diff --git a/.changes/bundler-windows-earlier-code-signing.md b/.changes/bundler-windows-earlier-code-signing.md
new file mode 100644
index 000000000000..a6978e4d2a96
--- /dev/null
+++ b/.changes/bundler-windows-earlier-code-signing.md
@@ -0,0 +1,7 @@
+---
+'tauri-bundler': 'patch:enhance'
+---
+
+On Windows, code sign the application binaries before trying to create the WiX and NSIS bundles to always sign the executables even if no bundle types are enabled.
+
+On Windows, code sign the sidecar binaries if they are not signed already.
diff --git a/tooling/bundler/src/bundle.rs b/tooling/bundler/src/bundle.rs
index c458e2b6c5aa..763ca75b7696 100644
--- a/tooling/bundler/src/bundle.rs
+++ b/tooling/bundler/src/bundle.rs
@@ -63,6 +63,30 @@ pub fn bundle_project(settings: Settings) -> crate::Result<Vec<Bundle>> {
     warn!("Cross-platform compilation is experimental and does not support all features. Please use a matching host system for full compatibility.");
   }
 
+  #[cfg(target_os = "windows")]
+  {
+    // Sign windows binaries before the bundling step in case neither wix and nsis bundles are enabled
+    for bin in settings.binaries() {
+      let bin_path = settings.binary_path(bin);
+      windows::sign::try_sign(&bin_path, &settings)?;
+    }
+
+    // Sign the sidecar binaries
+    for bin in settings.external_binaries() {
+      let path = bin?;
+      let skip = std::env::var("TAURI_SKIP_SIDECAR_SIGNATURE_CHECK").map_or(false, |v| v == "true");
+
+      if !skip && windows::sign::verify(&path)? {
+        info!(
+          "sidecar at \"{}\" already signed. Skipping...",
+          path.display()
+        )
+      } else {
+        windows::sign::try_sign(&path, &settings)?;
+      }
+    }
+  }
+
   for package_type in &package_types {
     // bundle was already built! e.g. DMG already built .app
     if bundles.iter().any(|b| b.package_type == *package_type) {
diff --git a/tooling/bundler/src/bundle/windows/msi/wix.rs b/tooling/bundler/src/bundle/windows/msi/wix.rs
index 26e6b0b9d82c..c78b659e3fb7 100644
--- a/tooling/bundler/src/bundle/windows/msi/wix.rs
+++ b/tooling/bundler/src/bundle/windows/msi/wix.rs
@@ -410,8 +410,6 @@ pub fn build_wix_app_installer(
     .ok_or_else(|| anyhow::anyhow!("Failed to get main binary"))?;
   let app_exe_source = settings.binary_path(main_binary);
 
-  try_sign(&app_exe_source, settings)?;
-
   let output_path = settings.project_out_directory().join("wix").join(arch);
 
   if output_path.exists() {
diff --git a/tooling/bundler/src/bundle/windows/nsis.rs b/tooling/bundler/src/bundle/windows/nsis.rs
index ddf5d6075871..a3e018edf550 100644
--- a/tooling/bundler/src/bundle/windows/nsis.rs
+++ b/tooling/bundler/src/bundle/windows/nsis.rs
@@ -157,18 +157,6 @@ fn build_nsis_app_installer(
 
   info!("Target: {}", arch);
 
-  // Code signing is currently only supported on Windows hosts
-  #[cfg(target_os = "windows")]
-  {
-    let main_binary = settings
-      .binaries()
-      .iter()
-      .find(|bin| bin.main())
-      .ok_or_else(|| anyhow::anyhow!("Failed to get main binary"))?;
-    let app_exe_source = settings.binary_path(main_binary);
-    try_sign(&app_exe_source, settings)?;
-  }
-
   #[cfg(not(target_os = "windows"))]
   info!("Code signing is currently only supported on Windows hosts, skipping...");
 
diff --git a/tooling/bundler/src/bundle/windows/sign.rs b/tooling/bundler/src/bundle/windows/sign.rs
index 8a2725a72163..95ca5bf62b7d 100644
--- a/tooling/bundler/src/bundle/windows/sign.rs
+++ b/tooling/bundler/src/bundle/windows/sign.rs
@@ -88,6 +88,20 @@ fn locate_signtool() -> crate::Result<PathBuf> {
   Err(crate::Error::SignToolNotFound)
 }
 
+/// Check if binary is already signed.
+/// Used to skip sidecar binaries that are already signed.
+pub fn verify(path: &Path) -> crate::Result<bool> {
+  // Construct SignTool command
+  let signtool = locate_signtool()?;
+
+  let mut cmd = Command::new(&signtool);
+  cmd.arg("verify");
+  cmd.arg("/pa");
+  cmd.arg(path);
+
+  Ok(cmd.status()?.success())
+}
+
 pub fn sign_command(path: &str, params: &SignParams) -> crate::Result<(Command, PathBuf)> {
   // Construct SignTool command
   let signtool = locate_signtool()?;