Add Page Numbers
Insert page numbers with custom position and style.
This tool runs entirely in your browser. Your data never leaves your device — nothing is uploaded to our servers.
About Add Page Numbers
Page numbers matter most when a document leaves your hands — in court bundles, tenders and printed reports, an unnumbered stack cannot be referenced or reassembled. The complication is that the PDF's page order and the document's own numbering rarely agree: covers, blank separators and appendices all shift things. This adds numbers to the pages you choose, with control over where they sit and where the count starts.
When to use Add Page Numbers
Court and legal bundles
Filings require continuous pagination so a hearing can reference a specific page without ambiguity.
Tender and grant submissions
Panels commonly require numbered pages and reject submissions without them.
Numbering a merged document
Files combined from several sources each restart at 1. A single pass renumbers the whole thing coherently.
Limitations worth knowing
- Numbers are drawn on top of the page, so they can overlap existing footers. Check a page that already has footer content.
- Existing page numbers are not detected or replaced — adding numbers to an already-numbered document produces two sets.
- Formats such as roman numerals for front matter are not supported; numbering is a single continuous sequence.
- Placement is uniform, so it will not alternate for double-sided printing.
How to add page numbers
- 1
Load the PDF you want to number.
- 2
Choose the position — footer centre is the conventional choice for printed documents.
- 3
Set the starting number and, if needed, the first page to number, so a cover sheet can be skipped.
- 4
Apply and check the first and last pages before sending it on.
Frequently asked questions
Can I skip the cover page?+
Yes, and it's the usual requirement. Set numbering to begin on a later page so the cover stays clean. You can also control the starting number independently, which is how you make page 3 of the file read as page 1 of the document.
The numbers overlap my existing footer. Can I move them?+
Yes — choose a different position. Numbers are drawn as new content rather than inserted into a layout, so they have no awareness of what is already on the page. If your document already has footer text, move the numbers to a corner instead of the centre.
Will this replace page numbers that are already there?+
No. Existing numbers are part of the page content and cannot be reliably detected or removed, so you would end up with two sets. Only add numbers to documents that don't already have them.
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