The tool draws a small Helvetica number onto every page as real text, not an image overlay, so the numbers print sharply and remain selectable. Pick bottom centre, bottom right or top right, choose the number the first page should show, and optionally add of total.
It numbers every page it is given. To leave a cover or contents page unnumbered, split the body off, number it, and merge the front matter back. The planner below writes those exact ranges.
Coursework rubrics, court filings, board packs and printed handouts all want the same thing: a number on every page so nobody has to say "the one with the chart on it". The mechanics are simple. The details that trip people up are the starting value and the pages that should not carry a number at all, and both have clean answers.
How to add page numbers to a PDF
Add the PDF
Drop it or browse. The file is read into browser memory and every page is measured, so portrait and landscape pages each get the stamp in the correct corner.
Pick a position
Bottom centre for essays and centred layouts, bottom right for reports and anything bound on the left, top right for documents with a footer already in use.
Set the starting number
Defaults to 1. If this file is chapter two and chapter one ended on page 24, start at 25. The value must be zero or higher.
Turn on the total, if you want it
"7 of 24" instead of "7". Useful for printed packs and filings where a missing page should be noticeable.
Press Add page numbers and download
Each page gets a text object drawn with pdf-lib. Nothing else on the page changes.
Built into every PDF reader, so no font is embedded and the file barely grows.
Selectable, searchable, sharp at any print resolution. Not a picture pasted on.
The stamp is written in your browser. The file never leaves the device.
Getting the starting number right
The starting number is what the first page in the file displays. Everything counts up from there, one per page. Three situations cover nearly everyone:
- A standalone document. Start at 1. Done.
- A continuation. Chapter two of a thesis, part B of an appendix. Start at the number after the previous part's last page, so the numbering runs through the whole set.
- Exhibits and attachments. Many filings expect each exhibit to restart at 1. Number each separately, then merge them onto the main document.
The situation that does not fit is a cover, a title page or a contents page that should be blank while the body starts at 1. The tool cannot skip pages and does not accept a negative start, so the answer is to keep those pages out of its hands entirely.
Choosing a position that does not collide
The number is placed a fixed distance from the page edge, measured on each page individually, so a landscape spreadsheet page and a portrait letter both get it where you expect. What the tool cannot know is whether something already sits in that corner.
- Essays, theses, reportsBottom centre
- Board packs, proposals, bound on the leftBottom right
- Court filings with a footer lineTop right
- Existing footer with a date or file nameTop right
- Landscape tables mixed with portrait textAny; measured per page
If the document already carries numbers in the same corner, you will see both. Pick a different corner, or remove the old numbers in the Editor first. Check one page of the result before sending; the corner is either clear or it is not, and it takes a second to see.
When plain page numbers are not enough
This tool does one thing: sequential Arabic numerals in one of three corners, optionally with a total. That is the common case. A few neighbouring needs want a different tool.
Sequential numbering on a document
- 1, 2, 3 in a corner of every page
- A starting value other than 1
- "n of total" for printed packs
- Mixed portrait and landscape pages
- Front matter, via split and merge
Identifiers rather than counts
- Legal discovery labels like SMITH-000412: Bates numbering
- Roman numerals for a preface: number that section in the Editor
- A prefix such as "Page 3" or "Section A-3": Editor text
- Numbers on odd pages only: split odd and even, number, merge
- A running header with the document title: Editor
Where numbering sits in the workflow
- Finish the page set first. Merging or deleting a page after numbering leaves a gap or a duplicate, and the fix is to number the whole thing again.
- Number before signing. A certificate signature is a hash of the file. Stamping afterwards invalidates it.
- Compress last, and only for the copy you send. Keep the numbered original with its text layer intact.
Why the stamp is applied in your browser
The files that need numbering are usually finished work: a dissertation, a filing, a board pack with the quarter's numbers in it. Uploading the whole document to a server to draw a digit on each page is out of proportion to the task, and unnecessary, because the operation is small enough to run anywhere.
The tool is right above
Everything on this page runs in your browser. Scroll up, drop the file, and keep it on your machine.
Common questions
What people ask with the numbered file open in front of them.
01Can I skip the cover and start numbering from page 3?
Not inside the tool itself, which numbers every page it is given. Split the body out by range, number it starting at 1, and merge the cover back in front. The planner above writes the exact ranges.
02Where do the numbers appear?
Bottom centre, bottom right or top right, as a small grey Helvetica label placed a fixed distance from the edge of each page. Landscape pages are measured separately so the corner is correct.
03Can I use Roman numerals, letters or a prefix?
Not here. The output is plain Arabic numerals. For a Roman-numeral preface or a prefix like "Page 3", stamp that section as text in the Editor. For legal labels with a prefix and zero padding, use Bates numbering.
04What if the PDF already has page numbers?
The new numbers are drawn on top. If the old ones sit in the same corner you will see both, so choose a different position or remove the originals in the Editor first.
05Does adding numbers change quality?
No. A small text object is drawn onto each page. Everything already on the page is untouched, and the file grows by a few kilobytes.
06Are the numbers searchable?
Yes. They are real text in Helvetica, so a reader can find and select them. They stay searchable unless you later compress the file in Strong mode, which turns pages into images.
07Can I number a password-protected PDF?
Not while it is encrypted. Remove the password from a file you own with the Unlock tool, number it, then protect the result again.
08Is it free?
Free. Every tool, unlimited use, no signup.