Add Page Numbers to a PDF — Free & In Your Browser
Number every page — bottom or top, plain or "Page X of Y", title page optionally skipped.
🔒 Runs in your browser — files never uploaded ⚡ No signup 💯 Free
Add page numbers to a PDF that shipped without them — a merged report, a scanned document, an exported deck. Six positions, four formats including "Page 3 of 12", a custom starting number, and the option to leave the title page unnumbered.
Processing is entirely in your browser: the numbers are drawn into the PDF itself, so they print and display everywhere, in every viewer.
How to use PDF Page Numbers
- Drop your PDF onto the box above.
- Pick a format — plain numbers, "Page 1", or the "of N" variants.
- Pick a position and size. Bottom centre is the convention for a reason.
- Tick "skip the first page" if page 1 is a cover, then download.
How the title-page option counts
With "skip the first page" ticked, page 1 gets no number and numbering starts on page 2 with your starting value — so a 10-page report with a cover shows "1 of 9" on its first content page. That matches how documents are actually read: nobody thinks of the cover as page one, and an "of 10" that includes it makes every reference off by one.
Merging first, numbering last
Page numbers are drawn onto the pages, so they travel with them — merge two numbered documents and you get colliding sequences. The right order for building a combined document: merge everything first, then run the result through this tool once. The same goes for adding or removing pages: number last.
Where numbers go, conventionally
- Bottom centre — the near-universal default; works for single- and double-sided printing alike.
- Bottom right — common in reports; on double-sided printing it alternates sides when bound, which is why books mirror it (this tool doesn't mirror — for a bound book, use centre).
- Top positions — headers, common in legal and academic drafts where the footer is already occupied.
The numbers are permanent
They become part of the page content, like ink on paper — indistinguishable from numbers the original author added. There is no "remove numbers" tool for the same reason; keep your unnumbered original if you expect the document to grow.
Frequently asked questions
How does "skip the first page" number the rest?
Page 1 stays clean and numbering starts on page 2 with your chosen start value — and the "of N" count includes only numbered pages. A 10-page file with a cover shows "1 of 9" on page 2, which is how readers actually count a covered document.
Can I start numbering at something other than 1?
Yes — set "start counting at". Useful when a document is one volume of a set: start volume two at 47 and the sequence continues seamlessly across files.
Can I remove page numbers a PDF already has?
No — existing numbers are part of the page content, indistinguishable from any other text. That's also true of the numbers this tool adds, so keep an unnumbered original if the document is still changing.
What if a page already has a number in that spot?
The new number is drawn over whatever is there, which can collide visually. Pick a different position (top instead of bottom, right instead of centre) — six positions exist mostly for this reason.
Should I number before or after merging documents?
After. Numbers travel with their pages, so merging numbered files gives colliding sequences. Merge first with the PDF merger, then number the combined file once.