Why do the icons in my email signature turn into broken squares in Gmail?

Gmail strips certain image formats when content is pasted into the signature field. The images are referenced but not kept, so the mail client draws an empty placeholder box where each icon was. It is not a problem with your design or your mail client settings.

Can I fix a broken email signature without paying for anything?

Yes. Convert every icon to a PNG, host each one at a public URL that does not require a login, and reference them by that URL rather than pasting the images in. Then paste the signature into Gmail once and send yourself a test message to confirm the icons survive. It works, it just has to be redone by hand for every person and every change.

Is there an email signature tool with a one-time payment instead of a subscription?

Yes. Affix costs $19 once, with no recurring charge and no per-seat billing. Most email signature services bill monthly per user, so a team of 5 keeps paying every month. Affix is a single HTML file you keep.

Do email signature generators upload my personal details?

Most hosted ones do, because the signature is assembled on their server. Affix runs entirely in your browser as one local HTML file, so your name, title, and contact details never leave the page.

Will the fix work in Outlook and Apple Mail too?

Yes. The underlying problem is how a mail client handles pasted image data, and the same conversion holds up in Gmail, Outlook, and Apple Mail.

ONE PROBLEMSOLVED IN PLAIN ENGLISH

Gmail breaks your email signature.

here is why, and how to fix it. the free way and the fast way.

You build a signature that looks right. Logo, a couple of social icons, your title, tidy spacing. You paste it into Gmail and it falls apart: empty squares where the icons were, spacing gone sideways, the whole thing looking broken to everyone you email.

The cause is not your design. Gmail strips certain image formats when you paste into the signature field. The images get referenced but not kept, so the mail client draws a placeholder box for each one. No amount of redesigning fixes it, because the problem happens after the paste.

The free fix

It works, and it costs nothing. Convert every icon to a PNG. Host each one at a public URL with no login in front of it. Reference the icons by URL instead of pasting the image data. Paste the signature into Gmail once, then send yourself a test message and confirm the icons survived.

The catch is that it is manual. Every person needs their own pass, and every change to a title or a phone number means doing it again. For 1 signature that is fine. For a team it stops being fine quickly.

The fast fix

I kept doing the manual version for my team until I got tired of it, so I built the shortcut. Affix is one HTML file that runs in your own browser. You fill in your details, watch the preview, copy, and paste. It converts your icons to a format Gmail keeps on paste, so the signature arrives looking the way it looked in the preview.

It costs $19 once. No subscription, no per-seat billing, no account, and nothing uploaded. Most signature services bill monthly per user, which is a strange way to pay for something you set up twice a year.

See Affix →Buy for $19 once

STRAIGHT ANSWERSTHE QUESTIONS PEOPLE ASK

Why do the icons in my email signature turn into broken squares in Gmail?: Gmail strips certain image formats when content is pasted into the signature field. The images are referenced but not kept, so the mail client draws an empty placeholder box where each icon was. It is not a problem with your design or your mail client settings.
Can I fix a broken email signature without paying for anything?: Yes. Convert every icon to a PNG, host each one at a public URL that does not require a login, and reference them by that URL rather than pasting the images in. Then paste the signature into Gmail once and send yourself a test message to confirm the icons survive. It works, it just has to be redone by hand for every person and every change.
Is there an email signature tool with a one-time payment instead of a subscription?: Yes. Affix costs $19 once, with no recurring charge and no per-seat billing. Most email signature services bill monthly per user, so a team of 5 keeps paying every month. Affix is a single HTML file you keep.
Do email signature generators upload my personal details?: Most hosted ones do, because the signature is assembled on their server. Affix runs entirely in your browser as one local HTML file, so your name, title, and contact details never leave the page.
Will the fix work in Outlook and Apple Mail too?: Yes. The underlying problem is how a mail client handles pasted image data, and the same conversion holds up in Gmail, Outlook, and Apple Mail.