Add page numbers to a PDF

Number the pages of a document that arrived without them. Choose where the numbers sit, how they read, and which pages to leave bare.

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How to add page numbers to a PDF

STEP 1

Add the PDF

Drop it above. It is opened here on your device and a preview of the first numbered page appears.

STEP 2

Set it up

Pick a corner or the centre, choose between a bare number and Page 3 of 12, and set the size. Leave the first page or two bare if the document has a cover.

STEP 3

Save it

The preview is the real thing, already stamped, so what you see is what you save.

Starting somewhere other than one

Two settings do most of the work here and they are easy to confuse. Leaving the first pages bare controls which pages get a number at all, which is what you want for a cover or a title page. The first number controls what the numbering begins at.

They combine, which is what makes a chapter of a longer report straightforward. Skip the cover and start at 24, and the page after the cover comes out as 24. Both are needed when a document is going to be bound with others.

Rotated pages are handled properly. A landscape page inside a portrait document reports its dimensions unrotated, so a number placed without accounting for that lands on the wrong edge, which is a common annoyance with other tools. Here the number appears at the bottom of the page as the reader sees it.

Questions

Is my file uploaded anywhere?

No. The work happens inside this tab, on your own machine. Open your browser's network tab while you use the tool, there is no request carrying your file.

Is there a file size limit?

None set by us. Very large files are limited only by your device's memory, and we warn you before that becomes a problem.

Do I need an account?

No, and there is no daily limit either. There is nothing to sign up for.

Can I number only some pages?

You can leave any number of pages at the front bare, which covers covers and title pages. Everything after that is numbered.

Will it cover up my content?

The number sits in the margin, and you can move it further from the edge or make it smaller. The preview shows exactly where it lands before you save.

Can I remove the numbers afterwards?

Not from the saved file, since they become part of the page. Keep your original, which this never changes.

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