Add Page Numbers to PDF

Most documents want one of two things: a plain number centred at the foot of the page, which suits reports and manuscripts, or “Page 3 of 12” in a corner, which suits contracts and anything printed and handed round, because a missing page is obvious. Both are here, along with the compact “3/12”. The preview is drawn from the real output, so what you see is what downloads.

Covers, chapters and the “of N”

A cover or title page is conventionally left unnumbered, and “Skip the first page” does that: numbering starts on the second page. The start number lets a document continue where another left off — an appendix that begins at page 37, say. Either way, “of N” is the last number actually shown, so the final page always reads “Page N of N” and the count matches what the reader can see.

Landscape and rotated pages

A PDF page can be stored one way round and displayed another; scanners and phones often save landscape pages as sideways portrait pages with a rotation flag. Numbers are positioned on the page as it is displayed and turned to match, so they land along the edge you see and read upright, on every page, whatever mix of orientations the document has. Cropped pages are numbered within the visible area rather than the hidden margin.

What is added

Each number is real text in Helvetica, drawn on top of the page. Nothing already there is moved or redrawn, so the rest of the page is untouched. If a number collides with a footer already on the page, move it to another position or further from the edge.