About Page numbers
A document without page numbers is hard to discuss. "On the page with the table" is not an address; "page 14" is. Adding numbers after the fact is normally a chore, because the file has already been exported from whatever program made it, and many of those programs have no way to number a page they did not create.
This tool writes a plain page number into one corner of every page of a PDF you already have. You choose the corner, you choose the number to start from, and the document is numbered in a few seconds without leaving your browser.
How to add page numbers to a PDF
- Choose the PDF.
- Under "Put them", pick a position: bottom centre, bottom right, top centre or top right. Bottom centre is the convention for most reports; bottom right suits two-sided printing.
- Set "Start at". The box starts at 1. If the file is the second half of a longer document, put the number it should begin on, so the numbers continue.
- Press the button, then look at the preview to check the number does not collide with anything already printed in that corner.
- Save the numbered file. Your original is not changed.
When you would use it
- Numbering a scanned document, where the scanner produced pages but no numbers.
- Numbering a merged bundle, after you have joined several files with Merge PDF.
- Continuing a numbering sequence across several files by starting the second at the right number.
- Giving a long report a way to be discussed in a meeting, so everyone can say "turn to page 23".
- Adding a reference number to every page before printing and filing.
What it will not do
- It writes the number alone, such as "7". For "Page 7 of 24", a word, a date or your own wording, use Header & footer, which supports {n} and {total}.
- The numbers are plain digits. Roman numerals and lettered prefixes are not offered.
- It numbers every page. It cannot skip a cover page or number only a range; split the cover off first, or use Header & footer, which has a Pages box.
- If a page already has something printed in the chosen corner, the number can land on top of it. Choose another corner and try again.
- For court or discovery bundles where numbers must be fixed width and carry a prefix, use Bates numbering.
How it compares
Word processors number pages as they lay them out, which is the best way if you still have the original document. This tool is for the other situation: you only have the PDF. Re-creating a document to number it is slow and often changes the layout, whereas stamping the number onto the finished pages leaves everything else as it was.
The result is a real change to the file, not a viewer overlay, so the numbers appear wherever the PDF is opened and when it is printed.
Tips
- Check for a footer before you choose a corner. Many documents already have a line along the bottom, and the top corner is often clear.
- To number a bundle in several files, merge first and number once. The count then runs without a restart.