Chances are that, as you work with coworkers and peers, you will need to sign important documents or make comments on certain PDF files. If you use a MacBook or a MacOS computer, and you are not sure how to annotate or sign on PDF documents, here are some useful tools and easy steps to get this done.
How to annotate or sign PDF documents on MacOS
1. Preview
You can use the Preview app on your Mac to quickly annotate a PDF document. It is the easiest way to do it too. This is because it is already preinstalled for free on your Mac computer.
- First, go to the Preview app. It is the icon that looks like a couple of photos under a magnifying lens in the dock.
- Now, right-click on the preview app to view files recently accessed and select the one you want. If it is a new PDF, then just open it and it will open automatically in Preview.
Did you know? PDF stands for Portable Document File.
- Now, go to the menu at the top of the screen and select Tools, then Annotate.
- In the Annotate menu, you can choose the top option that says Highlight Text. It will add the annotation toolbar to the Preview window and give you the ability to highlight texts in the PDF.
- You can now highlight a section of the text you want to leave a comment on, then right-click the highlight to see the option to change the colour or add a comment.
- Select Add Note to annotate the section.
- On the Annotate menu, you can see other options that will help you create a note.
- Then insert your signature, go to Tools and then Annotate.
- Now, look at the bottom for the Signature option. This allows you to create a signature with your mouse or touchpad.
- It can also let you use your camera to upload a signature, which you can then insert into the PDF as a text box.
2. Adobe Acrobat DC
The Preview app is not the only way you can annotate with a Mac. You can also use Adobe Acrobat DC. Adobe Acrobat DC is quite popular in professional environments. It is great for more grounded in-depth annotations. However, keep in mind that this tool may not work if the comment is disabled for the PDF file.
- Open the PDF with Adobe Acrobat DC and the toolbar should immediately pop up.
- Now look at the far left option and select the little text box. It will create an expandable note that can be placed in the PDF.
- Now click the Sticky Note icon then click anywhere in the PDF to add your comment. Type the comment, then select Post.
- You can also create objects using the polygon icon the toolbar to make arrows, circle and squares.