Does a digital signature replace a handwritten one?

Yes, eSignatures are completely legal, and they have the same legal weight as handwritten signatures. ... According to the Electronic Signatures in Global and National Commerce Act, otherwise known as the \"ESIGN Act,electronic signatures have the same legal standing as signatures using pen and paper.

Can a digital signature be legally binding Why or why not?

The E-Sign Act states that signatures should not be denied legal validity solely because they are electronic, which means that a contract that is signed electronically can be brought into trial. ... Certain criteria must be met in order for an e-signature to be admissible in court.

What constitutes a legally binding electronic signature?

In simple terms, electronic signatures are legally recognized as a viable method to indicate agreement to a contract. For an electronic signature to be legally binding under the ESIGN Act, it is recommended that all electronic signature workflows include: Intent to sign.

Is a digital signature legally binding?

The ESIGN Act is a federal law passed in 2000. It grants legal recognition to electronic signatures and records if all parties to a contract choose to use electronic documents and to sign them electronically. ... No contract, signature, or record shall be denied legal effect solely because it is in electronic form.

Will a digital signature hold up in court?

In most cases, the electronic signature will hold up, but as it's less well-tested in court, it won't hold up quite as well as a traditional signature. Yes electronic signatures on contracts hold up in the court of law. Yes they are equally enforceable and legal as the traditional paper contracts and documents.

Is DocuSign legally binding?

Electronic documents and signatures are legally binding for nearly every business or personal transaction around the world. ... More than 300,000 businesses and organizations worldwide trust DocuSign to support valid electronic records and legally-binding electronic signatures, with about 1 million documents signed daily.

Can a digital signature be typed?

No. There are a number of e-signature laws across the world, such as ESIGN and UETA, which define what constitute a legally binding esignature. ... Simply typing your name into a document cannot tie the signature to the document. You need to have specialist software like ApproveMe to 'hash' the document content.

What counts as an electronic signature?

According to current U.S. legislation and the Electronic Signature & Records Association (ESRA), eSignatures are defined as: an electronic sound, symbol or process that is attached to or logically associated with a record and executed or adopted by a person with the intent to sign the record.

How do I create a valid digital signature?

Click the link. Your document should open in an electronic signature tool such as DocuSign. Agree to electronic signing. ... Click each tag and follow the instructions to add your digital signature. Verify your identity and follow the instructions to add your digital signature.

Is a digital signature legal?

The ESIGN Act is a federal law passed in 2000. It grants legal recognition to electronic signatures and records if all parties to a contract choose to use electronic documents and to sign them electronically. ... No contract, signature, or record shall be denied legal effect solely because it is in electronic form.

Functionality index

Create and edit PDF documents online

Drop document here to upload

Select from device

Up to 100 MB for PDF and up to 25 MB for DOC, DOCX, RTF, PPT, PPTX, JPEG, PNG, JFIF, XLS, XLSX or TXT

Based on 12500+ reviews

Last updated on Jan 16, 2026

Try these PDF tools

Edit PDF

Quickly edit and annotate PDFs online.

Start now

Sign

eSign documents from anywhere.

Start now

Request signatures

Send a document for eSignature.

Start now

Share

Instantly send PDFs for review and editing.

Start now

Find forms online

Browse the online library of forms.

Start now

Merge

Combine multiple PDFs into one.

Start now

Rearrange

Rearrange pages in a PDF document.

Start now

Collaborate

Exchange comments and edit PDFs collaboratively.

Start now

Compress

Compress PDFs to reduce their size.

Start now

Convert

Convert PDFs into Word, Excel, JPG, or PPT files and vice versa.

Start now

Create from scratch

Start with a blank page.

Start now

Edit DOC

Edit Word documents.

Start now

Document creation is just the beginning

Learn more about security

Create and edit documents with a trusted solution

Try easy-to-use tools for all your document management needs.

Upload your document

pdfFiller scores top ratings on review platforms

What do you like best?
Easy accessibility, signature verification, conversion to other formats, storage of documents, and ability to share to multiple platforms.
What do you dislike?
Zip Files - have to open and resave docs needed for uploading to other sources.
Recommendations to others considering the product:
Must be familiar with Zip files; Dashboard is super user-friendly; would not recommend for an occasional user - should have consistent need for the various services it provides.
What problems are you solving with the product? What benefits have you realized?
A quick and easy tool for conversion of docs to other formats compatible for social media marketing. And easy signature option of docs required for business transactions.

Annette Duplechin

A thank you I was looking for options for a one off issue I had with PDF forms and signed up to PDF Filler for the 1 month free trial. I realised shortly after this that I would have little use for this facility in the future but neglected to cancel the subscription within the free trial period. At the conclusion of the free trial period I was billed for the annual subscription, however I contacted the company via Customer Services live chat and without much trouble they cancelled the subscription and refunded the fee. Excellent service and very professional advisors.

Glyn Cross

Easy to use Easy to use - I was trying to redact parts of a document and adobe left me hanging even after rebooting, updating, etc. It was a breeze using pdfFiller instead and I encountered no issues and the process was so simple and clear.

Darryl Keys

mostly good. Had trouble one day but it looked like it was site-wide. It was fixed by the next day. Would like to better understand how to capture documents and transfer to other files etc.

jts

We would like become a distributor and sale partner for PDFfiller. We will design documents and forms to sell through PDFfiller. Many thanks in advance foryour cooperation. Best regards,

Marcel D

Prompt and honest. They answered my query online immediately and refunded for an incorrectly charged (not their fault) subscription fee within the hour! Was not expecting such prompt service and honesty to be fair, but so grateful they are honourable.

Michaela Avery

Show more Show less

Watch pdfFiller eSignatures in action

Check out a quick video tutorial that shows how to create and place your signature or send a document for signing.

Related features

Create and edit documents with a trusted solution

Try easy-to-use tools for all your document management needs.

Upload your document