How to Add Page Numbers to a PDF

This article was co-authored by wikiHow staff writer, Darlene Antonelli, MA. Darlene Antonelli is a Technology Writer and Editor for wikiHow. Darlene has experience teaching college courses, writing technology-related articles, and working hands-on in the technology field. She earned an MA in Writing from Rowan University in 2012 and wrote her thesis on online communities and the personalities curated in such communities.

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This wikiHow will teach you how to add page numbers to a PDF using Adobe Acrobat and a web browser. You have to either have a subscription to Adobe DC or have purchased Adobe 2020 to be able to use the program, but you can use the web browser Smallpdf application for free.

Method 1 of 2:

Using Adobe

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If you want to try Adobe Acrobat, you can read more about how to get it in How to Use Adobe Acrobat.

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Open the PDF to which you want to add page numbers. You can either click File > Open or right-click the file in your file manager and select Open With > Adobe Acrobat.

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. This arrow will be on the right side of the app window and will display a menu.

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The menu options in the tools panel on the right side of the window will change and a new menu will appear along the top of your document.

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An "Add Header & Footer" window will pop up.

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Adjust the header margin and font values as necessary. You'll see a preview of the Header in the space below the header, "Preview."

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Click OK . The page numbers will display on each page as you set up on the "Add Header & Footer" window. [1] X Research source

Advertisement Method 2 of 2:

Using Smallpdf on Web Browser

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Without an account, you can use Smallpdf for 2 tasks. If you want to do more with Smallpdf, create an account with a 14-day free trial.

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Upload your PDF. Click Choose File or drop a PDF into the box. When you click Choose File, your file manager will open and you'll be able to select your PDF to upload.

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Select a location to add numbers and click Number Pages . You'll see to the right of your upload an image of your PDF. Click to add a checkmark to a circle to add your numbers to the file in that area.

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Click Download and save your edited PDF. It's on the right side of your PDF preview. If you don't like the numbering, you can click Start over.

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