PDF Page Numbers & Headers

PDF Page Numbers & Headers writes page numbers into a PDF, along with any header or footer text you need: a report title at the top, “Confidential” and the date at the bottom, the file name in the corner. Pick from ready formats such as “Page 3 of 12”, “3 / 12” or roman numerals, or write your own wording with placeholders for the number, the last number, today’s date and the file name.

It suits students handing in a dissertation, offices preparing board packs, and anyone printing a long document that will be shuffled. Legal and finance teams can switch to Bates numbering, the prefixed, zero-padded stamp (ABC000123) used to reference every page of a disclosure bundle.

Everything you change shows at once on a large preview and on small copies of every page, so you can check the cover is skipped and the numbers clear the margins before saving. Landscape pages, pages of different sizes and pages that are turned all get their numbers upright in the right corner. Your file never leaves your browser, and it is free with no watermark.

1. Tap “Choose a PDF” or drop your file onto the box. A preview of the first page appears beside the settings.
2. Under “What to add”, choose Page numbers or Bates numbers, pick a format, and type any header or footer text.
3. Pick one of the six dots to place the number, set the distance from the edge, and tick “Book layout” for printed books.
4. Under “Which pages”, keep All, choose “Skip the cover”, or type the pages to number. Set the font, size and colour under “Look”.
5. Check the preview with ‹ and ›, press “Add page numbers”, then “Download PDF”.

• Formats: 1, Page 1, Page 1 of N, 1 / N, i ii iii, I II III, or your own wording.
• Placeholders {n}, {total}, {date} and {filename} in custom wording, headers and footers.
• Six positions for the number, plus separate left, centre or right placement for header and footer.
• Bates numbering with prefix, suffix, 1 to 12 digits and any first number.
• Start at any number; number all pages, skip the cover, or only the pages you list.
• Book layout mirrors left and right on even pages so numbers sit on the outer edge.
• Eight built-in PDF fonts (Helvetica, Times and Courier families) in any size and colour.
• Live preview of every page; correct on rotated, landscape and mixed-size pages.
• The original text, links and form fields are untouched; only the new text is added.

• When pages are skipped, the count starts on the first numbered page, and {total} is the last number shown. Set “Start at” to continue from another document.
• The built-in fonts cover English and Western European letters. Other scripts, such as Greek or Chinese, show a warning and appear as “?”.
• If a number collides with a footer already on the page, raise the distance from the edge a few millimetres.
• Text placed in the same spot as the number is joined with a dot, for example “Acme Ltd · Page 4”.
• Run it last, after merging and reordering, so the numbers match the final order.