How to Add Page Numbers and a Watermark to a PDF

A contract draft, a proposal, a report going out for review - the content is what matters, but two small touches are what make it look like it was actually prepared for the person reading it: page numbers, so a printed copy stays in order and "see page 4" means something, and a watermark, so nobody mistakes a draft for the final version.

Add page numbers

• Open Add Page Numbers to PDF and drop in the file.
• Choose bottom-center or bottom-right - either reads clearly in print.
• Download. Every page now reads "Page X of Y" in small gray text.

Mark it as a draft

• Open Add Watermark to PDF and drop in the same file (or the numbered version from the step above).
• Type the text that fits - "DRAFT" and "CONFIDENTIAL" cover most cases, but anything up to 40 characters works.
• Download. The text appears diagonally across every page at low opacity, so it reads clearly without hiding the content underneath.

Which order to do this in

Either order works, since the two tools do not interfere with each other - a page number sits in a small corner, a watermark spans the page diagonally at low opacity, and they do not overlap. Numbering first is usually more natural if you also want to sanity-check the page count before marking the file as a draft.

While you are in there

If the file is a scan or has a lot of embedded photos and ended up larger than expected, Compress PDF recompresses the images inside it before you send it out. If you are combining several documents into the one you are about to number and mark, Merge PDF does that first.

Common questions

Can I start numbering from something other than page 1? Not yet - every page numbers in order starting from 1.

Will the watermark make the file harder to read? It is deliberately low-opacity so the original content stays readable underneath, not a solid stamp blocking it out.

Is my file uploaded anywhere? No - both tools read, modify, and re-save the PDF entirely in your browser.