What is the difference between the HTML signature and the plain-text version, and when do I use each?
Both carry the same information: name, title, company, phones, email, website and links. The difference is presentation. The HTML version has colour, a bold name, clickable links and an optional logo; the plain-text version is ordinary lines with no formatting at all. Use HTML in regular email programs such as Gmail in the browser and Outlook, and the text version anywhere that only accepts plain text.
What each version contains
We took a two-language signature for Sara Alotaibi, with a phone, an email, the website example.com and two links to LinkedIn and Instagram, and compared what the tool actually produces:
- HTML version: one table of 1,628 characters of code, with the name bold at 16 pixels in the accent colour, title and company in a quiet grey, and every number, email and link clickable.
- Plain-text version: just 11 lines, two of them blank separators. The website is written in full as https://example.com, and each social link as 'Label: full address'.
- In HTML a social link shows as a coloured word such as LinkedIn; in text the address itself shows, because plain text cannot hide a link behind a word.
- A logo, if you add one, appears in the HTML only; plain text carries no images.
Where each one goes
The HTML version is the main one for signature settings in email programs that write formatted messages. Move it with 'Copy as rich text' and paste into the signature box, or with 'Copy HTML source' if the place you paste into accepts code.
The plain-text version is for anywhere that writes plain text only. Practical cases from a seller's day:
- A signature box in a phone mail app that does not keep formatting.
- A support ticket system or a reply box in a store dashboard, if it sends plain text.
- An account you have set to send plain-text mail, or a recipient who reads mail that way.
- A WhatsApp message or a note on an invoice, when you want your details written out as they are.
What happens on a rich copy
When you press 'Copy as rich text' in the Email signature builder, the tool does not copy one version but puts both on the clipboard together: the HTML and the plain text. Wherever you paste then picks the one it can use. Paste into a formatted editor and the signature appears in colour; paste into a plain box and you get the text lines rather than raw code. Still, when you know the destination is plain text, 'Copy plain text' is clearer and more certain.
Do you really need both?
Usually yes, because you do not control how the recipient reads your mail. Download both files, email-signature.html and email-signature.txt, and keep them in one folder. When you add a new device or program, the right version is ready without typing your details again. And if your number changes one day, edit the field once in the tool and both versions update together.
Common questions
Does the text version contain the full links?
Yes. The website and every social link are written with their full https address, so they stay tappable or copyable in any program.
Why is the separator between title and company different in the text?
The HTML uses a typographic dash entity, while the plain-text version uses an ordinary hyphen, because it shows correctly in any program.