Add Page Numbers
Runs in your browserAdd page numbers to a PDF in your browser. Nothing is uploaded and there is no limit. Pick a corner, a starting number and a format, and the numbers are drawn onto the pages themselves.
or drop them here, or paste
One file. It stays on your device.
Page numbers are drawn as real text on each page, in Helvetica, the same way a word processor would put them there. They are part of the document afterwards, so they print, they survive being emailed, and they show in every reader.
Everything happens inside this page. Your file is read by JavaScript running on your own machine, and no part of it is sent anywhere.
Position, and why the corner matters
Six positions are available: three along the bottom and three along the top. Bottom centre is the safe default and the one most documents use. Bottom right is the convention for anything that will be bound on the left, because the outer corner is the one a thumb reaches.
Top positions are worth avoiding on scanned documents, because scanners often leave a dark band at the top edge and a number sitting in it becomes unreadable.
Starting somewhere other than one
The starting number is separate from the page position, which is what you need when the document is one part of something larger. Set it to 47 and the first page carries 47, the second 48, and so on.
Combine that with a page range to leave a cover page unnumbered. Set the range to 2- and the numbering starts on page two, with the start value deciding what that page is called. This is how you number a report whose title page should not count.
The three formats
Plain (7) is the least intrusive and right for most things. Page 7 is clearer in a document that will be quoted from, because a reader copying a reference gets the word along with the number. 7 of 24 tells a reader holding a printout whether anything is missing, which is why it is standard on contracts and invoices.
The total in 7 of 24 counts the pages in the document, not the pages you chose to number. That is deliberate: a twenty-four page document is twenty-four pages long even if its cover is unnumbered.
Numbers already on the page
This tool does not know about numbers that were printed on the pages by whatever made the document. If a report already has a footer reading 1, 2, 3 and you add numbers here, both sets will show.
That is usually a sign the pages have been rearranged, and the honest fix is to remove the old footer first, which needs the redact tool, rather than stamping a second sequence on top of a wrong one.
How to add page numbers
- 01
Add your PDF
Select or drop the file you want numbered.
- 02
Choose the style
Pick the corner, the starting number and the format.
- 03
Add the numbers
Press Add Numbers and download the numbered file.
Questions about Add Page Numbers
How do I add page numbers to a PDF?
Add the file, choose which corner the number goes in and what it should say, then press Add Numbers. The numbers are drawn onto the pages and travel with the document from then on.
Can I skip the cover page?
Yes. Set the page range to 2- so numbering starts on the second page, and set the starting number to whatever that page should be called.
Can I add page numbers without uploading the file?
Yes. The numbers are drawn by a PDF library running in your own browser, so the document never travels anywhere.
Why does my PDF now have two sets of numbers?
Because the pages already had numbers printed on them by whatever produced the document. This tool draws a new sequence and cannot see the old one. Remove the old footer first if both are showing.