Add Page Numbers to PDF

How to add page numbers to a PDF

1. Press “Select PDF file” and choose the PDF.
2. Choose the position. Reports usually use bottom centre, double-sided prints often use bottom right.
3. Choose the format and the first number. If another document will go in front, raise the first number by its page count.
4. Press “Add page numbers”. The numbered PDF downloads.

When it helps

Use it when a submission assembled from several files needs one continuous numbering, when a handout should be numbered so you can say “see page 7” in a meeting, or when a scan has no numbers and the order is easy to lose. Combine the files with Merge PDF first and the numbers run through the whole document.

The “1 / total pages” format prints 3 / 12, which lets the reader check that no page is missing.

What the numbers look like

Numbers are black, 11 point, set a little in from the page edge. Existing content is left untouched and the number is drawn on top, so text selection, search and quality stay the same. If page sizes differ, each page gets the number in the same relative position.

Everything happens on your device, so bid documents and contract bundles can be numbered without uploading them.

Choosing a position

Bottom centre suits single-sided reports. For documents printed double-sided and bound, bottom right is easy to spot while flipping, and top right looks tidy when there is no title in the header. Scans whose text runs to the bottom edge may overlap the number, so open the saved file, check a page or two and try another position if needed. The original stays untouched, so you can repeat this as often as you like.

Good to know

• Every page gets a number. To skip a cover, split it off, number the rest and merge again.
• If text or a picture is already in that spot, the number may overlap it. Try another position.
• Pages stored with a rotation flag (some scans) can get the number on the rotated edge. Password-protected PDFs cannot be opened.