How to Add Page Numbers to a PDF

A PDF without page numbers is a document that has not been finished. Readers cannot reference specific pages, printouts get shuffled, and printed staple marks become a guessing game. Adding page numbers is a small task that makes any document more professional.

Basic workflow

1. Open Add Page Numbers.
2. Add your PDF.
3. Choose a position (bottom center is standard for most documents).
4. Choose a format. "Page 1 of 20" is clearer than "1" for standalone documents. Simple numbers are better for reports that already have headers.
5. Set the start number. If the first page is a cover, skip it via the Pages field and start numbering from page 2.
6. Click Add Page Numbers.

Common scenarios

Skip the cover page

Standard practice is to leave the cover unnumbered and start numbering from page 2, with the number 1 on the second physical page. In OmniPDF: enter 2-100 (or whatever your total page count is) in the Pages field, and set Start number to 1. The second physical page now displays "Page 1" and the cover is untouched.

Different numbering styles for front matter and body

Professional books use roman numerals (i, ii, iii) for front matter and arabic (1, 2, 3) for the body. OmniPDF currently supports only Arabic numerals. For a document that needs both, run the tool twice: once with roman-style manual text overlays for the front matter pages, then again with Arabic numbers starting at 1 for the body pages.

Adding page numbers to a merged PDF

If you merged several PDFs, the printed page numbers inside each section may not match the merged sequence. Add page numbers as a final step so the overlay sequence matches the physical page order. If the existing printed numbers are clear, you may not need to add more — check first with PDF Previewer.

Formatting options

The format field accepts these placeholders:

• {n} — current page number (with the offset applied).
• {total} — total page count of the PDF.
• {page} — the physical page index in the PDF.

Examples:

• Page {n} → "Page 4"
• {n} / {total} → "4 / 20"
• {n} → "4"
• - {n} - → "- 4 -"

Position and font size

Bottom center is the most readable position for most documents. Bottom right is common in academic papers. Top right is standard for legal and business documents. Top center is rarely used except for very formal reports.

Font size 10 is a safe default. Font size 9 is fine for dense documents with small body text. Font size 12 is appropriate for large format documents or presentations.

OmniPDF uses Helvetica. This is the most widely supported PDF font and renders identically on every device.

What page numbers do not do

• They do not create clickable links. For navigation with links, use Add Bookmarks instead.
• They do not remove existing page numbers. If the source PDF already has numbers printed on each page, OmniPDF adds numbers on top — they will overlap.
• They do not appear in the sidebar outline. Only bookmarks create outline entries.

Privacy

Adding page numbers runs entirely in your browser. Nothing is uploaded.