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Edit & Text

Add a header and footer to a PDF, free

Put a title, a date, the file name or Page 1 of 12 at the top and bottom of every page — left, center or right, or all three. Real text, written in your browser; nothing is uploaded.

Headers & Footers

Settings appear once you add a PDF.

Use | to split it: left | right, or left | center | right.

Fill-ins: {page}, {pages}, {date} and {file} (the file name).

Advanced 11
Text without a | goes

For a document that continues from page 41, type 41.

Leave the first page blank For a cover. The count then starts on page 2.
Thin line under the header and over the footer
Swap left and right on even pages For documents printed on both sides, so the page number is always on the outside edge.
Size
Distance from the edge
Typeface

Bytes sent anywhere: 0 B

  • 100% private Your PDFs never leave this device. Everything runs in your browser.
  • No limits No file-size cap, no watermark, no sign-up and no daily quota. Free.
  • Batch ready Add as many PDFs as you like; each one is handled and saved in one go.

How to add a header and footer to a PDF

  1. Add your PDFs: Drop the PDF, or several: each one is counted from its own first page.

  2. Check the settings: Type the header and footer. A bar splits the text across the page — “Confidential | Page {page} of {pages}” puts one at each edge — and {date} and {file} fill themselves in.

  3. Save the result: Save. The text is written into every page as real text, so it prints, can be searched, and looks the same in every viewer.

Why it doesn’t upload

Headers usually go on documents that are about to be sent somewhere formal: a report to a client, a submission, a board pack marked Confidential. The words are added here in your browser tab, so the document is never held on someone else’s server while it happens.

Check it in your browser’s Network tab

Worth knowing

  • Headers and footers are drawn on top of the page. If the page already has text in that strip — an old footer, a letterhead — move yours with Distance from the edge, or white the old one out first with Edit PDF.
  • Text too long for the page’s width is made smaller to fit rather than cut off, so keep a header to a short line.
  • {date} is today’s date on this device, written once. It doesn’t update when the file is opened later.
  • Chinese, Japanese and Korean characters aren’t in the fonts yet and would come out as empty boxes.
  • A PDF that asks for a password when it opens has to be unlocked first, because the file is rewritten.

Under the hood

What happens to your file

The header and footer are drawn onto each page with pdf-lib as real text, at the left, center or right of the page as it is displayed — a page stored sideways with a /Rotate entry still gets them at its visual top and bottom, reading the right way up. {page} and {pages} are counted over the pages that get a header, and {date} is fixed when you save. Plain Latin text uses a standard PDF font that is not embedded; other scripts use a subset of Noto. Nothing else in the file changes.

Runs on pdf-lib

Reference: pdf-lib documentation · ISO 32000-2 (PDF 2.0)

Why add headers and footers to a PDF?

A running header or footer — a title, CONFIDENTIAL, the date, Page 3 of 12 — makes a document look finished and keeps every printed page identifiable on its own. Adding one usually means going back to the original Word file; here it’s written straight onto the PDF.

Fill-ins like {page}, {pages}, {date} and {file} complete themselves, and the text is real and selectable. It all happens in your browser.

Common uses for PDF headers and footers

  • Confidentiality labels

    Put CONFIDENTIAL on the left and the page number on the right of every page.

  • Dating documents

    Add today’s date to every page of a report or a statement of work.

  • Identifying printed pages

    Put the file name in the header so a loose page can be traced to its document.

  • Client deliverables

    Add the client’s name and project title to every page.

  • Double-sided printing

    Swap left and right on even pages so page numbers sit on the outside edge.

Tips for PDF headers and footers

  1. Use a bar to split text across the page: “Confidential | Page {page} of {pages}”.
  2. Keep headers to a short line; long text is shrunk to fit the page width.
  3. Move them further from the edge if the page already has a letterhead or old footer.
  4. Turn on the thin line for a classic report look.
  5. {date} is fixed when you save; it doesn’t update when the file is opened later.

Questions

How do I add a header and footer to a PDF without Acrobat?

Drop the PDF here, type the header and footer, and press Add header and footer. The text is written into each page of the file itself, so it shows in every viewer and on paper — no Acrobat, no account and no watermark.

Can I put text on the left and the page number on the right?

Yes. Separate them with a bar: Confidential | Page {page} of {pages} puts the first part at the left edge and the second at the right. Three parts go left, center and right.

How do I add the date to every page of a PDF?

Type {date} anywhere in the header or footer. It becomes today’s date on every page, in the style you pick under Advanced, from September 29, 2026 to 2026-09-29.

Can I leave the cover page without a header?

Yes. Open Advanced and turn on Leave the first page blank, or type the pages that should get one, like 2-30. The {page} count starts on the first page that gets a header.

What’s the difference between this and Add Page Numbers?

Add Page Numbers puts one number in one place. This writes a whole line at the top and bottom — a title, the date, the file name, a label — with the page number as one part of it if you want.

Read more about this

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