Scan and Sign Paperwork Right Inside Apple Notes
Your iPhone camera handles the scanning, and built-in markup handles the signature, highlights, and notes.
Be Productive · Best Ways to Use Apple Notes in 2025! Apple Notes ReviewPaper still finds you. A receipt, a permission slip, or a form that needs your name on it. In Apple Notes, you can turn that sheet into a file you can read and sign without leaving the note.
From inside a note, you can scan a paper page or a photo, like a receipt or a whiteboard sketch, so it becomes part of the note. The camera finds the edges of the page, trims the view, and cleans up the image, so a crumpled sheet becomes a sharper file you can keep.
The scanned PDF stays in the note, where you can open and read through it. You can move through the pages in place, and use thumbnails to jump to another page in a longer file.
Then add your marks on the PDF itself. On Mac and iPhone, the tools let you add a signature, call out key lines, draw shapes, or add typed comments on the pages. The work happens on the file in the note.
The benefit shows on an iPhone, where you can capture a form and take care of signatures and fill-in sections without switching apps. That short chain from scan to finished form is what makes it useful on the phone.
The next time a piece of paper lands on your desk, start from a note and try the camera first.
Questions people ask
Where do I find the scanner?
On iPhone or iPad, open a note, tap the paperclip or plus button, then tap Scan Documents. Position the page in the viewfinder and capture each page, then tap Save to drop the PDF into the note.
Can I do the scanning on my Mac?
No. Scanning needs an iPhone or iPad camera. On the Mac you review the PDF in the note and add signatures, highlights, and typed notes. The file appears on all your devices because Notes syncs through iCloud.
How do I get the signed PDF to someone else?
Open the note and share a copy out of Notes as a separate text file or PDF. That lets you archive it in another app or send it along by email or message.