Add page numbers to a PDF

Formats, side by side

Here is how page 3 of a 12-page document looks in each format. "Of 12" is the last number printed, so if you leave a cover unnumbered and don't count it, the total drops to 11 as well.

Where page numbers usually go

For a report, a handout or a contract, the bottom center is the safe default: it's where most readers look, and it works whether the pages are printed on one side or both. Books and booklets put the number in the outer corner, which is what the mirror option is for. Some style guides want the top right instead: APA and MLA papers, for example, have the page number in the top right corner, and MLA puts your last name in front of it (a custom format such as Smith {n}). Check your style guide for the exact margins; the distance you set here applies from both the side and the top or bottom edge.

Half an inch (36 pt) from the edge keeps numbers clear of most printers' unprintable border, which is often about a quarter of an inch. Font sizes from 9 to 12 pt are typical for body pages.

Covers, front matter and Roman numerals

Leaving a cover unnumbered is one setting. The choice that trips people up is whether the cover still counts. With 12 pages and one cover:

• Counted (the default): page 2 shows 2 and the last page shows 12, so the printed number always matches the page number in a PDF reader's "go to page" box.
• Not counted: page 2 shows 1 and the last page shows 11, as in a book whose numbering starts after the title page.

Front matter in Roman numerals takes two passes. Say a 14-page report has four pages of contents and preface. First, number pages 1-4 in the "i, ii, iii" format: they show i, ii, iii, iv. Then load the downloaded file again, leave the first 4 pages unnumbered, turn off "Count the unnumbered pages" and start at 1: the report's first real page shows 1 and the last shows 10.

Double-sided printing

When pages are printed on both sides and bound, odd pages are on the right and even pages on the left. Numbers on the outside edge are easiest to find when flipping through, so turn on Mirror for double-sided printing with a right-hand position: odd pages get the number on the right, even pages on the left. The preview follows along as you step through the pages. If your document has a cover that will be printed on its own, check that page 1 really is a right-hand page, or add a blank page first with organize PDF pages.

What changes in your PDF

Putting a document together first? Combine the PDFs into one file, remove stray pages with delete PDF pages, turn sideways scans with rotate PDF, then number the result. For legal productions that need numbers like ABC000123 running across several files, use Bates numbering; to mark pages DRAFT or CONFIDENTIAL, use watermark PDF.