Page numbers seem trivial until you need them: a report without them looks amateur, a court filing without them can get rejected, and a book without them is unusable. Adding them to an existing PDF takes under a minute if you know the options.
Steps
1. Open /page-numbers.
2. Upload the PDF.
3. Pick a position — bottom-centre is the safe default; top-right suits legal documents; bottom-right feels editorial.
4. Choose a format —
1, Page 1, 1 of 25, or Roman numerals for a preface.
5. Set start page if you want to skip the cover.
6. Press Add Page Numbers. Download the numbered PDF.Choosing a position
Bottom-centre — the neutral, universally recognised choice. Use for reports, papers and books.
Bottom-right — feels a little more polished, common in magazines and design work.
Top-right — used in legal filings and formal correspondence; also works when the bottom margin is small.
Top-centre — rarely used; can conflict with header content.
Format options
1, 2, 3… — the default. Works for anything.
Page 1, Page 2… — clearer in reports, especially in translations where a bare number can be ambiguous.
1 of 25 — invaluable for large files being printed; readers know if a page is missing.
i, ii, iii… — for prefaces or introductions before the main content starts on page 1.
Skipping the cover page
Set start page to 2 so the cover doesn't get numbered. This is standard for reports and books. Bonus: it makes the printed page numbers match the internal chapter numbering.
When something goes wrong
Number overlaps existing content. The PDF has content close to the edge. Move the position to the opposite corner, or resize the PDF pages before numbering.
Numbers look too small on printed A3. The PDF Hub tool uses a proportional font size that reads well on screen; for very large paper sizes some manual scaling helps.
Wrong starting number. Delete the numbered file and re-add with the correct start value.
Before and after
Before adding page numbers, decide the final order. If you'll merge or split later, do it first — page numbers are baked in, so merging two numbered PDFs gives you two independent number sequences. If you know the final order in advance: Merge PDF first, then Page Numbers.
Ninety seconds of work turns a plain PDF into something that prints, files and shares like a proper document. Bottom-centre with '1 of N' format handles most cases; keep the other options for when you need them.