or refreshing the tab. The website does not keep an online copy of your image. See how local processing works.